Frit is
your friend!
Fusing
glass is amazing. We fusers cut glass and super heat it to make cool designs
all our own. Solid colors make bold projects, but once you start playing with
frit and see all the new and exciting possibilities, you’ll be eager to add
this small material to all your big projects.
Frit is
crushed fusible glass. Oceanside Compatible frit comes in 5 grain sizes:
powder, fine, medium, course and mosaic. Each size is available in 8.5 oz. and
4 lb. jars. Each frit size has unique visual characteristics that you can push
to ramp up your fused glass projects. Let’s go over the many possibilities one
size at a time.
Powder
Powder has
the silky consistency of confectioners’ sugar. It appears smooth and has
uniform color coverage after fusing. Powders can be used as filler between cut
glass pieces, to add shading, to add patterns and even as a repair tool. I use
powder when I want super strong color saturation along with multiple color
blends.
Shere Power is a great example. Wherever I
wanted tight control over my line quality and solid color saturation, I used
cut glass to represent the design. The cut glass was fixed to a clear base
glass with fuser’s glue. The glue keeps the pieces from moving when applying
the frit. Once the glue was dry, I poured powder frit between the pieces and
blended the colors with a wide, dry paint brush and a palate knife. The blended
powders give the art a beautiful painterly quality that dramatically contrasts
the solid color fields surrounding it.
Other fun
uses include using powder to add shadows to a solid base color. Apply medium
and dark green powder on top of light green glass to add shading to your
design. Or sift the powder over a stencil to add a crisp and intricate pattern
to your project.
One of my
favorite uses for powder is to fill inconvenient gaps between my cut glass
pieces. Think of it like grouting tile. It’s easy and effective. Work a small
amount of powder into the gaps with a narrow paint brush. For added pop, use a
bright color that contrasts your design’s color palate.
Powder Pros: It’s fast and easy to create
subtle or dramatic color blends that support your specific creative vision.
Adding shading and pattern is a snap.
Powder Cons: Cleanup is time consuming. The
powder requires meticulous cleanup to ensure the surrounding solid glass color
isn’t muddied. After removing any excess power with a brush, I go over the
surface of the glass with the corner of a damp towel or a damp Q-tip depending
upon the size of the surface area being cleaned.
Tips for working with powder
·
Don’t be
skimpy when you use powder frit. For bright vivid colors, it’s necessary to
fill the space between your cut glass pieces to the top edge, in effect making
the frit 1/8 inch thick.
·
Be daring
and use high contrast colors, they display better in the finished piece.
·
Opal glass
colors tend to give a more dramatic effect than transparent colors.
·
Know your
glass colors. Powder frit specifically, looks lighter in the jar than the
actual glass color. Light blue and dark blue look the same just as transparent
light green and opal dark green look the same. If you’re not sure of the
intensity or opacity of a powder, look at a larger size frit like, medium or
course. Or find a piece of sheet glass with the same color code number, compare
it to the frit and the frit color and shade will be obvious.
·
Powder in
high concentration, like in a casting mold, looks milky after fusing. If you
want to use powder in a mold, layer it with clear in medium, course or mosaic
size frit. Using this technique will improve the transparency of the cast glass
project.
Fine Frit
Fine frit
has the consistency of granulated sugar. It appears grainy, like small uniform
dots after fusing. Like powder, fine can be used to fill gaps between cut
pieces of glass. The larger grain size makes it faster and easier to clean up
than powder. Fine is also great for shading when you want a slight textural
look to the shadows.
Fine Pros: Cleanup is fast and easy. In the
same application, it takes less material to do the same job with fine than it
does with powder. Fine is a great filler to use between larger frit. It gives
you complete color coverage and prevents the base glass from peeking through.
Fine Cons: Color blends within this same size
have a grainy appearance after fusing.
Tips for working with Fine
· Use fine frit together with other
frit sizes to produce visual textures.
Medium Frit
Medium
frit has the texture of course sand. When fused, medium frit retains the
sand-like visual appearance. I use this size frit when I want to fill in larger
areas with strong color quickly. It can also be used to create shading and
color blends provided you welcome variations in the coverage as provided by how
much frit or how little frit is applied.
Medium Pros:
Medium frit provides you with quick, easy coverage of large areas with
strong color saturation.
Medium Cons: This frit has a grainy look and
the base glass may peek through the frit unless your layer is thick.
· Use both transparent and opal
glasses in combination for greater visual depth and to create shading.
· Use medium and fine frit together for
new color blends and to add visual texture.
Course Frit
Course
frit has the consistency of small pebbles. The pebble look remains after fusing. This frit is great for filling large
areas where you want visual texture to contrast solid fields elsewhere in the
project.
Course Pros: Course frit covers a lot of area
fast and it leaves an appealing pattern behind after firing.
Course Cons: The base glass will be visible
between this larger size grain. I fill in around course with both medium
and fine frit to intensify the color and hide the base.
Tips for working with Course
·
Use both
transparent and opal glasses in combination for greater visual depth and to
create shading.
·
Use fine
and medium frit together with course to produce pleasing textures.
