filling molds

I've spent the last three days over at the shop. Marc got the molds made so it took a day to clean them up and do the volume measures and pick colors and get it all out and to hand and set up and ready to fill them. Yesterday I filled the hibiscus flower mold and today the bird mold. They took about 5 hours each to fill. The fussy bits like the bee and the bird's markings take the longest. The rest is just weighing, mixing, and spooning while paying attention to keeping the edges sharp and the frit evenly distributed. It's not as easy as it sounds or quick. Nothing about this process is easy or quick. Unless I just cast in one solid color. Which is something I've been thinking about. More and more people who comment on my waxes suggest casting in black or even the wax color. I think that if I'm going to do that, I would have to make a rubber reproduction mold to hedge my bet, something I don't do now.

I'm particularly interested in seeing how the bird panel comes out as it is sort of new. The face has a lot of markings that are already covered up by the next layer of glass particles in the picture, plus I used more powder than I generally do albeit mixed with fine frit. I hope the markings are somewhat distinct but they could come out just mashed together.

I'm tired. It's a very focused activity plus I'm standing on a rubber mat on a concrete floor, my constant companion at my feet. I'll get the last one done tomorrow. Ordinarily, I would be working at the store but tomorrow is the Fort Bend County Master Gardener's tree sale and my sister and I are going to try and get a fruit tree. Apparently it's a mob scene. We've been advised to get there at opening and know what kind of fruit tree I want. If I browse, I'm likely to get nothing or certainly not my first or second choice.