Notes for a class

Below are some notes that I will use as a quick introduction to 2 hour hands on demo/workshop.

GLASS HISTORY

·        The first beads were made 80-100,000 years ago. They were made of simple natural materials, such as shells, seeds, or bone.

·        However, early humans did know what glass was, as it can be formed naturally when its basic raw materials are exposed to great heat, through volcanic activity or lighting strikes on beaches. Early humans used obsidian (volcanic glass) to make tools, weapons, and jewelry. Glassy slags are also formed in cremation fires, and in furnaces and kilns when metals or ceramics are being fired.

·        Man  made glass and glass beads developed around 3,000 BCE in Mesopotamia, later spreading to Egypt. The development of the bellows during that time perhaps enabled glass technology, which requires high heat.

·        Ancient glass has the same basic components as does one of the most popular types of glass used by bead makers today, silica, soda (a flux to lower the melting point of silica), and lime (calcium to harden the glass).

o   [silica melts at 3,092 F. [1,700 C.] adding flux allows glass to melt at a significantly lower temperature, about 2,372 F. [1,300 C.]

·        Glass made from these ingredients will naturally be slightly colored (often a light green) due to metal impurities in the sand 

·        Over time, people started to experiment with adding metals (such as Iron, Cobalt, Copper, Tin, and others) to glass to purposefully create color.

SOCIAL MEANING OF GLASS BEADS

Bead may seem like pretty, but inconsequential items. However, that could not be further from the truth. 
Throughout history beads have been traded far and wide, used as religious or spiritual talismans to protect the wearer, and served as symbolic indicators of social rank.  
Like all objects of adornment, beads have a significance that is unspoken, but very real, and which could be read by the people who wore them.

HOW GLASS BEADS ARE MADE

Glass beads can be made in many ways, but the method we will be demonstrating is called Winding. As you will see shortly, this method involves the use of a metal rod, called a mandrel today, around which the glass is "wound" 
What we are teaching you is called Flameworking, the use of a gas powered torch to melt the glass that is used to create beads. 
 It evolved from Lampworking, which began in Venice during the late middle ages (15th c). Lampworking uses a blowpipe to force air into the flame from an oil lamp to make beads. The blow pipe would increase the heat of the flame enough to melt the glass. 
In the early middle ages, glass beads were made either over an open hearth, or in a wood fueled furnace. 

SOCIETY PERIOD CULTURES WHO MADE BEADS

·        There are many cultures and time periods to choose from if you are interested in making historic beads.

·        A few cultures whose glass beads I have researched and made are: Phoenician, Roman, Anglo-Saxons, Early Irish, Merovingian, and Scandinavian. I have also done a bit of research on Islamic glass beads (a very generic term for beads made in the middle east from  600-1400 b.c.e).

·        I have a book which has pictures of beads from these different cultures.

Two September demo/teaching events

A Day at the Solar -
This was a very nice small A&S event where the focus was not on classes, but on creating opportunities for people to try different arts that were being displayed and demonstrated over the course of the day. This is actually the way I do most of my teaching, so it worked out well. I had one particularly enthusiastic person stop by, and because we were not very busy with people, she had the chance to make 4 beads that day. I'm glad I could let her play so much with the torch!

Beads made at this event by someone I taught.

Wrightstown Renaissance Faire -
Since this event was a demo, there was not an opportunity to teach, but people from the faire stopped by to watch Aibhilin and I make beads during the day. One day I'd love to bring a more period fire source to an event like this!

A view of our booth in the SCA area of the faire.

Bhakail Commons

Me, Suba, and Aibilin at Bhakail Commons

This day didn't start out as a demo/teaching day, however, once people saw Aibilin and I making beads, they came over to watch, ask questions, and a few even asked to make beads themselves.  If you bring your torch, they will come to make beads!

We also used this opportunity to give Aibilin practice teaching. Teaching someone how to teach is an interesting thing to do. We started out by having her watch me (which she has been doing for some time already). She then taught a few people, and I watched and provided some commentary to her about what I might have done differently and why. This was also a great opportunity for me to learn from her. Aibilin has watched others teach (most recently at Pennsic), and a few of the things she was saying during her time instructing people are ideas that I should include as a regular part of my lesson!

