Some glass requires striking to bring out its colour. The only type of striking I have encountered so far (in my own work) is striking in the torch – but I have heard of kiln-striking also. I will post striking information about different colours on this page as I come across them and figure them out!
My basic technique for striking a colour is as follows:
– make bead as normal
– allow to cool until not glowing any more (but don’t let it get TOO cold because you don’t want it to shock and break) – just the point where there is barely any glow left seems to work for me
– stick it back into the flame for a few seconds, turning as you go. I find that it’s pretty easy to see the colour starting to come out – the glass often darkens almost instantly when reintroduced to the flame.
CiM Bordello (Frit)
The above two beads show how Creation is Messy’s Bordello frit looks when struck (left) and when incompletely struck (right). This glass in particular was very easy to strike. Just a few seconds back in the torch after cooling. One of the nice things about it is that you can achieve different effects by striking more or less. You end up with multiple tones, not just one.
Electric Yellow
The above photos were taken while the beads were still hot (before putting in kiln). The left is before striking, and the right is after striking.
Here is what the bead looked like once it was annealed and cooled.
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