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GLASS ALCHEMY

Glass Alchemy is a new company making colored borosilicate glass rods. They have been experimenting with blues, greens, blacks, browns, reds, violets and yellows. To date they have released a full range of blues, including two new spectral ranges. The Brilliant Blue, Royal Blue and Teal are not just new names for old colors; they are new tools in the hands of the artist. Phthalo Blue, Phthalo Green, Warm Yellow, Purple Luster and Caramel also represent a whole new dimension in color technology for the borosilicate artist.

The Browns, Indigos and Violets, as the first of their colors in borosilicate, speak for themselves. Sienna has a hint of violet, while Warm Brown dances in the sunlight, just waiting to be applied to a bead, hairpiece or earring. The Blue Violet is a dioxazine purple and the Dark Plum is a rose purple.

The Blacks are incredible. As you know, black, in the world of light, is the lack of color and in glass black is achieved by saturation of color. The names, Black (blue), Black (violet) and Black (green), indicate the color of saturation to make it easier for the artist to chose which black would be appropriate. The Black (violet) is the brightest (some of the test group called it Obsidian).

They are now working on the reds as well as continuing with the "luster" series. Lusters differ from "exotics"; in a "luster" the iridizing ingredient added to the base color is selected to enhance the primary color. "Exotics" have several ingredients added that each impart a metallic hue. Glass Alchemy will introduce a "Carnival Glass" series, featuring some of our unique colors, for those who appreciate the exotic effects. Look for the CG series at the end of the year.

Coming up in the more immediate future will be the introduction of the "Crayon Series" and several new greens (they have been working on these for several months now). Yellow and Orange will kick off the Crayon Series followed red and yes; they hope to introduce a white series by the first of next year. Glass Alchemy anticipates opals to follow soon thereafter.

The Numbering System

Colors are numbered according to the ROY G BIV spectrum sequence to number the colors. R=Red=100 series. O=Orange=200 series etc. If the name of a color ends with a number (1-5), this indicates the formula is repeated at different levels of "saturation". Saturation affects the color and workability of the glass. In general, level 5 saturations are not suitable for most work. They are intended for the external applications that are blown out. They should always be tested for your particular application, especially if doing inside out work or using with other level 4 or 5 colors. Level 2-4 represents the medium-high saturation and can be built up or thinned. Level 1 colors can be laid over another to create tints or imbedded in clear for subtle effects. Many color names can be found on standard color charts, which will indicate the reflected color when used on the surface of a white marble. Many of our color names can be found on standard color charts, which will indicate the reflected color when used on the surface of a white marble.

WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) is used to indicate a color that is stable and not influenced by the flame adjustment (oxidizing or reducing). The word "Striking" indicates that a second "heat" brings out the color. Luster is used to indicate that a certain cane color takes on a multi-colored sheen. Many colors "reduce". Some artists enjoy this effect, others don't. For example the cobalt can go gray, while true green can develop brick red streaks. To mitigate this adjust the oxygen in your flame (increase it).

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