Gold Mica Organic Lampwork Beads
This is a new style of bead compared to what I normally make. It combines a few different techniques together and I am pleased with the results. The surface effect was created by adding reactive glass colors (turquoise, silver glass, ivory, intense black, silvered ivory stringers). The silver glass was reduced and the entire top was encased.
This was the first bead I created and I started with silver foil and gold mica accents in the core with clear, fuchsia, and purple transparent colors over the top. The I added other mixtures of glass over the top, middle, and bottom of the bead leaving windows open to see into the core. Reducing the silver glass creates a beautiful mother of pearl or abalone shell iridescent look. I also added brass shavings that created a very interesting bubble effect. Using this in the glass causes it to spark which is a little intimidating at first. I also added quite a bit of gold mica on the surface of the bead and then encased it in clear glass.
In this picture, I have magnified the bubble effect that shows up on both sides of the bead.
In this next bead, I started with a fuchsia and clear core and added gold mica around the bead. Then I encased the mica and only added glass on the ends of the bead as I built it up. The ends have a mixture of ivory, silver glass, and intense black. I added white twist stringer bands around the core to create a frame of sorts around the clear center. This bead also has a shimmering band of gold aventurine swirled around the core.
