Glass Buttons

 

 This week I had a play with a new set of mandrels - these have two prongs and allow you to make beads with two holes, like for instance a button.

I got two sizes as I wasn't sure which would work best.  Plus I had two ideas in my head so again one might work better than the other.

 

My first attempt was proably a bit too small and so shattered when I tried to get the glass bead off the mandrel.  But 'im outdoors made a little jig (a piece of wood with a slot in it) and gave me a baby hammer and the next lot came off nicely with a little soak in water first.

And I've found I can either make something a little rounded or with a bit of work something flat with strong edges.  The ones in my photos I tried making with stripes of two coloured glasses, but you could decorate them in any way you want.

 

This is exciting for me, thinking about up coming knitting projects that will need buttons.  I can find it hard to find buttons of the right size and colour so this opens up a whole new world of button choice for me!

I love it when disciplines intermingle.