I have added some fabulous new assorted mini dichroic cab lots to my Etsy store. These 6-8 mm fused glass cabs are used by jewelry artists in their Precious Metal Clay\ArtClay designs.

Here are a few of them…

I also added two cab lots that are assorted pairs to incorporate into PMC earrings or designs that require matching glass pieces …

Fused dichroic glass cabochons (“cabs”) are used by jewelry artists in a variety of ways to make unique designs. For example, cabs can be hung from a pendant bail or wire-wrapped to incorporate them into a necklace. They are often used as a focal piece in a bracelet, and small cabs can be attached to posts to make earrings. Here are some common cab flaws to avoid when you are buying dichroic cabochons for your jewelry designs.

Escaping Dichro

The dichroic coating in the cabochon should be completely sealed within clear glass. Avoid cabs that have any dichro “escaping” from the clear glass. Dichroic on the outside surface of the cabochon obscures the reflective properties inside and makes the cab rough or even sharp. Click on the photo for an extreme example of “escaping dichro.”

Blobbing Clear

The opposite of the “escaping dichro” cabochon is the cab with clear glass blobbing off the sides. When the cabochon in the photo was fired in the kiln, the clear glass melted off of the dichro and pooled at the bottom of the cab. This makes the cab look unbalanced and flat. The clear top layer of the cabochon should extend to the edge, but no farther.

Incomplete Fuse

 Make sure the cabochon is fully fused. There should be no cracks or seams visible. The bottom of the cab in this photo is not fully fused, leaving a horizontal fissure in the base glass. The incomplete fusing problem is most common in the sides of cabs. It occurs when the clear, dichroic and base layers of glass were not given enough time in the kiln to melt completely together. An incomplete fuse leaves the cab looking unfinished, and gives it a rough feel.

Avoiding these three common cab problems will help ensure that you only get superior quality fused glass cabochons for your jewelry creations. I hope that this guide was helpful! To browse a selection of my dichroic fused glass cabs, visit my Etsy shop.

I recently got some new textured dichroic glass, and I have been really pleased with the cool effects I am able to create in my glass jewelry. Using this special glass, I made this pendant, which appears to have deep ripples, but actually has a perfectly smooth surface. The depth in these textured pieces is truly amazing.

 This is a reed textured blue dichroic pendant. It has the appearance of deep vertical grooves, but like the ripple texture, it has a smooth surface. I also made a reed textured gold-green dichroic pendant, and a purple one, which ended up being my 1000th sale on Etsy!

I will be making more textured pendants soon, so definitely check back!

I passed a major milestone in my Etsy store. On Monday, I made my 1000th sale. This purple ridged dichroic fused glass pendant was the item that broke 1000. A big thank you to all of my wonderful customers!

Kimberly, the creative force behind Blue Lady Studios on Etsy, made these stunning teardrop shaped fine silver earrings using matching turquoise dichroic glass cabochons and precious metal clay. Be sure to check out more of Kimberly’s beautiful PMC silver and polymer clay jewelry in her Etsy store: blueladystudios.etsy.com.

Check out this fun super-sparkly dichroic ring made by Jessica Mattingly of Unique Expressions on Etsy. She combined a grab bag fused glass cabochon and lime stained glass to make a positively luscious adjustible ring. Visit Jessica’s Etsy store for more rings, and other fabulous jewelry and accessories: jessprkle.etsy.com and get 10% off your first purchase if you mention “liskidder” in the “notes to seller” field at checkout!

I decided to start offering custom fused dichroic glass pendants in my Etsy store. These “create your own” pendants are available in Savoy Studios 16 most popular dichroic coatings. I will still take custom orders for all kinds of glass creations, but since these particular pendants are in such high demand, I thought I’d simplify the ordering process. Check them out here.

I used a nifty Kaboodle widget to create this collage…

Fused Glass for Professional Women

My Yellow, Gray and Green Fused Glass Drop Pendant was featured on the front page of Etsy today. It was picked by one of my favorite jewelry artists, Lava Jewelry. Click here to see a screen shot of Etsy’s front page.

They’re funky and fun and best of all, they’re handmade!

Whenever I create a bead that strikes me as special - maybe the colors are just right, or the melted glass made a cool design - I put it aside to use it in a necklace. This chunky light purple and white barrel shaped lampwork bead has an abstract wrap of sparkling blue aventurine glass.  It looks yummy strung on a brown suede cord.

This 14 mm dark turquoise bead has lapis blue and black detail. I was really pleased with how this bead turned out, so I strung it on a blue Greek leather cord, accented by two antiqued sterling silver rolled beads.

You can see additional photos of these necklaces and more of my lampwork beads in my Etsy store.