Pennsic Recap

This Pennsic was a very A&S filled year!

1. A&S War Point
I never thought that I would get to participate in a war point, so I was very happy to have had the opportunity to be involved in this one! Happily the East/Mid won the A&S point, and I came in the top three artisans on the East/Mid side. A very good day and a great experience. I hope the war point happens again next year.

Article from the EK Gazette about the war point.

2. A&S Display

3. Artisan's Village
I participated in both the peace week and war week glass Artisan's Village again this year.

4. Classes
Of the 3 classes I taught, all seemed to go well. I taught Recreating Historic Beads as a Beginner for the second time this year. I fixed an issue from last year, where I had too many separate handouts, something with made the class a little disjointed. I reworked my handouts so I only had 3 this year, and the flow of the class felt better.

The class on Reproducing Glass Beads Using Archaeological Reports was an expansion of a previous class. I added in information about how to find these resources based on feedback from my peer, and it was exactly what the class needed, I think. The attendees seemed to find value in it, and I know at least two people who I talked to came because they were having research problems with a specific project they were doing.

The last class Recreating Anglo-Saxon Glass Beads was one I taught for the first time, and it was my first hands on class.  The 45 minute lecture at the start on Anglo-Saxon beads was well received, and made the class useful for those who were not able to secure one of the hands on spaces. It was nice to be able to use the research and documentation I conducted for A&S competitions to teach a class. However, I learned the most from teaching the hands on portion of the class 1) people of widely varying skill levels will attend this class. I had people who just learned to make a bead at Pennsic and people who were intermediate bead makers both in the class. I was prepared for varying skill levels, but I didn't think I'd get brand new bead makers in the class! 2) Get extra helpers or a co-teacher! There ended up being 8 set ups for people to use to make beads, which was more than I thought I would have. This was great, as more people could take the hands on part of the class, but it also meant that I had to help more people at the same time. Luckily, Erica was there and graciously agreed to help, as did another advanced glass bead maker who attended the class. 3) I think that next time I will choose just a few few beads (each of a different skill level) for people to reproduce, rather than letting them choose any bead from Brugmann's book to work on.  I will also demo those beads before letting people play. This way I can focus a bit more on teaching people how to really look at the bead, considering its shape, color, measurements, etc. before recreating it. I talked about this a bit during the lecture, but did not demo it.

Pennsic Classes

Below are the titles and descriptions of the classes I will be teaching at Pennsic this year.

Recreating Anglo-Saxon Glass Beads
This class will begin with an overview of resources and information on Anglo-Saxon glass beads. I will review different bead types and information about how necklace styles changed over time during the Anglo-Saxon period. I will bring some of my own projects and documentation to share with the class in the hopes of encouraging students to take up some Anglo-Saxon-related recreation projects. During the second half of the class we will spend some time recreating a few Anglo-Saxon beads.
I only have 4 lampworking kits, but anyone is invited to attend to listen/watch. Please feel free to bring your own lampworking kit if you want to participate in the hands-on portion of the class. I will work with students to pick beads to recreate based on the skill level of the students and the class as a whole, but attendees should (at the very least) know how to make and shape a basic bead. More experienced lampworkers are encouraged to help out during the hands-on portion of the class and to bring any Anglo-Saxon-related resources and projects to share with the group. (2 hours)
This is a new class for me, and the first time I'm teaching a hands on class at Pennsic.

Recreating Historic Beads as a Beginner
Creating historically accurate glass beads is not as hard as you might think. You can make period beads at any skill level! Resources and strategies will be shared with attendees in this lecture/discussion class to help get you on the path to making beads that you can enter in A&S displays and competitions. We will discuss good starting points and first projects. The instructor will use her knowledge of Anglo-Saxon glass beads as an example, and share research and projects that others are invited to use and make their own.
This class is appropriate for beginning bead makers and intermediate bead makers who have not done much research into period beads or entered their beads into A&=S competitions before. Experienced bead makers are invited to attend to discuss their own first projects and to share additional resources and strategies.
I taught this for the first time last Pennsic. It is also the topic of a Tournaments Illuminated article I wrote.