Mosaic Frit
Mosaic has
a wide variety of glass shapes and sizes within the jar. This frit leaves a
vein-like impression after fusing. I use mosaic when I have a lot of space to
fill and when I want to create an organic pattern.
Tips for working with Mosaic
·
Clear glass
layered on top of a color dilutes the color below. It’s like adding water to
paint. I like to put clear mosaic pieces on top of select elements in my work
to create subtle, lighter variations in the original glass color.
·
During
assembly, glue the mosaic pieces down with fusers glue so they don’t move when
you fill in the spaces in between.
·
Use both
transparent and opal glasses in combination for greater visual depth and to build
interest.
·
Use fine,
medium and course frit to fill gaps and produce interesting color combinations
and exciting textures.
Put it all Together
Frit is a
terrific medium for making landscapes or other images where you want to create
an engaging depth of field. In nature, objects in the distance are lighter in
color, and they visually have less detail. When making landscapes, I use the
different frit sizes to emphasize those subtle differences.
I use
powder to render the sky because I can get smooth, gradual color changes. I use
fine frit to create the tree line and other filler foliage in the distance. The
grain size stands out in front of the powder and yet doesn’t compete with the
foreground. Medium frit works well for the mid-range elements that require more
intricate detail, like bushes or flowers. Course frit is well suited for
objects in the foreground, such as flowering plants or sweeping trees.
These
design elements carry more visual weight and tie the design together. Mosaic
frit is great for specific up-close subject matter like a path or bridge. Such
solid, recognizable focal points lure the viewer into the design.
Oceanside Compatible frit comes
packed in 8.5 oz. and 4 lb. jars. For the larger sizes like course and mosaic
you may consider crushing your own frit. The advantage to working from the jars
though, is you have uniform sizes within the jars and one single color throughout.
Plus, there’s no risk of contaminants like dirt or metal shavings that are
present when you crush your own glass. Personally, I prefer to jump right into
the design and fabrication phases rather than spend time swinging a hammer and
sifting glass.
I hope
this round-up entices you to start incorporating frit in your new work. It’s
such a versatile and easy to apply material. You’ll love the creative
flexibility if affords.
There’s still time to register.
Don’t
miss this exciting opportunity to SEE how easy it is to use frit to jazz up your
artwork. Join me in a LIVE Fusing
with Frit Webinar today. I hope to see YOU today!
Happy
fusing!
Lisa
Follow my
blog for more tips and tricks!
Fusing with Frit Webinar
Tuesday, June 25, 2019
Ramp up the visual intricacy of your glass art!
Clever glass fusers know that using strong line quality and bold color
saturation in combination is an effective way to create stand-out works of art.
Now take such trustworthy techniques and sprinkle in gradient blends and subtle
shading achieved using frit. You’ll be amazed just how quickly your artwork
advances to a new, exciting level of sophistication.
In this comprehensive webinar, I’ll show you how to apply
several methods I employs to add the striking, painterly-quality I’ve developed
to improve the impact of your glass fusing projects. I’ll demonstrate SEVEN
projects in this Webinar, from sea turtles to flowering trees to beach
scenes and more! You’ll learn: how to evaluate a design to maximize the
imagery, steps for successful fabrication and practical tips for building
professional quality, finished pieces. Along with my step-by-step
instruction, you’ll also receive complete material lists and project-specific
firing guides.
Upcoming Hands-on Class
Sculptural Fused Glass, 4-Day,
Hands-on Workshop
NEW Class Update and Special Offer.
Register now and for the first time
EVER, all class materials are included!
PLUS, you’ll get a FREE Fused Art Design Video
DVD.
AND, a professional photo shoot of your completed sculptural masterpieces.
Sculptural Fused Glass, 4-Day,
Hands-on Workshop
October 15-18, 2019
You’re invited to join me for this
intense workshop held in my private studio in Wesley Chapel, Florida. Class
size is limited to 4.
Sculptural fused glass is the creation of three-dimensional forms that rise
above a flat plane. Artists create 3-D works by using multiple methods and
techniques with complete freedom of materials and process.
In this comprehensive class you’ll
learn how to design, build and creatively display multiple stunning pieces of
art that reflect your personal style.
You’ll push the boundaries glass
imposes. You’ll use innovative approaches to design and combine multiple
advanced techniques to construct original sculptural art.You’ll enjoy: the
one-on-one instruction, making large scale projects, the well-equipped
classroom, and the intimate class size.
Its hard-core fusing in a nurturing,
relaxed environment. You'll love the concentrated, in-depth study and creative
momentum you’ll gain while actively producing nonstop, for four consecutive
days. You’ll also learn how to design and build custom art glass displays that
enhance your original work.
Due to popular demand, I’m now extending
the hands-on curriculum to include a professional photo shoot of your completed
sculptures.
You’ll leave class with several
completed sculptures, a working knowledge of kiln operation and custom project-specific
firing guides. You’ll have the design confidence and hands-on experience to
rise above and take your work to the next level.
Learn at home at your own pace. Instructional
Videos are here!
