Wire around suncatchers

[Sue in NC]

I went to a studio and borrowed a saw to make those cuts and the one for the heel.  I thought about rounding them off more so I could do it without a saw, but then maybe the resulting socks would not have looked enough like the logo. Since they are for someone important to me, I wanted them to be as "right" as they could be.

Sue

[JudyK]

Sue, when I learned I was told if you can not cut it with your glass cutter , then the cut may be too deep and break in the future. Saws give us the ability to cut things we should not be trying. Your socks are so small it may not matter. But in the future you may consider drawing up patterns with cuts that can be made by hand. Sort of a safety net. Dog bone shapes and deep cuts tend to be crackers.

Saws are great for tricky stuff you will be fusing, but then you have to be sure you get the glass REAL clean so it does not create crud on the edge.

[Sue in NC]

Thanks, Judy. Sometimes I have trouble keeping the glass clean.  I haven't gotten back to foil the socks yet, but I did look at them.  I had cleaned them all off, both washing them with Dawn and using non-ammonia glass cleaner, and thought they looked good. Now there are smudges all over them. Maybe the light wasn't good enough when I checked them before.  It wasn't from hand lotion or moisture from my hands.  I must have some of the driest hands ever; they even crack open in winter.

Is cleaning with alcohol before foiling maybe the best way to go?

Sue

[Kev]

I think she was referring to the crud that will sometimes show up on the edge of fused pieces that had been ground with a grinder or cut with a saw.

I just use a scrubbie like the kind you do dishes with to scrub the edges of the glass as I am washing them before foiling.

[Kev]

Sunshine gives us Vit. D., so lack of sunshine for long periods of time might result in a lower level.

[JudyK]

Kev, you are right about the crud being in reference to using a saw for fusing glass.

I use a fingernail brush on my edges with dawn soap for fused pieces.

For foiling I just use glass cleaner, and don't worry about the finger prints. They will polish off in the very end. My favorite glass cleaner right now is made by Spray Away.

Kev, you are right about the Vit D. and lack of sunshine. It is an issue here. I have SAD balanced lights through out the house. None of it compares to getting good old sunshine. Hold a piece of colored glass up to the sun. Later that night hold it up to a bright light. No comparison in beauty. It is like that for us too. Sun is Awesome. The vit D thing was pushed huge up here. this year they are saying the high amounts are hurting people. I think it was liver, but I can't remember. I avoid all fads

[mona]

Sue, I go over all my pieces with alcohol before I foil.  Since I just slosh them quick in water and do a quick wipe after any grinding. 

[JudyK]

If I am grinding for a panel I just wipe them immediately with a rag.

If I am fusing them I drop them in a bucket of water and leave them there until I am finished with all the pieces. Then I clean them all  under running water with a fingernail brush and dawn soap. I do the same with any fusible scrap I am planning on keeping for other projects.

[Sue in NC]

Somewhere I saw someone say she actually uses boiling water to clean the glass, putting the glass in and letting it sit for a bit. I wasn't clear on why that much heat would help. Maybe it gets the glass nice and warm if you are going to start foiling immediately?

Sue

[glassman52]

Sue, I go over all my pieces with alcohol before I foil.  Since I just slosh them quick in water and do a quick wipe after any grinding.

That is what I do also but for finished work I use a green hand cleaner I purchase of the tool truck at work called "WORX" and is a safe, non toxic, natural powder that removes anything and everything. Excellent for cleaning glass, lead and you name it with absolutely no solvents. It is one of the best hand/product cleaners I have ever used.
http://www.arbico-organics.com/product/189

[TodB]

FWIW: I grind most pieces I will foil for the best fit & flow. I wipe glass with old newspaper, place on the pattern which is covered with plastic sheet. When I'm ready, I foil & place pieces on the pattern (w/o plastic sheet). Sometimes, I do another wipe with newsprint before foiling.

I clean foiled work the same way I clean leaded pieces: whiting & brushes, stix & picks. Never had the white crud problem I've read about so often.
I mention this because so many folks seem to be jumping through so many hoops that I hoped my experience might inspire some to try a different method.
- Tod