Reproducing Glass Beads Using Archeological Reports
Learn how to find and use archaeological reports to reproduce glass beads (and other early period items) found in graves at excavation sites. These reports provide a wealth of information that is not available from museum or other websites. The focus of this presentation will be on Anglo-Saxon excavation reports and how I have used those reports to reproduce historic glass beads and necklaces. However, artisans interested in other early period items and crafts  should find this presentation valuable.
This is an expanded version of the presentation I gave at the Voyages of Discovery event last year.

Artisans' Village

Wow.... what a day!  Sixteen bead makers showed up with their kits to make beads with us. A few stayed for only part of the day, but many hung out in the lampworking village the entire day.  It was beautiful to see, and I wish I had gotten a panoramic picture of the lampworking village with everyone happily making beads, demonstrating, talking, and teaching.


I had asked a few people (Elizabeth, Carowyn, Erlan, and Erica) months in advance of the event to demonstrate and teach in the village with me. However, during the week or two leading up to the event, people kept telling me, over social media or in person, that they would be attending. I'm glad they did, because it allowed us to prepare enough space for everyone to work. Luckily, the event site had a huge supply of picnic tables, and a mostly shady area for us to play in, because we could not have accommodated such numbers otherwise. We set eight picnic tables up in a large "U" shape to allow visitors to approach and ask questions. This was a set up that had worked well at River Wars in the past. I had brought two full loaner bead kits, which was a good thing, because while the kits were not needed (as most people had kits already) some individuals did need an item or two to complete their set up so they could safety play. It might be nice in the future if we get such large numbers again to indicate in some way which demonstrators were available to teach new people to make beads, but I think new people ended up getting to the people who could teach them as most of the teachers were located on the outer edges of the village. Rather than teaching many people how to make their first bead, I ended up working more at this event with people who had some lamp working background, trying to teach or explain new skills.

I very much hope this event happens again, because it was wonderful to see so many people making beads together!

One attendee suggested finding a structured time for the more experienced beadmakers to get together and teach/learn from each other. I will have to think about how to incorporate that into the lampworking village next time.

SRWC_2015

Another artisan's row style demonstration! Aibhilin jointly demonstrated with me the entire time, and Druetta joined us during the last hour.

We had a few people make a bead for the first time, but the highlight was demonstrating for several young children, and then letting them pick a bead from my stash to take with them. They were so serious and deliberative in their choices! Aibhilin again brought ribbon again to string the beads on, which I think is a great idea.

The main lesson for the day is always tie down the ez-up, as towards the end of the demonstration it tried to escape over the roof of the building!

Also- I entered the firebrick bead kiln documentation (with pictures) based on the experiments Aibhilin, Bruni, and I did into the populace choice competition, where it won!  So, go us :)

May-be Event in Iron Bog

A happy day spent teaching and demonstrating glass beads.

I really love May-be. Its  small local event, and I get to spend the entire day demonstrating and teaching. Plenty of customers, but not too overwhelming. I also really like making beads to order for the younger children who come over to visit and are not old enough to try on their own.

Mudthaw Artisans Row & Peerage Token Project

Demonstrating for a new beadmaker

 So Mudthaw's Artisan Row happened!

Erica was lovely enough to stop by and ended up helping me quite a bit. She filled in when I was a bit late due to court, and when I needed to go get lunch. Demonstrating was a bit slow this time, due to overcrowding (i was in the very back), so i took some time to make tokens for Erica for her May-be event, and to teach/watch Erica make beads.

Erica wanted to learn how to make twisties, so I found myself teaching that skill for the first time. I took a few minutes before teaching her to make a few twisties myself so I could try to mentally break down the sequence of actions I use when making them, especially the timing of each action. She ended up doing a great job when she tried herself!  Teaching this skill has made me realize how much of the "timing" of this skill that I have internalized. To make a twistie you need to know how long to heat the glass, how long to wait after you pull it out of the fire before doing anything (waiting a little bit at this point is hugely important...if you don't wait, your twistie will end up too thin or uneven) and when to twist v.s. pull v.s wait a second for the glass to cool. I found myself talking to Erica as she was trying to make her first first twisty, guiding her through the timing, saying things like "wait," "twist," "pull," "twist faster," etc. Erica will need to practice to internalize this timing on her own, but hopefully going through this a few times with me will help her do that!

