dichroic and more tips

$10 Off ALL Purchases

2010-10-20T10:33:00.000-07:00

$10 OFF any purchase of %50 or more

Enter Coupon Code: SaveNow at checkout.

Visit DichroicAndMore.com Today!

Sale is from October 19th-24th.

As always FREE SHIPPING for all orders over $80.

Deep Discounts on Hot Products

2010-10-06T17:25:00.000-07:00

Deep Discounts through Sunday, October 10, 2010

Don't Miss Out on these Great Values

Visit DichroiAndMore.com Today!

As Always, Orders over $80 - Shipped FREE to USA

Sale Limited to Store Quantities

DichroicAndMore.com 20% OFF Entire Site.

2010-09-28T09:00:00.000-07:00

HUGE SITE WIDE SALE AT DichroicAndMore.com

20% OFF ALL ORDERS (no minimum purchase required)

USE CODE: FALL20

To apply the discount to your order, the appropriate coupon code must be entered during checkout in the "Coupon Code" field. Then, click "Apply" button to the right. Once the page reloads, you can finish the checkout process.

No minimum purchase required for the FALL20 sale.

DichroicAndMore.com offers FREE SHIPPING every day for orders over $80*.

Visit DichroicAndMore.com Today!

Sale ends 11:59 pm PST Sunday, October 3, 2010.

*Free Shipping for purchases over $80 in contiguous United States only

10% Off ENTIRE DichroicAndMore.com Store

2010-09-15T16:36:00.000-07:00

10% OFF Entire Store including Sale Items. Just enter promo code: FALL

On Sale: All Decals - Milliefiori - Necklace Cords - Adjustable Rings -Tube Pendant Bails - Frit Samplers - Kiln Paper

Visit DichroicAndMore.com today!

http://www.dichroicandmore.com

DichroicAndMore.com Sale thru Sept 12

2010-09-07T18:42:00.000-07:00

20% OFF 7 New Aanraku Silver Plated Pendant Bails
20% OFF Glassline Pen (Paint) kits
20% OFF Jewelry Cuff Bracelets

Visit our Sales page for these great deals and more!

End of Summer Sale Thru 9/5/10

2010-08-31T13:14:00.000-07:00

End of Summer Sale at DichroicandMore.com! Stock up on Dichroic Glass Scrap, Decals, Millefiori and more!

Check out our sale items today: http://www.dichroicandmore.com/sale.aspx

20% OFF Entire Store Thru August 22nd!!

2010-08-17T07:59:00.000-07:00

20% ENTIRE Everything in the DichroicandMore.com Store Through August 22nd!!

Everything Included:
Aanraku Bails - Dichroic Scrap - Glassline Pens - Paragon, Jen-Ken, & Aim Kilns - Frit-Kiln Paper
Fusing & Slumping Molds - Necklace Cords -Rings - Decals - And More!

Visit http://www.dichroicandmore.com/ Today!

SALE: 1lb Dichroic Glass Sampler $39.98

2010-08-10T11:36:00.000-07:00

Sale on 1lb 90 COE or 90 COE Dichroic Glass Scrap $39.98

Plus more great savings on Aanraku bails, Glassline Pens, Thinfire Kiln Paper, DEecals, Frit, and 90 COE Milliefiori!!

Visit DichroicAndMore.com Today!!!

$10 OFF* Your Next Purchase at www.dichroicandmore.com

2010-07-11T17:40:00.000-07:00

***$10 OFF your next order of $80 or more.***

At Checkout, Just Enter COUPON CODE – Summer

We have also added many New Items like Decal-Glassline Paint-90 COE Milliefiori.

Additional Items Also ON SALE

1lb. 90 or 96 COE 3mm Dichroic Scrap $39.98

Glassline Paint $7.98

Most Kilns 20% OFF

And More

Order over $80 are Shipped FREE to Continental US

Shop Dichroic And More Today!

*Offer ends July 31,2010

20% OFF SELECT MERCHANDISE

2010-06-30T20:59:00.000-07:00

Summer Sizzling Sale Thru July 5th

20% OFF Select Merchandise

Includes Kilns, Aanraku Bails, CBS Dichroic, Duncan Dichoric Glass, Dichroic Scrap & Dichroic Samplers

BUY TODAY!!!!! http://www.dichroicandmore.com

$10 Off Sale at DichroicAndMore.com

2010-05-20T19:31:00.000-07:00

$10 Off any purchase over $80 now through June 30, 2010. Visit www.DichroicAndMore.com and enter the coupon code Fusion at checkout!

