Stencil Tile using Hues 2 Fuse

Because of the very fine grain and concentrated nature of the Hues 2 Fuse pigments, it is possible to create beautifully detailed patterns on glass by sprinkling selected colors over stencils on glass and firing to maturity.

Begin the process by covering the work area with paper to help with clean-up. Work in an area absent of breezes. Wearing a basic breathing mask can help to assure that you do not inhale airborne pigments.

Follow the steps below to create a blue/brown/white stencil tile or adapt the steps below using different pigment, glass and stencils to create your own stencil tile.  Click on the images to enlarge them.

Cut a 6" x 6" piece of fusible white glass and a compatible 6" x 6" piece of fusible clear. Clean and dry both pieces of glass. Place the white glass directly over the clear glass. Elevate both pieces from the work surface to aide picking up the finished project. A small coffee can or jar of other product will work nicely as a elevating station. Place 1.5" pieces of masking tape on the edges of the stencil as shown to serve as handles for lifting. Place the stencil over the glass in the desired position. A quality stencil should lay flat against the surface of the glass. Holding the tea strainer over a piece of paper, fill a large tea strainer with Chateau Hues 2 Fuse pigments. Tap the strainer a couple of times over the paper to even out the distribution of the pigment.  

Hold the strainer approximately 6" above the glass and stencil. Begin sprinkling the Chateau pigment over the stencil and glass by lightly scraping your finger tips over the mesh of the strainer. This scraping action should create enough vibration to disperse pigment. Fill the entire stencil and glass area with a thin but complete coating of pigment. The edges of the stencil on the glass should still be visible, but not white glass should be visible. Dump the contents of the strainer onto a piece of paper and "funnel" the pigment back into the original jar. Fill the tea strainer with Henna Hues 2 Fuse. Tap the strainer to even out the distribution of pigment. Hold the strainer and Henna pigment approximately 10 inches above the center of the glass and stencil. Scrape your fingertips lightly over the mesh of the strainer to disperse a light dusting over Henna over the Chateau pigment in the center of the piece as indicated in the photo. Grasp the masking tape handles and carefully lift the stencil directly upward to remove the stencil. Make sure that your fingers are free of pigment. Carefully lift the project from the elevated position by placing your fingers under the glass on both sides of the project. Place the project on a 7" x 7" piece of Thin Fire paper on a kiln shelf and fire according to the COE of the glass. The tile pictured above was made of COE 96 glass and fired using the following 3 segment firing schedule in a digital kiln:

Rate 1 - 325/hour  Temp 1 - 1230  Hold 1 - 10 minutes  Rate 2 - 500/hour  Temp 2 - 1465  Hold 2 - 8 minutes /  Rate 3 - 9999/hour  Temp 3 - 960  Hold 3 - 60 minutes   If using a kiln that uses pyrometric cones - use a cone 016 on low for one hour, medium for two hours and high until the cone matures.