Erica Making a Bead

Mudthaw was also a very wonderful event because a good friend got her Laurel at the event. I was able to make tokens for her to give out to people who visited her during the day. It felt really wonderful to be able to participate in her ceremony in such a concrete way!

The design of the tokens was based on her heraldry. Because I was making 50 of them, I also tried to pick a design that would be easy to do! Seeing people wearing the tokens I made at the event was also cool!

More Beadmaking/Teaching

 Novice Schola, Barony of Bergental (Massachusetts), 2/8

Marion drove me up to Bergental so I could teach at their Novice Schola. I demonstrated beadmaking for 3 hours at this event, and taught several people to make beads. On person even e-mailed me after the event looking for information on getting a beginners kit! For this event I also brought a book filled with pictures of period bead. The book seemed to work well and catch the interest of several people during the day.

Making beads at Martin's Workshop (Bhakail) 3/16

This was a nice low key A&S workshop that is held most Monday's in Bhakail. Several people in the Barony have bead making kits, so they have started making beads during some of these workshop. I came down to play, and I hope to do so again sometime. I got to teach one new person (picture below), and share the new modern beadmaking books that I just bought. 

Making beads with Erica 3/21

I went to Erica's house in NJ to make beads with her. We also used this opportunity to begin to make beads for tokens to be used at an Event in Iron Bog in May.

Two Bead Making/Teaching Weekends

Uber Crafty at Stacy's House in North Jersey, Feb 7

Thoughts from teaching at "Uber Crafty"

1. Even if someone has made a bead once or twice before, it is likely a good idea to still go over the basics with them, especially having them go through the motions w/o fire first. I think that might have helped in one instance. One mistake that beginners often make is that they turn the mandrel the wrong way. Sometimes this can be difficult to correct, because they end up forming a habit pretty fast. A way to help fix this might be to ask the student to follow my voice instructions as I walk them through step by step the process of making a bead,  guide the student's hands, or take over the job of applying the glass, so the student can concentrate on winding the mandrel in the correct direction.

2. I find it really nice when other bead makers give me small tools or special kinds of glass to let me try something new. This has a very encouraging effect, and I'd like to see if this is something I can try doing. Perhaps I could let people play with some of my twisted stringers? That might be a nice thing to give out to let people who cannot make them yet have fun with them.

Making Beads at Valentina's House in Delaware, Feb 14

                                    Beads made on Feb 14th.

This beadmaking day was organized by Carowyn to make beads for a necklace that woudl be given to TRM's to use as a gift during their travels to other kingdoms. It was fun to work on a project with others! I'd love to do something like this again.

Voyages of Discovery- Power Point

Link to power point presentation here


Feedback from the presentation included the idea that this may be something that would benefit from a longer class (not a half hour, but a full hour) with information added to help attendees figure out how to find such sources themselves (I had a slide on that topic, but ran short of time). It was also suggested that a resource lists might be a good thing to send people home with. Maybe I can make a list of Anglo-Saxon  reports, both ones that I have used, and perhaps others referenced in some of my texts.

Lampworking Workshop

This Sunday I taught a lampworking workshop to five students at the home of Bhakail's A&S Minister. This was the first time that I had formally taught a group of people. All of my previous instruction had been one-on-one.  It was a wonderful experience and I learned a lot. A few things of note include:

-More materials to purchase: marvers and plyers for each participant
-Buy little bags for people to take their beads home in.
-Allow much more time for clean up and cool down than I had thought!
-I also got some very positive feedback about the order of my instruction. I had people practice pulling stringers before making beads, and doing this activity seemed to make the process of making their first bead much easier, and a little less scary, for attendees.
-Finally, over the last year or so of teaching, it has been interesting to see how people approach learning lampworking differently. Some people are very precise when they try to make beads, and these individuals usually try to mimic what I am showing them as closely as they can. Others get creative and immediately try new things. While I tend to be one of the former people when I am learning, I think its important to create a space where people can learn and play in the way that works best for them.

