The Delphi Blog

Nothing says classic winter beauty like the wonder of snowflakes. First captured on film by Wilson Bentley in 1885, these hexagonal crystalline forms fall by the millions every winter covering the landscape in delicate white blankets of snow. Just like us, every snowflake that falls to earth is a one-of-a-kind form. This unique beauty has inspired art and artists for decades. Although it seems a bit odd that you would be capturing ice with fire, snowflakes make excellent glass projects. Capturing them in a medium such as glass allows you to enjoy their beauty without ever having to worry about finding your mittens, Kevlar gloves maybe, but no mittens. As a child, one of my favorite winter pastimes was cutting paper snowflakes. Just like the real thing, each snowflake I made was different and as an adult, I still enjoy this craft as much as I did when I was 7. Now I can imagine you are already shaking your head at me saying: "Are you suggesting I put paper snowflakes in my kiln?!?" And my answer is, Yes. Yes, I am. By creating paper snowflakes from fusible kiln paper, you can create these timeless decorations out of paper and capture them permanently in glass. This is a g

As some pick out costumes and prepare for annual Halloween festivities, in Mexico people begin preparing to celebrate Da de los Muertos, the day of the dead. This three day event spans October 31st through November 2nd. Traditions vary from town to town. However, most families spend these three days honoring and remembering the lives of the dead with flowers, decorations, traditional foods and brightly decorated skulls. These are commonly known and referred to as Sugar Skulls. While both Halloween and Da de los Muertos embrace skulls, the scary skulls that are sometimes associated with Halloween don't compare to the ornate and sometimes tasty sugar skulls displayed proudly during this Mexican holiday. Sugar Skulls are funky, festive and a huge trend these days! In honor of Da de los Muertos we encourage everyone to celebrate other cultures and have fun getting creative with an icon ofthis traditional Mexican holiday, the Sugar Skull. In pop-culture Sugar Skulls are often adorned withhearts, crosses, flowers and filigree. The possibilities are endless so enjoy! Check out all of the ama

Here's our list of 5 Favorite New Items from the September 2013 edition of Stained Glass News: As always we look forward to receiving our quarterly issue of Stained Glass News. It is always packed with inspiration and highlights of the newest items available for art glass creations. Let us walk you through these exciting new items and see how they can add new dimension and style to your work today! 1. Dichroic Extract It's like glitter, all grown up! Add dichroic to your projects in ways you've previously only dreamed of with this fantastic new product. It's all the dazzle of dichroic, without a backing to limit your applications. With no COE, you can paint it on, sprinkle it, even pick it up in flameworked and blown glass projects. Dichroic Extract is available in all your favorite colors, plus fun sample sets to get started. 2. Fuseworks Gift Findings for Glass Creating fun, thoughtful gifts or glass accents you'll love to use is a breeze with these fantastic flat Fuseworks Gift Findings . Each comes with simple instructions to make finishing your projects easy. The perfect way to display your glass art cre

We are excited about the Fall 2013 line up of talented glass art experts teaching classes at Delphi's Creativity Center in Lansing, MI. Each artist brings their own unique skill set and techniques that any student from beginner to professional artist would enjoy. Tim Driers intricate hollow forms will amaze flameworking fans. Learn valuable new skills from this master glass blower. Gain fusing expertise in Janet Schraders classes. Janet has many special tricks to impart that will take your fusing knowledge to a new level. Kent Lauers glass magic will enthrall coldworking enthusiasts. Youll also learn glass gem making from this master of beveling. One look at Patty Grays fantastic glass art will have fusers thirsting to learn her secrets. Patty will share some of her unique methods during her Advanced Fusing class. Get to know each artist and their work, then see which class is right for you! Class sizes are limited so register now to ensure your opportunity to work with these amazing artists. Tim Drier Michigan native Tim Drier has worked as a scientific glass blower for more than 25 years. His e

August 26th might just be another Dog Day of Summer for some people, but here at Delphi we are looking forward to this day. Why you ask....well because it is National Dog Day. This year we have decided to do something special to celebrate not just dogs, but all our favorite furry, feathered and scaly friends. For the remainder of August, we're putting our favorite pet inspired glass art supplies on sale. Delphi will be donating 5% of the proceeds on all sale items to the Humane Society to help pets in need. We encourage everyone who loves animals or just loves using them as inspiration for their art to join us in supporting a good cause, now through August 31st. Here are some of our favorite supplies: Cat Designs Pattern Book Paw Bail Fat Cats Color Enamel Decals Pre-cut Paw Prints Available in 90 96 COE In previous years, we've hosted The Animal Creations Contest to shine a spotlight on fantastic projects depicting the creatures large and small that ste

