New shop

So, I've been mulling over the new website idea for a bit as, of course, it is an extra expense in time and money but I think it will go ahead. I much prefer the functionality of the big cartel shop over my current one. I was on my own website today and there are lots of little errors that creep in and annoy me. The new site seems much more easy to use and more reliable. I will probably keep my non-shop pages where they are and have the shop hosted elsewhere. I am actually really looking forward to spring-cleaning the shop and making it that much better to use. I will then have good incentive to get it stocked up! Glass-making has been on the back-burner for a while and I need a boost to get back into the swing of things. I think this weekend I will focus on Handmade Heaven and see what comes of giving it more attention!

I have had some commission enquiries this week which has perked me up a bit :)

Watch this space...!

New website?

Hmm, undecided. I am not 100% happy with my website as is. I know most folk who see it like it so I should probably leave it be, but I am a designer after all and I know what I like! I've found a new website host (via a friend's site) who seems to offer the kind of site I'd like. Big pictures, simple navigation, product descriptions, managed shopping, pages with sensible names(!), and cool modern design. It's called 'BigCartel' and is aimed at designers, artists and crafters so it seems a good fit. It would be a lot of work to transfer all my stuff over and redesign my site but I am tempted. Annoyingly I did just renew my current hosting. Decisions decisions!

Take a peek at a quick mock-up using their free version (you only get one template choice in the free version)...

http://handmadeheaven.bigcartel.com/

Looks pretty smart and I am getting more and more tempted to make the move!

Drilling success!

Hooray! The drill testing is done and dusted and I can thankfully say it went pretty well. It is always very scary drilling anything, but drilling glass is terrifying! I've drilled my glasswork on a small scale with a dremel before but the 8mm holes I needed to do for the clock faces required a bigger set up. This is how things looked before I began. Took a while to set up the drill stand as there were no instructions with it! Not helpful :P I used an electric drill on a slow speed with a carbide drill bit. The glass has to be drilled under water - or you need to rig up some other way of keeping the glass and drill bit lubed and cool. I've done it with a little well of olive oil before but that wouldn't work on this scale. If I do make the 30 x 30cm glass clock faces then I will need to find a bigger tray!


The first attempt, as usual, I tried to rush. This didn't agree with the glass! The result is below. Hmm, it's all about learning. Slower speed required I think :)


This is the second and successful attempt. I am really pleased. It didn't take too long either. I might need to file a little but the edges seem very smooth and if the clock workings are going to fill the hole it should be fine as is.


And just to prove it was 8mm... ;)


The world is now my drilling oyster! :D

Grr!

The 8mm drill bit I need to use on the clock testing won't fit my dremel. Annoying. Got to wait 'til Friday now to borrow an electric drill. Was all set to try out the new carbide drill bits. Hey ho. Patience is a virtue!

New purchase - carbide drill tips for drilling glass

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I needed to buy some drill bits to do some tests for the clocks. I only needed an 8mm but I decided to get a pack of 5 which contains a 3, 5, 6, 8 and 10mm set of carbide bits. Hopefully they will work well on glass and will prove to be useful additions to the Handmade Heaven studio :) I will get to try out my drill stand too. Hopefully, accident-free!