20% OFF Mother's Day Sale at DichroicAndMore.com!

2010-05-06T18:50:00.000-07:00

DichroicandMore.com is having a Mother's Day sale!

On Sunday, May 9th save 20% off Paragon, Jen Ken and AIM Kilns, Dichroic Glass Scrap, Aanraku Bails, Dicro Slide, CBS Dichroic Glass and More!!

Visit DichroicandMore.com today!

10% Sale at DichroicAndMore.com

2010-02-04T06:18:00.000-08:00

Stock up on your warm glass supplies - Aanraku Bails, CBS Dichroic, Dichroic Scrap, Kilns and more!!

DichroicandMore.com is having a Valentine's Day Sale just for you! Enter coupon code HEART for 10% off your entire order. Sales runs 2/4/10 through 2/14/10.

Happy Shopping! Visit DichroicandMore.com today!

Price Buster Sale for Glass Fusing Supplies

2009-10-27T08:55:00.000-07:00

Price Buster Sale Now Going On!!

Kilns, Dichroic Glass, & Aanraku Bails.

Visit DichroicandMore.com & Dicromart.com today!

Glass Fusing Glossary Terms

2009-09-30T22:27:00.000-07:00

Glass Fusing Glossary Terms

Here is a list of some of the terms used in Glass Fusing. In future Blogs, we will expand this list.

Annealing - The process of cooling slowly a piece of heated glass to remove internal stress.
This is done between 1000 down to 600 degrees Fahrenheit

Art Glass - Colored glass used in glass fusing and stained glass

Bails – Arched hooplike pieces that are attached to glass pieces, allowing you to hang the glass piece on a chain or link it to another object.

Blank - A solid bottom layer of glass on which other pieces of glass are placed and positioned prior to fusing

Casting - The process of melting and pouring frit or molten glass into a mold to achieve a particular shape

Coefficient of Expansion (COE) - The measured expansion of heated glass

Cold Working – Working with sanding, grinding, drilling, or sandblasting to change the Art Glass in its natural state.

Combing – Heated glass in a liquid state is manipulated by pulling or "combing" a blunt point through the surface

Confetti – Thin shard of glass used to add shading and design

Devitrification - A crystalline substance growth that appears as a dull finish or scum on the surface of some glasses when heated to above 1000 degrees F.

Fiber Paper - A blanket type of thin ceramic fiber used to protect a kiln shelf or mold in fusing. Often used for making channels

Firing Schedule - Details of the times and rates of heating, soaking and cooling during a particular firing cycle.

Fire Polish - Heating glass to the point where the edges round slightly and the surface has a glossy, wet appearance. Often used as a technique to retain a shiny surface to glass after it has been ground or sandblasted

Float Glass - Commonly known as window glass.

Frit - Small granules of glass that has been broken or ground in pieces ranging from fine powder to fine, medium, or coarse.

Full Fuse – Heating and melting two or more pieces of glass into one single piece of glass.

Furniture - Various posts and shelving used to support and separate the glass within the kiln.

Fuse - Heat bonding pieces of glass together.

Fused Glass - Refers to specially designed glass that has been fused or melted together in a kiln

Kiln – Thermally insulated chambers, usually made out of fire bricks

Kiln Wash – This is a refractory powder that can be mixed with water and painted on kilns, kiln shelves and molds to prevent glass and accidental glaze drips from sticking.

Lamp Work - any glass working technique done using the direct flame of a torch.

Mold - Used for glass slumping, and fusing. They can be used to make jewelry, plates, bowls, etc. They come in a variety of shapes and sizes in which glass can be shaped by slumping into or over.

Pate'-de-verre - A frit casting technique; a paste of powered frit is placed and spread in a mold and heated to the point where the individual granules fuse into a solid mass.

Peep Hole - Small hole(s) in a kiln designed for viewing the contents of the kiln chamber.

Pyrometer - A high-temperature thermometer hike device that measures the heat inside a kiln

Sagging - When heated glass starts to soften, it slumps and sags under its own weight.

Slumping - A Technique of heating glass and shaping it over or into a mold.

Soak - Holding glass at a particular steady temperature for a given period of time

Thermal Shock - Glass breakage caused by rapid or uneven heating or cooling.

