smolder holder's curio collection

**smolder holder** · 11-03-2010, 12:39 AM

How's it going everyone? Well I've been encouraging members to post their work and thought it only fair if I do the same so here is some of my current work and I will continue to add stuff as I finish peices. I'm only a part time flameworker but I love it so. Glass is an insatiable addiction for me.

Thanks to everyone on this site for your inspiration and the willingness to share information. any comments are welcome. Thanks for looking.

Been on a sherlock bender lately

Ryan

**smolder holder** · 11-03-2010, 12:51 AM

These are my pieces. My computer got a really bad virus and the hard drive had to be reformatted so the only copies of a lot of these pics were in my gp.org gallery

**hippi** · 11-03-2010, 01:42 AM

sick work man! ur sherlys are tight... how did u do the mouth piece of that fumed dot section? just fume, dot, fume, incase?

**LTD** · 11-03-2010, 01:49 AM

Originally Posted by hippi

sick work man! ur sherlys are tight... how did u do the mouth piece of that fumed dot section? just fume, dot, fume, incase?

looks like silver and gold fuming with dots, standard i/o work. What would be encased?

**MarioSC** · 11-03-2010, 05:57 AM

YO! This is awesome work man! I didn't know you was a beast at this stuff lol!!! The bottom sherlock is my favorite! Love the colors! Awesome man!!! If I could rep you again I def would!

**Bo Diddles** · 11-03-2010, 06:33 AM

Nice shaping man, keep up the good work!

**smolder holder** · 11-03-2010, 07:22 AM

Thanks for the kind words. I feel like I've improved 100 fold over what I was doing a year ago but as far as knowledge of glass goes I still feel newbish....so much to learn. Hippi, LTD hit it on the head, it was the left over tube from the bowl section honeycomb and I just put clear and silvercreek dots over silver and gold fume then reduced it

**smolder holder** · 11-03-2010, 10:31 PM

here is some more recent stuff from the last two weeks. Been really getting into pendants lately.

the amber purple sherly is the first time I've used amber purple and I am pretty happy with the results. The horns on it are ap layered over yellow crayon.

thanks for lookin.

**CripSkillz** · 11-03-2010, 11:19 PM

I like em..

**Kato** · 11-03-2010, 11:23 PM

cool sherlys man! it makes me want to go make a couple myself i really dig the last one in the first post.

**frillcappa** · 11-04-2010, 12:33 AM

are you just taking tubing and laying lines on the outside of it for the AP sherlock?

**hashmasta-kut** · 11-04-2010, 01:27 AM

cool stuff. what color is the honeycomb on, on the piece in the pic above the ap one?

**smolder holder** · 11-04-2010, 07:26 AM

Frillcappa, yeah that's exactly what I did, almost gives it a woodgrain look. Except for the mouthpiece and bowl, that's coilpotted ap, blown out and honeycombed.

HMK, I think it was momkas almond nugget, it reduced more than I wanted.

More to come soon.......

**smolder holder** · 11-04-2010, 08:37 AM

Thanks Kato, yeah it's one of my favorites that I've made. It went to a friend so I've got to see it several times and the honeycombs on it are poppin now.

**smolder holder** · 11-04-2010, 06:02 PM

I'm so excited!! In about a week I'll be buying a new mirage and digi aim kiln!! Oh I can't wait! My wife rocks for supporting my very expensive, time consuming hobby.

**smolder holder** · 11-30-2010, 10:55 AM

Ugghhh I just called to check up on my mirage order.....another month, damn I'm already pulling my hair out in anticipation I won't have any left by the end of december. Home studio is up and running except for my new kiln which I just haven't ordered yet.

**hwcglass** · 11-30-2010, 11:37 AM

I like the encalmo thing you have going on in some of the previous pieces; playing the cards you have, stacking up the experience, making what works work: encalmo is a way of life.

looking forward to seeing what comes next.

**smolder holder** · 11-30-2010, 05:57 PM

Thank you HWC I appreciate it. I need to get some of my pendants I've been working on up. Pretty much what size I'm stuck doing until I get a new kiln. Encalmo is fun....for now

**Riley** · 11-30-2010, 07:15 PM

things look good, you seem to have a firm grasp on shaping, and sectional work. some nice action on the sherlies up there ^.

i have a tip for you on the pendants, and the separation that appears to be happening on the surface of the honeycombs, if you hold it up to the light and look across the surface you may see the lines on the surface where the dots of clear have separations from the rest of the glass.

sometimes when honeycombing, the dots don't "gel" with the glass you are honeycombing into, and you get these separation lines, that often manifest on the surface. they can keep reoccuring even after flame polishing, unless you use a sharp and quick oxy flame to polish the surface.

finish your shaping on the pendantd, then at the end, polish the lines up with a very sharp oxygen rich flame. the lines on the surface (if any) should disappear. if you were to heat the whole thing up again they would probably reappear. its some kind of incompatability at some small scale. so just do that quick/sharp oxy flame polish at the end before kilning. it should solve any surface funk.

anyhow, hope it helps, its hard to see in the pics if this is whats going on. it can also happen within the honeycomb, where the glass has "seam" lines, where the glass appears separate inside, and there is not really anything to be done with that. i can't tell which you are experiencing, or if its both. good luck and keep it up !

**smolder holder** · 12-01-2010, 03:01 AM

Riley, yes I have both of those things happen sometimes, thanks for the tip I'll use that to make sure all my pendant faces are smoothed out. Any ideas on how to minimize the seam in the honeycomb? It seems to be less if the glass rod I'm dotting with is rippin hot before I touch it to the substrate glass. Thanks for the knowledge riley.