fused glass process
 

Process 
The process I use to make my fused glass jewellery is called ‘fusing’.  I hand cut the glass and layer it like a sandwich. 

 I use a special jewellery glass (Bullseye) and a more expensive glass called ‘Dichroic Glass’ (a space-age glass invented by NASA) and fire it in a kiln where the glass ‘fuses’ together.

Dichroic glass
Dichroic glass gives off a beautiful glow, reflecting intense light without producing a glare.  You will notice that the colour shifts as you change your angle of view.  

It actually is not glass at all but consists of up to 15 to 45 microscopically-thin layers of metal oxides.  Light is bent as it enters  the glass and returns to your eyes as a brilliant colour,  unlike normal glass where pigments and dyes absorb most of the light.

The base, or preliminary colour can be seen by looking straight-on with a light behind the glass. When the glass is slowly turned there is a gradual shift to its secondary colour. When the light is in front of the glass, the coating becomes a third colour in reflection.

Therefore it is very difficult to photograph the beauty of the alternating colours.