Begin by applying a quality glass separator to the GM77 mold. Make sure to use the glass separator according to the manufacturer’s written instructions and to coat the mold completely. When using a waterbased glass separator it is crucial to drive all of the moisture out of the mold before firing with glass.
It is helpful to weigh your mold before you add glass so you can determine whether or not you have added enough glass to the mold before firing.
Dichroic glass, stringers, noodles and rods as well as bits of sheet glass can all be used to add interest to the frit casted soap dishes. All of the elements should be of the same COE.
If you are going to add a decorative element to the soap dish the requires details such as the fish in the soap dish above, it can be very helpful to glue the details to the front of the piece before placing the piece in the dish detail side down. Remember, you are working from the back of the design. Whatever is facing the bottom of your mold will be facing the front of your finished soap dish. It can be helpful to add a thin layer of clear layer in the bottom of the soap dish to help place any detail pieces such as the fish fins and tails.
To create graduated colors shown in the fish scene, add strips of Amber and Jade sheet as kelp. Carefully add thin layers of medium grain transparent frit from bottom of scene to top fading from Amber to Yellow to Citron and finally Sea Green. Place the mold on to a gram scale and add enough clear frit to the top of the glass to make the mold weigh 300-325 grams more than it did empty.
Sweep the frit to the center of the mold such that a mound of frit is in the middle of the mold. Mounding the frit helps to avoid spurs that can happen if the frit layer is flat or concave in the mold.
Fire the mold with the glass in the center of the kiln using the following firing schedule:
Seg 1 = Rate 1- 250, Temp 1- 1360, Hold 1 – 30 minutes
Seg 2 = Rate 2 – 300, Temp 2 – 1470, Hold 2 – 15 Minutes
Seg 3 = Rate 3 – 9999, Temp 3 – 960, Hold 3 – 90 minutes
Seg 4 = Rate 4 – 100, Temp 4 – 825, Hold 4 – 0 minutes
