Does it sound strange that a terracotta flowerpot can be used to produce beautiful glass? Well, it’s possible to place pieces of glass into a terracotta flowerpot and then to balance the pot on beams in the kiln to enable the kiln to be heated to 1700 degrees F. At that temperature the glass will fold or swirl out of the pot (depending on the size and shape of the hole in the bottom of the pot) and land on the bottom of the kiln. The glass is often quite beautiful and unique and may be used alone or as part of other creations. The small blue and white plate in the gallery (SB1) includes blue glass that was created in an aperture pour (the fancy name for heating pieces of glass in the pot).

This is an example of sandblasting dichroic glass to produce an image or pattern on the glass (in this case a somewhat controversial image). Sandblasting is an effective technique used to enhance fused glass creations.

I use glass typically 1/4 inch thick with the following firing schedule:

From room temperature to 800F at 300 degrees per hour, hold for 10
minutes
From 800F to 1220F degrees at 400 degrees per hour, hold for 10 minutes
From 1220F to 1350F degrees at 600 degrees per hour, hold for 10 minutes
From 1350F to 960F degrees quickly “9999″, hold for 30 minutes
From 960F to 700F at 150 degrees per hour, no hold
Natural cooling to room temperature
Please adjust hold times for the size of your project. Remember this is
only a guide.