Demonstration & Instruction

A few beads made by workshop attendees.

Preparation for October A&S Workshop in Bhakail

Class Title: Introduction to Making Glass Beads 

Class limit: 4 students who are brand new to lampworking. More experienced students who have made at least a few glass beads before and have their own kits can attend as space allows.

Materials Fee: $15 (covers the gas used for the torch and glass to play with). Attendees will be able to take home all of their finished beads.

Description: This class will provide attendees with a basic introduction to glass bead making (lampworking/flameworking). It will cover how to make a bead, and also how to shape and decorate beads with dots and lines. In addition to this hands on practice, I will discuss what glass beadmaking was like in period, and provide handouts designed to help you start thinking about making historically accurate glass beads with your new found skills. After this introductory material is covered, I will be available to workshop with more advanced students. If there is a skill you wish to learn or practice, please let me know. I will also bring some of my other sources and documentation with me for people interested in learning more about early period beads.

Note:  If possible, please wear clothing made from natural fibers, close toed shoes, and a shirt with tight fitting sleeves.

Outline
bring example beads of the types we will be making during the workshop

the significance of glass beads in the early middle ages

period v.s. modern tools and techniques

introduction to materials and mandrel preparation

safety discussion
practice turning the torch on/off, and drying mandrels
make stringer (2 different methods) and learning the feel of the glass
making a bead
adding more glass to make a larger bead (disk method)
basic shaping (barrel & cylinder)
decorating beads (frit, dots, and stacked dots)

how to make period glass beads as a beginner

Materials needed for each participant (or for participants to share)
4 torch heads
4 torch clamp assemblies (L brackets, hose clamps, C clamps)
4 cookie sheets
4 tanks of mapp gas (pluss a few extra)
4 butter knives for marvers
4 yellow rods, 4 red rods
10 mandrels per person

frit in various colors
2 vermiculite containers
2 containers with sand for mandrels
2 containers of bead release to share
4 spoons for frit
4 chopsticks for pulling stringer
2 bbq lighters
4 pairs of safety glasses

Handouts
-Materials list and picture
-"How to Make a Wound Bead" step by step guide
-"Making Historic Glass Beads as a Beginner" article
-"Social Meaning of Beads" article
-Handout discussing period v.s. modern tools and techniques

Wrightstown Demo

This past Saturday I attended an SCA demo that was part of a much larger weekend  long Renaissance Faire. I have not always enjoyed demos  in the past, however, because of the large crowd at this event, there were a lot of people who stopped by to watch us make beads!



Because the crowd was so large, we roped off the front of my pop up to prevent people, and the many children who were in attendance, from getting too close to the fire.

I was also pleased that remembered to bring a picture of a reproduction early period bead kiln with me. This visual helped when I was explaining to people that while we were using modern tools to make our beads, the basic method we used was the same one that people used in earlier times.

River War 2014

I first learned how to make glass beads at River Wars, two years ago, so this event is somewhat of an anniversary for me! We had a bead making artisans row space again, which was good. Although the windy weather made bead making difficult at first, it calmed down later enough for us to let some people try to make beads.

Erica, Bruni, and Erlan (not pictured, Elizabeth and Aurddreilen)

I was asked twice today about how beads were made in period. I was able to describe the kilns that were used, but I did not have pictures with me, which is something I think I want to bring with me to demo's in the future. Below are a few videos of people working with reconstructed period bead kilns. Two basic types of kilns have been reconstructed by reenactors.

1) Volcano Kiln: opening at the top (this is the type of Kiln Bruni and I attempted at Pennsic)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TIreddPywfU&list=PLXBSIh9PcqLK96Ex09aPZCmnDjvnfKnl3
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3EBvkz3IWUA&list=PLXBSIh9PcqLK96Ex09aPZCmnDjvnfKnl3&index=5

2) Beehive Kiln: side opening.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=HSFgO8TzxVs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=cniQ9VStwTM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=BCYdD5trNys
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J0tUBowpqlw

Metalsmiths Symposium 2014

This year at MSS I did a lot of one-on-one teaching at the bead bar. I also signed up to teach two classes. One was the same class I taught at Pennsic this year, the other was an Anglo-Saxon Glass Bead Roundtable. The full class description for this is below.

