Description
How To Create A Wafer Design Using The Glass Tattoo® Wafer Stencil System
1. Mixing the Glass Tattoo® Gue
You should mix your Glass Tattoo® Gue in a 2 cup (475 ml) airtight, lidded plastic container.
Measure 1 cup (236 ml) room temperature water and pour that into your mixing container.
Measure 1/2 tablespoon (7 ml) of chlorine bleach and mix it with the water.
Now sprinkle the contents of the Glass Tattoo® Gue packet across the surface of the water.
Place the airtight lid securely on the container then give it a good shake.
You will notice that the Glass Tattoo® Gue powder does not mix very well into the water – do not worry, simply set it aside and wait 6 to 8 hours. When you come back you will be amazed that it will be fully emulsified and you will have a creamy thick gelatinous mixture.
2. Creating the Glass Tattoo® Gue Colors
It’s good to have a selection of 10 or 12 colors premixed in 4oz (12 ml) Glass Tattoo® Dispenser Bottles.
Mix the Glass Tattoo® Gue with glass powder that has the same COE as the base glass. Use either opalescent powders or transparent powders, both work perfectly with the Glass Tattoo® Stencil System.
Always mix one part Gue with one part glass powder. 2 tablespoon of Gue mixed with 2 tablespoon of glass powder will yield enough Gue color for several stencils, especially when you combine several colors while creating a single stencil design.
The easiest way to mix the powder with the Glass Tattoo® Gue is to use a Ziploc sandwich bag. Open the bag, place 2 tablespoon (30 ml) of glass powder inside, then scoop 2 tablespoons of Gue on top of the powder inside the bag. Remove most of the air space, zip the bag tightly and start squeezing to mix the powder and the Gue until it is combined completely.
Now take the lid off one of the 4oz (12 ml) Glass Tattoo® Dispenser Bottles, then use a pair of scissors to cut a corners off the Ziploc bag to create a small hole. Place the hole in the Ziploc bag over the opening in the Dispenser Bottle and squeeze the Gue color into the bottle the same way you would squeeze a toothpaste tube. Put the lid on your dispenser bottle, turn it upside down and place it nozzle down in a Glass Tattoo® Bottle Caddy to allow the color mixture to flow into the dispenser tip.
Continue to mix colors until you have a good assortment to chose from. You may find it more convenient to mix 3 or 4 tablespoons (45 to 60 ml) of Gue and glass powder of your favorite colors.
When you have your selection of colors mixed up you are ready to start creating your stencil tattoo.
3. Preparing the Glass Tattoo® Stencil
First you must determine which way you would like the stencil to go because most stencils are reversible (except stencils that have lettering).
Then you need to add a couple of lift-tabs that will enable you to pick the stencil up after you have loaded it with the Gue colors. The easiest method is use Glass Tattoo® Suction Tabs. The stencils have 2 areas that are sized perfectly to fit the Suction Tabs. Wet the bottom of the suction cups and stick them in those spots. This will create two lift-tabs that you can grab with your fingers to pick the stencil straight up.
Or you could create the tabs using masking tape. Pull off a 2” (5 cm) length then fold the center of the masking tape onto itself to create a 3/8” (1 cm) tab. This will leave two sticky tails that are 5/8” (1.6 cm) each. Stick this pull-tab on your tattoo stencil, close to one of the edges. Then repeat.
4. Creating the Component Wafers
You are going to create the wafers and let them air dry, then you will place the dried wafers on your base glass in any pattern design that you choose. To create the wafers place the Tattoo Stencil (with the Lift-Tabs in place) on a sheet of smooth clear acetate (overhead transparency plastic) or similar type of plastic sheeting, even the plastic bag that the stencil came in will work (but that is not ideal).
Choose one of your colors and squeeze some of the Gue color into a stencil space. You’re trying to fill the space with just enough Gue color to come to the top of the stencil. Use a Glass Tattoo® Spreader Knife to smooth the surface of the Gue color to make it level with the top of the stencil. If you have too much, scrape it off using the knife and put it back into your squeeze bottle.
Don’t be afraid to mix colors within a space to create a multi-tone design. It’s your time to be creative.
When the wafer spaces are filled with Gue color, grasp each pull-tab between your thumb and index fingers and SLOWLY pick the stencil straight up. This is why a more ridged plastic sheet is better than a plastic bag, when you’re lifting the stencil, a flimsy plastic will tend to lift with the stencil, however it can work if you lift very slowly, the Gue color design will eventually slide out of the stencil and remain on the plastic sheet.
Now you must wait until the wafers are completely dry. That will take 24-48 hours depending on the humidity level in your area. Once the wafers are dry they will lift very easily from the plastic and be remarkably strong, but they will break of course, so be gentle.
Now you can arrange the wafers on your base glass in any pattern you wish. Paste the wafers down using a small dab of Gue then add any other adornment components you choose to finish your masterpiece.
5. Fire the Glass in your Kiln
The final step is to put your glass with the attoo design into your kiln to fire. It takes about eight hours for the Glass Tattoo® Gue to dry completely and become hard. If you do not want to wait for the tattoo design to air dry, add an extra step to the beginning of your firing schedule to dry the tattoo design. That additional first step would be: Ramp at 90°FPH to 150°F (50°CPH to 65°C) and hold for 60min. After that initial drying step you can use a standard firing schedule to fire the glass to whatever level you would like. You could tack fuse, texture fuse, contour fuse or full fuse – it all depends on your artistic or creative desire and how you intend to use the final piece.
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