Thermocouple - The temperature sensing probe of a pyrometer. It's inserted into the kiln to measure temperature

Please check out our web site, www.DichroicAndMore.com, for great values on Fused Glass Supplies

What is dichroic glass and why is it so special?

2009-09-30T08:16:00.000-07:00

What is dichroic glass and why is it so special?

The word "dichroic", pronounced Dye-Cro-Ick, is derived from two Greek roots, "di" for two and "chroma" for color. So "dichroic" literally means "two-colored." You may sometimes hear dichroic glass referred to as "dichro" for short.

Dichroic Glass is one of the hottest materials being used by glass artisans today. It is an amazing material originally developed for the aerospace industry in the 1950's and 1960's when NASA, defense contractors,and the Department of Defense developed this high-tech material for use as optical filters, as a shield against cosmic radiation and many other uses. In recent years, Dichroic has been discovered by glass artists.

Dichroic is defined in the dictionary as “The property of a surface of reflecting light of one color and transmitting light of other colors.” Transmitted colors are what you see when you would look through a piece Dichroic Glass. Reflected colors are the colors you see when you hold the glass at an angle, and will be the opposite color of the transmission.

Dichroic Glass coatings are produced by using a vacuum deposition process to add multiple thin layers of various metallic oxides on top of the glass. This creates an optical filter that can selectively reflect and transmit wavelengths of light. The glass is also rotated in the vacuum chamber through the vaporization process in order to deposit uniform coatings on the glass.

A misconception is that dichroic glass is the same as fused glass or refers to the entire fused glass movement. Though fused glass or warm glass may incorporate dichroic glass elements; doing so is not a requirement. Dichroic glass is very popular and often used as an element in glass fusing. It can also be used in glass blowing and bead making.

Glass Artists love to incorporate Dichroic Glass in their jewelry making because Dichroic adds flash, pizzazz, sparkle, and intrigue to a finished jewelry piece,

In jewelry, Dichroic Glass is often formed into pendants, earrings, bracelets and beads. Dichroic Glass is also very popular in magnets, tiles, and drawer pulls.

DichroicAndMore.com has a wide selection of Dichroic Glass available for the Glass Artist.

What are fusing and slumping?

2009-09-29T03:01:00.000-07:00

What are fusing and slumping?

Glass fusing is the process in which a kiln is used to join together pieces of glass. When heat is applied to glass, it will soften. If you continue to apply heat, the glass becomes more fluid and will flow together. Two or more pieces of glass will stick (or "fuse") to each other. When glass of the same COE is heated and then cooled properly, the resulting fused glass piece will be solid and unbroken.

Glass slumping is the manipulation of bending and shaping an already fused glass into or over a mold using the heat of a kiln to take on the shape of a bowl, a plate, or similar object. Other kinds of manipulation done with fusing techniques are combing, which involves using a tool to distort the shape of the glass while it is hot, and fire polishing, which uses a kiln to heat the glass just enough to make it shiny and smooth.

Typical Kiln Fusing and Slumping PROCESSES AND TEMPERATURES

Process	Definition	Fahrenheit	Celsius
Full fusing	Joining two or more pieces of glass by heating until they flow together	1450 to 1550	788 to 843
Tack fusing	Fusing until the glass just sticks together, with each piece retaining its individual character.	1350 to 1450	732 to 788
Slumping	Shaping glass by bending it over or into a mold	1200 to 1300	649 to 704
Fire polishing	Heating glass just enough to round the edges and give it a shiny appearance	1300 to 1400	704 to 760

Note that the temperatures given are for typical fusible art glasses.

Kilns and Glass vary and may require different temperatures.

DichroicAndMore.com carries a complete selection of Kilns and Glass Fusing Supplies

In Glass Fusing, what is COE?

2009-09-28T19:28:00.000-07:00

COE stands for Coefficient of Expansion.

Why is it important to know about COE?

There are a multitude of glass manufacturers, and many different ways of making glass. In Glass Fusing, since you want to put different pieces of glass together in your projects, you will need to be sure that they are compatible.

Not every piece of glass expands and contracts at the same temperature. This change in the density is known as the Coefficient of Expansion (COE).

All pieces you fuse together need to have the same coefficient of expansion (COE).

Bullseye Glass is 90 COE
Spectrum Glass is 96 COE

You can NOT mix glass of different COE in the same project

At DichroicAndMore.com, we carry both 90COE and 96COE glass and Dichroic Glass