A few organizational thoughts about the bead bar:

1. I should label all my tools. Things get shared around, which is great, but I want to get it all back at the end!

2. I forget where I first saw this done, but I've been putting masking tape  on the end of a mandrel after a new person has made a bead, and writing their name on the tape. This is SO incredibly helpful, and it makes sure everyone gets the bead that they have made.

3. I think i want to have some different color frit out next time for new people to play with, as that is the easiest way of decorating a bead that I know of, and would not really require me teaching them any new skills (such as shaping and stringer work).

A few thoughts about teaching one-on-one

1. I think i should turn the flame up a bit higher than i have been doing for new people. It will be easier for them to get the glass to melt and to make sure it stays melted as the wind on the bead.

2. When teaching younger children, I think it helps for me to participate with them in making a bead the first time, by either twirling the mandrel or applying the glass. I think having to only worry about one hand at a time will make it easier for them to learn.

Erica and I at the bead bar at MSS

Anglo-Saxon Glass Beads: An Overview and Resource Round Table

Lady Elysabeth Underhill

This session will begin with a very brief overview of what the instructor has learned about Anglo-Saxon glass beads. The projects the instructor has completed and the resources she has gathered will be discussed and shared with attendees. After this introduction, others are invited to share their own resources and knowledge regarding Anglo-Saxon glass beads. Attendees can then look in more detail at the instructor’s resources, and the class can take some time to discuss how certain beads were made. We can then retire to the bead bar for hands on demonstration, if desired.

Pennsic A&S

Artisans Row
There were two days of glass bead making at the Pennsic Artisan's Row this year. Below are pictures from the first day, where Bruni and I spent the whole day making beads, and where I got to share documentation with people!

Arts and Sciences Display

 

Bead Kiln
Using Bruni's extensive knowledge of pottery, and some research articles we found (particularly this one, and the citation mentioned in this online article), we made an experimental bead kiln. After talking with Bruni, I've included a few thoughts below, but hopefully we will get more written about this later!

From Bruni I learned about building with clay. We used coils, which was a common period method, and we scored the coils to get them to stick to each other better. The article listed above discussed another person's experimental bead kiln, where they used clay, straw, and sand. We included some straw and sand in our kiln, but not as much as the article suggested, so that is something to play with in the future. When making the hole in the side of the kiln to blow air into, we extended that small pipe into the center of the kiln. This was a suggestion made by a camp member, so that the kiln would heat evenly. During our previous try at kiln building, the side of the kiln with the air hole got hotter than the other side, and cracked.

We dried the kiln for several days before firing it. I learned that firing wet clay causes it to pop and shatter. Our bead kiln popped once or twice when we fired it (Pennsic was damp!), but it held up pretty well.  We added coal (with no lighter fluid). Once we got a fire going, we used an air mattress blower to increase the heat. This worked, and the kiln was able to soften the glass (which you see above).  It did not get as molten as when using a torch, but it was definitely soft, and that is enough. The air mattress blower worked to increase the heat of the kiln, but it was a definitely too strong (even holding it at a distance from the air hole). A bellows, or manual air pump would be better.

This is me trying to make a bead. Next time, adding more coal and letting the fire heat up for longer (as well as getting a more regular source of air flow into the kiln) might help get the glass a bit softer, making it easier to shape and work. I don't think the bead held onto enough heat to let me shape it much outside the kiln.

The finished bead. Coil marks are still visible, but they are also still visible on some extant beads I have seen. I had to use cutters to cut the piece if glass off the rod, as the kiln was not hot enough for me to flame cut the glass rod as I would do with a torch. If we can get the Kiln just a bit hotter, using a better air source and more coal, I think this will work well.

Class Notes: Making Period Glass Beads as a Beginner

At Pennsic this year I am teaching a class called "Making Period Glass Beads as a Beginner."

