Making a glass flower

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Making a glass flower is one of the easier projects in glass blowing, it still can be tricky to get the correct shape on the first try.

First-----gather the glass on a small punty. Second----roll the glass in color (frit,glass powder) Third-----marver...after doing so take your jacks and tap on the end of the glass to make a Marshmallow shape. Fourth-------Heat up, after doing so, take tweezers and pull glass towards the end of the punty, you will end up making a hole in the center of the glass. Fifth--------heat up your piece in the glory hole as needed. Sixth--------take scissors and cut into the glass were you want your petals to be (3-4 petals) Seventh------after flower is shaped in desired fashion, make a jack line with your jacks. (be careful not to make the jack line too thin otherwise the flower will break off because of it's delicate state.) Eighth-------have your assistant make you a bit (another piece of glass added onto your project.) your bit will be your stem, you can ask your assistant to make it any color you desire. Ninth---------hold your punty completely vertical over your wood paddle; tap it once hard and the flower should fall gently face down onto the paddle Tenth---------immediately take the bit that was made by your assistant and attach it gently to the bud of the flower (it should stick) have your partner flash your flower and stem in the glory hole. (Flashing is sticking your piece, wile rotating, into the glory hole for 5 seconds ONLY, and then quickly taking it out) Eleventh-------Take your diamond tweezers and gently grab the glass where the flower meets it----pull the glass slowly but steadily until the stem is of your desired length. Twelfth------Cut the end of the stem (the end by the punty) with your diamond tweezers, gently squeezing and twisting it NOT snapping it down like scissors. Thirteenth-----Take your flower (which should be on your wooden paddle by now!) and put it in the annealer.