One of the things I love most about fused glass is how dramatically a mold can transform a simple flat piece of glass into something elegant and artistic. For June, I decided to feature this beautiful flowing flower-style mold. The soft organic curves and flowing shape make it perfect for creating decorative bowls, dishes, or artistic display pieces. The blue piece shown here is actually the first of my five glass pieces with three molds. I used soft wispy blue and white glass, and I absolutely love how delicate and flowing it turned out after firing. It almost reminds me of water, clouds, or flower petals depending on how the light hits it. What makes molds like this especially fun is that every single piece can look completely different depending on the colors.
Here is another beautiful bowl using the exact same mold, but with a completely different glass blank—and what a difference the glass makes! This piece has a much softer, more organic feel with subtle color movement and delicate reactions flowing throughout the bowl. I always find it fascinating how the same mold can create such dramatically different results simply by changing the glass, colors, or design elements used before firing. This bowl turned out soft, elegant, and almost ethereal. Honestly, I think that’s part of the magic of fused glass—there are endless possibilities, and even after years of working with glass, I still get excited seeing how each firing transforms the piece into something completely unique.
Here is another completely different mold and I absolutely love the dramatic flowing shape it creates. Compared to the previous flower-style mold, this one has much deeper curves and movement, which gives the finished piece a much bolder and more sculptural appearance. For this sample, I used warm colors with lots of movement throughout the glass, and I think the finished bowl almost looks like fire, petals, or flowing fabric depending on how you view it. The way the glass settled into the folds of the mold created such beautiful depth and texture after firing. One of the things I enjoy most about working with different molds is seeing how each one completely changes the personality of the glass. Even when using similar techniques or color palettes, the final result can feel elegant, dramatic, whimsical, or organic simply based on the mold shape itself. I’m really excited to see what my students create with this one because I already know no two bowls are going to look alike.
This is the final piece for my June molds, and it uses the same mold as the soft blue bowl and the wispy white piece I shared earlier. I love putting these examples side-by-side because it really shows how dramatically different the exact same mold can look depending on the glass and colors used. For this piece, I chose a bright spring green glass with reactive colors flowing through the center, and the finished bowl has such a fresh, cheerful feel to it. The soft flowing edges created by the mold give it a delicate organic shape, while the brighter colors make it feel completely different from the calming blue version or the soft white wispy piece.
This little creative project really reminded me how many beautiful molds and special glass blanks I’ve collected over the years that sometimes get tucked away while life, classes, and production work take over. Instead of letting them sit on shelves, I decided it was finally time to start pulling them back out, experimenting again, and seeing what they could become. Honestly, it felt a little like rediscovering old treasures in my own studio. What I loved most was seeing how dramatically different each finished piece became, even when using the exact same mold. A simple change in glass color, reactions, or pattern completely transformed the personality of each bowl. Some turned out soft and elegant, while others became bold, dramatic, or full of movement. That’s one of the things I’ll never stop loving about fused glass—there are always new surprises waiting in the kiln. Even after years of working with glass, experimenting with molds, special blanks, and reactive glasses still inspires me and keeps the creative process exciting.
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Keeping my Kiln warm,
Karen