Class Description: Creating historically accurate glass beads is not as hard as you might think. You can make period beads at any skill level! Resources and strategies will be shared with attendees in this lecture/discussion class to help get you on the path to making beads that you can enter in A&S displays and competitions. We will discuss good starting points and first projects. The instructor will use her knowledge of Anglo-Saxon glass beads as an example, and share research and projects that others are invited to use and make their own. This class is appropriate for beginning bead makers and intermediate bead makers who have not done much research into period beads or entered their beads into A&S competitions before. Experienced bead makers are invited to attend to discuss their own first projects and to share additional resources and strategies

You can read my complete notes for this class by clicking on this link: Class Notes.

Teaching Lampworking- one-on-one

Below are some notes for  teaching  people to do lampworking for the first time. I'm primarily using this to help gather my thoughts. What is below represents, for me, the idea introductory session. However, the session outlined below would take a good bit of time, and in a demo session, someone may not want to stick around that long, or there may be a line of people waiting to try.

Overall, my goal is to get students making beads quickly and simply as possible, so they can see how fun and easy it is. However, I also want them to be successful (so they will want to do it again!) A one-on-one lesson like this would not include a lot of history or background, unless the student asks questions.

I plan to modify this document over time as I learn more about teaching.

1. Discussion of Recommended Attire:

• Safety Glasses: To protect against flying glass (glass can shock if it is heated up to quickly). IMO, regular safety glasses will do if someone is just learning, though at some point I may want to let the students look through my glasses, so they can see what things are like with the soda flare removed. I have regular glasses to lend
• No loose clothing or hair
• Clothing with natural fibers is highly recommended, as are long sleeves. I have fire resistant arm guards I can share if needed. I also purchased a leather apron that students can use after seeing a friend use one to teach beads.
• Close toed shoes are recommended.

2. Safety: Since we are playing with fire, this is very important to discuss!

• Fire is hot. You may get a small burn (think cooking), but, if we are careful we should be just fine.  I have aloe gel if anything happens.
• Do not get up out of your seat with the torch still on. If you  need to suddenly get up, just turn the torch off at any point, by turning the knob to the left.
• Do not reach above the torch, or across it in front of you. If the student needs something they can't reach, I can help them get it.
• Pay attention to where you put your glass rod and other tools, and remember they will be hot if you have used them. Always point the hot end of the glass rod or tools away from yourself. Even better, use a glass rod rest.
• If small pieces of glass chip off your glass rod, that is normal, don't let it startle you too much. If a large piece of glass should fall off, don't pick it up (it is likely to be hot). If something lands on you, just brush it off (this is why we want natural fibers in our clothing).
• When making a bead, if the bead feels like it is not sticking to the mandrel, stop immediately, and put the mandrel down on the metal tray, or dunk it in the small glass of water we have off to the side.

Note: Everything I have students do from this point in, I will talk through, demonstrate, and then have them do.

3. Review tools (in addition to glasses, discussed above)

• Torch head
• Mapp Gass
• Clamp for torch to attach it safely to the table
• heat proof surface for infront of the torch.
• Glass rods
• Mandrels coated in bead release.
• Marver for shaping the bead
• Fire extinguisher (just incase)

 4. Getting a feel for the glass/pulling stringer

• Turn the torch on (have students practice this)
• Take a full length rod of glass (preferably one very noticeably changes color when hot (like yellow) and introduce the middle of it high into the flame. Talk about why we start high in the flame (to heat the glass slowly so it doesn't shock and crack). Talk about the need to rotate the rod constantly for even heating.
• Once the rod starts to change color, slowly move the rod down closer to the flame (just above the inner blue cone), continuing to rotate it. Discuss the color change in the glass that occurs as it heats up. Tell students not to put glass in the blue part of the flame, stay an inch or two above that.  They will know if they are working too low in the flame, because the flame hisses (demonstrate this). Glass can discolor if worked too low in the flame.
• While the part of the glass in the flame gets hot, glass is a poor conductor, so the rod itself remains cold.
• Once the glass is molten (where it starts to sag and move on its own), you can push and pull the ends of the glass rod slightly to get a feel for what the molten glass feels like.
• Before the glass gets too hot, take the rod out of the flame (towards or away???), let it firm up a bit (its color will change back), and then put it back in the flame, and repeat the above process (a few times if desired). You an always take the glass out of the heat briefly if it gets to wobbly, or you need a few moments to think and reset yourself.
• Hold the rod in the flame until a small ball of glass forms in the middle (the ends of the rods can be pushed slightly in to help this).
• Move the rod in front of the torch (towards or away???), count to 3, and then pull slowly but firmly on both rods (don't pull too fast!). Watch the class stretch out, become thin, and then cool. Congratulations, you have pulled your first stringer. We use these to add decoration to beads.  Over time, and through practice, you will learn how to reliably make stringers of different thicknesses and lengths. This is also just one way to make stringers, there are others. Repeat a few more times.

