Friday 9 May 2014

Melting Beads to make enamel dots


I've been discussing with others lately about melting beads to make enamel dots, I have picked the brains of those who have tried it & listened to their advice before giving it a go myself.

First off, use a conventional oven, fan ovens can blow the beads around (Thanks for the heads up Sue)
I set the temp as high as it would go (about 210C), put the beads on greaseproof paper & pop them in carefully (they can roll around & melt together if you're a lil too rough)
Here's the beads, ready to go in. I even included shaped beads to try.

The Result....
Shaped beads retain very little shape.
Some beads that appear plastic may be glass, these do very little apart from maybe changing colour.
Some beads bubble, this can actually be quite a nice effect.
The cheapest, more childlike beads worked the best, they have a lovely colour & more regular circular shape. These really look like enamel dots.

I tried another batch with the simpler, childrens beads..
As you can see, some worked out beautifully, others are miss shaped. Always make sure the beads are clean otherwise the dirt melts onto the bead & can ruin the look.

Have you tried this yet? How did you get on? Or are you tempted to give it a go?

2 comments:

  1. Oh what a great effect! And FUN! Not tried this but definitely will!

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  2. Great to see this tried with a variety of beads ... I'm guessing Hama beads are cheap enough to not worry about the odd reject.

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