Creating Fused Blank Pendants

I call these blanks because they are blank until you add something to them. Right now, I’ve been using rubber stamps to added images to these. However, you could decorate them by painting or even gluing something on. Think of these like a blank canvas and use your imagination.

Another reason I’ve enjoyed making these blanks is that they have allowed me to start using all those little scraps of glass that I’ve been hoarding. You can either make these a little rough for a more primitive look or spend a little more time cutting and grinding to make them more symmetrical. I like both looks.

To make these, you’ll need:

*scraps of fusing glass
shelf paper
glue
fusing set up

*I have two glass scrap bins: one for little pieces (that might turn into frit some day), and one for larger pieces (most are a few inches in diameter). You will need a little of each of these sizes of scraps.

1. Dig through your scrap bin and look for pieces that are a few inches in diameter. They can be square, triangle shapes, whatever.

2. If you want blanks that look a little more primitive, do as little as possible to these scraps. If you want a more symmetrical look, cut them into the shapes want you (squares, rectangles, triangles) and use your grinder to even them up around the edges.

3. Decide which will be the front of your blank, and place that side down.

4. Now pick out small pieces of scraps that will be used to create the "bales" of the blanks that will be fused onto the back. Pieces that are a little less than an inch long and about ¼ inch wide work well. If necessary, cut some of these from larger scraps. Again, you can either leave this rough looking or clean them up on the grinder a little.

5. Now cut some of your shelf paper into small strips about 1 ½ inches long and 1/8 inch wide.

Next Page->Finish Assembling & Fusing these Pendants

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All graphics created by Tammy Powley.

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