National Book Lover's Day is a lesser known holiday - much to my disappointment. It's celebrated on August 9th every year. I love books. I love books so much that in my house, every day is Book Lover's Day. I'm hoping you'll join me in celebrating for this one day at least though. "A book is a gift you can open again and again." Garrison Keillor A home without books is like a room without windows. Horace Mann Books have always held a special place in my heart. They open up a world of new possibilities to me. Each time I come back to a book, I bring fresh experiences and perspective to it, which lets me take something new away from it. Art books are no different. In addition to the bones of the process, the invaluable instruction that they present, they offer an opportunity to dream and create. The project ideas and instruction allow me to gain a greater understanding of the process, and how to use the process as part of the art. I get a new jumping-off point for creativity. I believe that books are as fundamental to an artists' workshop as the raw materials they'll use to complete a project. Without one or the other, no artistic vision can be executed successful

Delphi is pleased to welcome glass artists Kaori and Keiji Okushima, from Shiga Prefecture in Japan, to our Lansing Creativity Center on Saturday Aug. 10th, from 3:30pm - 4:30pm. Come to Delphi for a chance to see Kaori create her glass jewelry and hear Keiji explain his creative process. Kaori and Keiji are both part of the Art from the Lakes program . Art from the Lakes is a special artists exchange project between the sister states of Michigan in the United States and Shiga Prefecture in Japan. Named to recognize the importance of Lake Biwa in Shiga Prefecture and the Great Lakes which surround Michigan, the 2013 exhibition and residency brings seven extraordinary artists to Michigans capitol city of Lansing to exhibit their works. As part of the exchange artists from Michigan will be invited and hold an exhibition in Shiga in the fall of 2014. Kaori Okushima, Glassworker The Art from the Lakes Exhibit is held at the Lansing Art Gallery, August 1st - September 28th, 2013. All are invited to attend the opening reception on F

With the end of our very first ever Pinterest contest, we are thrilled to welcome over 1,000 new followers to our Pinterest boards . We hope that everyone found inspiration to create glass garden art projects of their own from our Glass Garden Art board and our Garden Center . Congratulations to the winner, Cindy Pilat, who was randomly selected. Cindy's board has an inspiring collection of glass garden art. As the winner Cindy will receive an assorted mix of flameworking and jewelry supplies - plus a few fun mosaic supplies, a $100 value. Want to participate in future contests? Delphi announces all special events and contests through our email newsletters, sign up today! Also like us on Facebook to stay connected to all things Delphi. Thanks to all who participated in this contest.

"Well, hello there Carlise, my name is Cere. It's nice to meet you!" As a flameworker, the most powerful tool at our disposal is the torch. From raw gas to burning flame, the torch provides the energy needed to take glass from solid state to molten magic. As someone that typically works with Borosillicate glass (32 or 33 COE), I tend to work towards the hotter parts of the flame, however, if you work with Moretti (104 COE), or soft glass, you may find the cooler areas beneficial to you. No matter what kind of glass you are melting in your torch, when properly familiar with the parts and type of the flame, you can bring your work to new levels. Q: Oxidizing, Reducing and Neutral: What kind of flame do I have, and what does that mean to me? A: When being worked, many glass colors are sensitive to the atmosphere or the ratio of mixed gases in the flame. Different atmospheres can produce a diverse array of effects, some desirable and some not as much. It's important to know what kind of flame you are working with and what kind of flame your glass desires. When in doubt, start with a neutral flame and adjust your settings from there. Reducing Flame - a flame

Here's our list of 5 Favorite New Items from the May 2013 edition of Stained Glass News, also in this issue Stained Glass News 25th Anniversary Contest winners announced! 1. Button Molds from Creative Paradise What better way to show off your art, than to wear it! These fantastic new molds from Creative Paradise are available in three different styles, Small Round, Large Round, and Square giving you the freedom to create buttons for any apparel in your closet. We love creating glass art and what a bonus when it is practical too! 2. Getting the Blues can be Great - 2 Exciting New Colors from Spectrum Glass Expand your creative pallet with the latest hues from our friends at Spectrum Glass! Blue Topaz and Hydrangea Opal bring to life two of our favorite shades from nature, perfect for portraying bright ocean blues and subtle floral hues. These colors are aptly named for the gem stone and flower they represent. Blue Topaz is a copper bearing color, making this an excellent addition to the Reactive Color pallet. Hydrangea Opal is the lightest shade in the System 96 Blue Opal Line. Try these fun new project ideas from System 96 centered around t

Art Glass Festival is the most anticipated event of the year at Delphi, and it's no secret why. We get a chance to see all the fantastic glass art that talented artists like you have been making! We would like to say thank you to everyone that participated in Art Glass Festival 2013 - and a special thanks to our contributors , their generous support makes this event a success. Our contributors provide all of the amazing prizes that are handed out to the winners of both the store contest as well as online. During the month of April, the Lansing Creativity Center comes alive with inspiring art as it plays host to the Art Glass Festival gallery. The exhibit opens with an Artists' Reception where artists from near and far share their discoveries and achievements in glass art. Check out all of the exciting photos from this year's reception on Facebook. May brings the inevitable end of the Art Glass Festival exhibit at the Lansing Creativity Center, but it also gives us the much anticipated results of the People's Choice Award voting. We would like to congratulate this years' winner, Carol Santoro, shown here with her winning Blue Heron mosaic entry. Ar