How to Make Dichroic Glass
Have you ever donned dichroic glass jewelry? These days, many youngsters can be seen flaunting trendy jewelry made from dichroic glass. If you have ever seen dichroic glass, you will know why jewelry made from this type of glass is a hit with the fashion-conscious young crowd. Dichroic glass is a type of glass that reflects more than one color. You can see different hues when you look at this type of glass from different angles. Since many vibrant colors are reflected from the glass surface, it lends a very interesting look to the glass surface. No wonder, it is increasingly being used for making fashion jewelry for teens. If you have an avid interest in jewelry making, you might want to know how to make jewelry from dichroic glass. Let's first understand what dichroic glass is and what it was originally used for.
What is Dichroic Glass
You will be surprised to know that dichroic glass was initially used for making astronaut face-plates. The credit of inventing dichroic glass goes to NASA as well as defense contractors. It was created as a shield against harmful cosmic radiation. Dichroic glass is created by treating glass with various metallic oxides. The colors that can be seen on the glass are attributed to the optical properties of the metallic oxides. Certain wavelengths of light are allowed to pass through the glass in different paths while some of them are reflected. The type of colors you see on the glass surface vary depending on the type as well as the number of oxides used in this process. So, how is dichroic glass made? Well, a special equipment called vacuum furnace is used for the purpose of making dichroic glass.
Once the glass is thoroughly cleaned, it is placed on the vacuum chamber of the furnace. A vacuum pump is used for removing the air and the chamber is heated up to a temperature of 300 degrees Fahrenheit. Micro-layers of metals such as silicon, titanium and magnesium are sprayed onto the glass. An electron beam is used for vaporization of the metallic oxides. As the glass rotates, the micro layers of metallic oxides coat the glass surface. Due to the vibrant colors and rich patterns that can be seen on dichroic glass, this type of glass has caught the attention of glass artists and the manufacturers of fashion jewelry. Since dichroic glass is manufactured by using special equipment, it is quite expensive. If you are willing to shell out money, you can buy finished dichroic glass to make dichroic glass jewelry.
Instructions for Making Dichroic Glass Jewelry
These days, many glass artists are using dichroic glass for making stylish and groovy glass bead jewelry. Here are instructions for making jewelry using dichroic glass.
Things You Need
- Dichroic glass
- Black glass
- Glass cutter
- Fusing glue
- Kiln
- First of all, you need to cut the black base glass as per the desired shape and size.
- Wear protective eyeglasses while cutting glass.
- Make sure that you cut the base glass as well as the dichroic glass in such a way that both are of the same shape and size.
- Now get your hands on the fusing glue and apply it over the base glass.
- The next step involves placing the dichroic glass on top of the base glass.
- Now you have to place the glass piece in the kiln. Firing would be done in stages.
- You first need to fire it at the temperature of 500 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes.
- After 20 minutes, fire it at 800 degrees and 1000 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes each.
- Lastly, fire it for 10 minutes at 1450 degrees Fahrenheit.
