On Scale:

The internet is a glorious and expansive resource! Pictures ERRYWHERE!! yes, pinterest is my crack. 

But exactly how does the size of this piece relate to reality? 
For example, this reliquary plaque from 1185 - german.

Great Detail, not a super complicated design, easy peasy! http://metmuseum.org/collection/the-collection-online/search/464199?rpp=30&pg=11&ao=on&ft=Cloisonn%C3%A9&pos=301

oh wait...it's actually only 1-1/8" x 3-3/8"..

thats, not very big at all...
so i drew it to actual size, and it became painfully obvious. 

Then i considered the technique used for this: Champleve. Which uses engraving to remove areas of metal to then be filled in with enamel and ground smooth. Who wants to remove large open areas of metal? not this girl. i still am horrible with/haven't REALLY tried engraving for this purpose, so there's that..  

So as glorious as it is to save images and zoom way-the-hell in on them, my point i want to make is to consider scale, in regards to purpose and technique, and be realistic in your recreations. Scale is important! 

- YIS Tira

Unintentional Sabattical

I do hereby apologize for my unintentional sabattical from posting : (
but here, i made another shiny? it was a gift box for their incoming Magesties of the Middle Kingdom. done in 1 week. because as of monday, i was just going to paint their arms, then the Fox and soon my Laurel, teamed up on me and convinced me to enamel it instead, cause.. well..

thats my thing,.

Original Sketches of their Heraldry:

The Griffin, after the first firing:

And the Final Piece, as gifted, choc full of largess from my fellows in Red Spears:

 Oh yeah, and i completely switched up my persona to Mughal Era India,.. so there's that too : D

Revisions and Refirings and glass splinters..

This post got lost in my drafts, so we're a bit out of order at this point, but here it is anyway!! ^_^

Kingdom A&S was over the memorial day weekend, and I'm happy to say my piece did well enough at regional for both of us to attend : D (yes, I'm one of the reasons the Midrealm was asking for so many metalworking judges : ) I did get the chance to adjust the issues I was having with the greens (I'm convinced it's a compatibility issue, the lamp-working glass doesn't want to play as well with my enamels as I'd hoped, but ah well, lesson learned.

The piece, as submitted at regional A&S in North Oaken. yes, there are gaping wounds in my enamel, the pearls are so round they look fake (thats now a running joke, they really were Real), and no, it's not actually set into the bezel.... and we're not even going to discuss how my copies of my documentation were missing the last/bibliography page. i did ok enough to move on, so lets just do that! ^_^

 Also, the thickness i was getting from patching the green so much was causing issues as well :( BUT! Once it was sorted out, i was able to start grinding the enamels smooth : )

After the last firings, before grinding smooth

 

First round of stoning. shows where there are low spots, but way easier to see all the cloisons in the red garment : D i think i'd nearly forgotten about them honestly... 

I used increasingly fine grades of wet sanding to smooth the top edges to a glossy finish. which of course makes all the wierdness in the glass show up, but meh, whatever, now i know.. had some issues with my bezel setting, but i did replace the pearls with some other smaller but more irregular ones (oh hey, THOSE are totally real! lol) 

 

My Piece on display at Kingdom A&S in Tipton, IN, laid on the tea towel i usually wear on my head, because i'd realized i forgot to bring anything to display my piece on.. Thanks for the advice Tinker!!) I am Very proud to report that I received a First Place at Kingdom : D 

Now, what to do next year.... hmm...

So then this happened

And then I finally entered my regional A&S Fair on 4/12/14.. now my laurel can lay-off.. of course, the next event she saw me i was reminded to repair her coronet that was nearly destroyed in a trip to and from Caid.. but.. i digress.

I Started by Grinding my own enamels. i used lampworking rods because they came in a variety of colors and were readily available.

I decided just gong to town on them in a motar/pestle would work.. and it totes did!

There are also records of heating the glass until red hot and then quenching it, this shatters it so that it will break more easily.. it totes did : )

I then cut small bits of cloisonne wire to match my design, this is a test of patience and OCD. for reals.. 

The Wires are then places on the base with a layer of clear enamel and fired to adhere them to the base

 The colors are then wet-packed into the cells, and fired until they fuse -

The process is repeated until the glass comes up over the edges, it will then be ground smooth, and placed in a bezel wire surrounded by pearls, oh hey, kinda like this.. (pic to follow)

And then you get judged by awesome people, who have way more faith in you, and make you feel awesome, and that you do good work, and then you clean up your docs and piece and take it to kingdom A&S!!!!!  

and stuff... im not dead yet, sorry y'all...

YIS - Gwen