Inspired! Irid Dragonfly Intention Plaque

Iridescent dragonfly intention plaque

While at the Glass Craft and Bead Expo this past spring, I stopped by the booth of Jubilee Creative and picked up some word decals. I don't normally work with a lot of decals, but I had an idea in mind for what I wanted to call "intention plaques" (or affirmation plaques), and since my handwriting leans toward illegible at times, I thought decals would work well.

I created several of these plaques. First, I prefused the words on 1x2" squares of white or cream. Then I shuffled the words, picked one at random, and tried to create a piece that reflected the word. It was a fun challenge, and hopefully a boost to my creativity!

While doing this, I also happened to watch a video from the Bullseye Glass Education collection showing a technique for using clear powder on iridescent glass to create images in the glass. I decided to try out this technique on one of the intention plaques, along with another fun thing I saw in a demo at the Inspirational Metal Art booth while at the expo -- using alcohol inks to color aluminum cut outs (which were purchased at the booth).

So... new techniques and supplies in hand, I set to work. I used the aluminum dragonfly cut out as my stencil for applying the clear powder to the irid glass (see the video for full info). I did not apply the irid evenly across the glass as they did in the video, because I wanted a gradient irid effect. I then placed the prefused word on the irid, and placed the irid on top of a blank of clear with a couple of "U's" of high temp wire sandwiched in between so I would have some way to later hang the glass. I followed a typical full-fuse schedule for System 96 glass.

The technique for applying the alcohol inks to the aluminum is fairly complicated. You drip it on in various random patterns . If you don't like the effect, just rinse it off and try again! Once I was satisfied with the design, I set it aside to dry. Once dry, I set the ink with some Krylon clear matte sealant (found at any store where you can get spray paint -- local hardware, Walmart, Home Depot, Lowes, etc.). Rustoleum brand makes a version, too. The clear matte coating ensures the inks are colorfast.

View slightly angled to better
show the shadow image.
The word for this plaque
is Inspire.

I placed the decorated metal cut out somewhat offset from the image on the glass to provide a shadow-image effect. The cut out was glued to a narrow strip of 1/4" glass just a bit thinner than the body to act as a stand-off, and that was glued to the fused glass (I used E6000 glue).

I really like how this piece turned out. It's always satisfying when a few simple design techniques turn into a striking fused glass creation!

Side view, showing stand-off

Happy fusing!


Dana




Resources:
Jubilee Creative
Inspirational Metal Art

Bullseye Educational Video: Clear Powder on Iridescent Sheet  Glass

Learn more about Bullseye Glass Educational Videos!