This is a paperweight I did at the end of my first intermediate glassblowing class. This sort of paperweight is generally easy, and I thought I could do an iris inside.  That didn’t work as well as I’d hoped. Also, it got a crack in it, so it’s going to split in half at some point. Still fun to make.

I made this in the same pumpkin making workshop I made the glass pumpkin in. I forgot to use the optics mold, so it turned into an apple instead of a pumpkin. Since it was going to be a different kind of fruit, I made a dimple in the bottom, and asked for a green-hued bit. Used the leaf press instead of the optics mold. I really like this.

The first one-day workshop I took this fall was for making glass pumpkins. It was billed as a beginner workshop, which was a mistake, as these are tricky to make. Some people weren’t able to make any. I was out of practice, so I made it easier for myself by doing one that was clear. I love the way the optics mold gave the vine those lines.

I quite like how the colors came out on this one. The yellow frit is opaque, but the cobalt blue is transparent, so wherever the blue overlaps the yellow looks translucent green. Very pretty. I got three colors in one.

This is one of the more successful ornaments I made at the workshop eariler this month. One of the changes they’d made at the MAC glass studio since I’d been there the last time is that the frit is in larger pieces. It makes it harder to pick up, but the colors can be more intense.  I used small white frit on the first pass, and then used larger frit with the second pass, for a nice textural effect. I also spun it a little so that I’d have some movement. The only drawback to this one is a sharp ridge near the loop.