How I Make a Complex Looking Twisted Cane
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I've been shown this technique by several people. It produces a beautiful cane that is complex looking but simple to make.
The cane looks good when melted into the surface of a bead, or standing proud of the surface.
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For this demo I picked Coral, Turquoise and Light Grass Green. The base color is Black and I am using an 8mm rod, but it can be
done with the standard size. If you choose transparent colors, use a white base. Other things you will need include:
Clear for encasing
Masher
Two Pyrex rods to use as punties
Goldstone Stringer (optional)
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Step 1) Start by melting a gather of black.
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Step 2) This is where you need some sort of masher. Mine is a 1" wide sheet of brass. It is about a foot long and
bent in the middle. I got the metal at a hobby shop. Heat gently to bend.
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Step 2a) Use the Masher to pinch three wings in the gather. Reheat until the wings are evenly spaced around the center. If one of
the wings is smaller than the others, add a stripe of black to resize it.
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Step 3) Now it is time to start adding the color. Each of the three spaces between the wings will be filled with it's
own color. When you lay in the color, be sure not to trap any air bubbles. Be sure to leave the edges of the black wings
exposed, as they will be part of the pattern. Marver the glass so it is flat and tidy. Keep the whole thing hot. The
combination of overhead lights and flash sure give my hands a creepy color.
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Step 4) Finish adding glass to all three spaces, regularly flashing heat into the whole piece.
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Step 5) I put a stringer of goldstone on each of the three colors. I make fairly fat stringers using goldstone chunks.
One of the chunks is on my work surface. I bust it up into manageable size pieces with my nippers then encase with clear.
If you go slow you will end up with a nice stringer. Absolutely no air bubbles or it will be more fireworks than stringer.
Contrasting colors can also be used.
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Step 6) Next, the entire piece needs to be encased lightly. Get you clear rod molten enough to stripe the piece without
trapping air bubbles. If you encasing rod is molten enough, this should not be a problem.
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Step 7) When we eventually pull the cane there will be waste at both ends. This waste might as well be scrap glass. I fill
in the top with some additional glass. There is about 3/8s of an inch of glass added to the top.
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Step 8) Add the Pyrex punty to the end of the gather. Notice that the Pyrex punty is mashed on to end to make it close to the
size of the end of the gather.
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Step 8a
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Step 9) Now the other end gets extra glass added that will be waste when the gather is pulled. I use the black rod that
has been the handle all along.
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Step 10) That end then gets a Pyrex punty.
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Step 10a
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Step 11) Heat the gather. Turn both punty at the same speed during the heating process.
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Step 11a
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Step 12) When there is enough heat in the gather, start the pull. Start slowly, turning one punty in one direction, and
the other punty in the opposite direction. If the gather is too warm, it will sag badly in the middle. If this happens
just blow on the thin section to chill.
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Step 12a
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Step 13) Now that the pull is finished, cut the piece into manageable sizes. I look for areas that are consistent and
cut out those areas in larger pieces.
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Step 13a
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The Payoff:
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