4. Practice rotating the mandrel without fire!

• The mandrel is usually held in the non dominant hand, and glass is added with the dominant hand.
• Put the mandrel in the students hand in an overhand grip ( to me, this grip feels more secure for something that will be constantly rotated). Have them practice turning the mandrel away from them. It should be don relatively slowly! Rotating too fast wont let enough heat sink into the bead to shape it.
• Put a glass rod in the dominant hand in an underhanded grip (this grip allows the hand to be place perpendicular to the mandrel when adding glass, this will result in better beads in the long run). Have the student rotate the rod back and forth (it does not have to rotate around in a circle, both sides of the rod just have to be heated.
• Then do both of the above at the same time.

6. Making a small bead (do this a few times)

• Turn on torch (can do this for the student at the start)
• Introduce the end of the glass rod high into the flame. Once the glass is glowing, slowly bring it down in the flame and heat it up as demonstrated in section three, making sure to keep rotating it.
• The glass should begin to form a small ball, and it should have a consistent glow.
• While the ball on the end of the glass rod is forming, pick up the mandrel (with bead release on it- so the glass does not stick to the bead), and preheat it by putting it in the flame above the glass rod for about 10 seconds (rotating it gently). The mandrel needs to be hot for the glass to stick (demonstrate it not sticking) However, the metal is thin and not a great conductor, so the end of the mandrel you are holding will stay cool.  
• Once the mandrel is preheated, turn glass rod perpendicular to the mandrel. Position the mandrel right outside the flame (towards the back of the flame)
• Have the tip of the glass rod pass through the flame and touch the mandrel gently. Just the tip! As it touches, pull the rod back very slightly and rotate the mandrel away from you slowly. Try to make a complete circle with the glass you have melted. We leave the rod in the flame as we do this so the glass stays soft and continues to melt. There should be a small triangle of molten glass between the bead you are winding and the glass rod (think fiber drafting triangle).
• Once a complete circle has been made, continue to turn the bead away from you slowly, but also stretch the glass rod back slightly towards you to thin the stream of glass out. If the glass stiffens and you can't pull it this way, just leave the glass in the fire for a second or two until it gets molten again, and then resume turning and pulling. Eventually the stream of glass should be thin enough to break. Put the glass rod down, hot part away from you or on the glass rod rest.
• The bead is bumpy now, but we can smooth it out in the flame. Continue rotating the bead away from you but move it into the flame. If the bead gets too hot and wobbly, just bring it higher in the flame, or slightly outside the flame to cool it down. Rotate until the bead is mostly round, glass wants to be round, so the bead will even out a good bit. Also, remember,  this is a hand made item, and your first bead, so it wont be perfect, but don't worry about that!
• Bring the bead higher up in the flame until it is just barely glowing, while continuing to turn  (flame annealing- we are brining the temperature down slowly).
• I can then turn the torch off for the student. And we can put the bead to anneal (cool down slowly so it does not later crack).

6. Shaping the Beads (show barrel shape only, gives a  larger decorating surface. Can discuss more shapes later in advanced lessons.)

• Demonstrate rolling the bead into a barrel shape.
• Glass must be hot to shape it. Don't try touching the bead to the marver unless its glowing (it wont do anything).
• Touching the bead with anything cools it, so you have a limited amount of working time.
• If it doesn't work at first, you can always heat the bead and try again.

7. Applying dots with the stringer you made.

• Never put stringer in the flame
• Have bead to the back of the flame, the stringer on the side of the flame (show students how it will melt there!).
• Heat slightly and then touch the stringer with the bead, press a little bit, and then pull back, and cut the little stringer that forms off in the flame.