It worked! My experiment of using glass rocaille beads to fill hollows made in tiles has seemed a pretty successful one. Some of the channels have overflowed a bit in the kiln, perhaps as I overfilled them, but generally I'm really pleased with the result! I was told the hot colours might not work but that blue and green probably would, but it seems at an earthenware firing of 1060 oC, the reds and yellows come out really well - not black and charred as I'd feared! I think I will give them another coating of clear glaze and put them in again so they are completely shiny and waterproof but overall, well worth trying!
I think this could be a lovely little project for my childrens' pottery class, as some of them are as young as 10, I really didn't want them handling broken pieces of glass, but little packets of beads are something they could get for themselves and be quite safe in handling them. I'm now in the process of printing off some nice glossy prints of these for my portfolio. I have my college interview on monday! Eeeeeek! Wish me luck!
