Fused-Glass Jewelry Expert Linda Sweeten Discusses Her Craft

I sat down with Linda Sweeten, a good friend of mine who works in the communications department at a university in New Jersey. While she spends her work days focusing on reports, policies and procedures, and attending meetings, her time off is a little different. During off hours she lets her creative side shine through by creating fused-glass jewelry in unique shapes, sizes, and colors. Here's what she had to say.

Denise: How long have you been making fused glass jewelry?
Linda: A few years now.

Denise: Where do you create your fused glass jewelry?
Linda: At Ghost Ranch. It's a Dude Ranch in New Mexico, where Georgia O'Keefe has a house on the property. The place is huge - it's 33 miles long. They offer creative arts classes such as fuse glass jewelry making, sining, pottery, photography, Black Smithing, and tin making. I started going in 1991 and have gone a total of five times.

Denise: How many classes have you taken?
Linda: I was in one class for the entire week, each time I was there.

Denise: What type of jewelry do you make?
Linda: Charms for necklaces and earnings.

Denise: So how do you make fused glass jewelry?
Linda: First I pick out three different colors of glass. Often the top is clear. Then you cut the shape you'd like the piece of jewelry to be. Then you have to grind down the rough edges. Next comes building the piece - it's like making a sand which. You put all layers on top of each other according to what colors you'd like where, and then you glue it together. It then goes on the shelf in the kiln and put turn the temperature between 12,000 and 15,000 degrees, depending on what look you are trying to achieve. There are two types of firing. The first is full fuse which is very high in temperature and fusing everything and blends the glass together. The other is tack fuse which is a lower temperature and simply fusing the layers together. When it's done it looks like each layer has been glues together.

Denise: How many pieces of jewelry do you think you've done?
Linda: About 180 pieces.

Denise: Do you sell your work?
Linda: Yes.

Denise: Where do you sell it?
Linda: Mostly at craft shows and by word-of-mouth. I really just do it for a hobby.

Thank you for your time, Linda. Making fused glass jewelry sounds interesting!