by Al Heilman
January 14, 2025
Maybe the grey of today isn’t just a mood or a weather pattern. Maybe it’s a metaphor. A reminder that life’s grey areas don’t need to stay stagnant. With a little effort—a stroke of amber pigment here, a touch of warmth there—we can transform the grey into something else entirely. Something brighter. Something truer.
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by Al Heilman
January 14, 2025
Pick up the phone. Call a friend. Speak to your family. There’s more to life than the quick, impersonal convenience of texting. Call me old-fashioned, but this is my boundary. Communication isn’t just about transmitting information; it’s about connection. Let’s not forget that.
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by Al Heilman
January 14, 2025
My Hands and their significance
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by Al Heilman
January 23, 2022
4 Comments
My journey to pursing the sublime joys of family, nature and art
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by Al Heilman
March 24, 2021
4 Comments
This is a video about sandblasting for the Artist .
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by Al Heilman
February 25, 2021
So my reflection today is to be observant and focus on the day for what it “is” and not “what it is not”.
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by Al Heilman
July 06, 2020
2 Comments
My dad taught me a long time ago to clean up after I made a mess in our shop. If you keep your tools clean they last a long time and save you money on repair bills. If you learn how to take your saw apart and how to clean it, it will work when you need it. Please leave us some feedback. If you have and idea for future blogs and videos let me know and I will research the topic it may turn up in a new blog. Enjoy and have some fun in your studio! [...]
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by Al Heilman
July 06, 2020
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by Al Heilman
July 06, 2020
1 Comment
After I made the mobile stand and firing shelf for my Caldera kiln the next step was to pull some glass. Here are some notes on my first firing.I fabricated a cold rolled steel bottom that was 6 x 6 with a 1 and 1/4 inch hole in the center. Next I cut a piece of kiln fiber paper 1/8 inch thick to the size of the steel base. Wear a mask.1/8" Fiber Paper - 24" X 24"Next I cut 48 sheets of glass 5 x 5 to fit in square stainless steel kiln boxFilled up the fusing box [...]
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by Al Heilman
July 06, 2020
When we finish pulling murrine we need to know how to clean the kiln and the murrine fusing vessel. Here is a youtube video about my process of pulling murrine and how to clean up the kiln and fusing vessel. Links to all the tools and equipment I use are included. Hepa Vacuum I use to clean up glass dust and fiber paper residual.Fein 9-20-28 TURBO II SET Turbo SetWelding blankets kevlar works to 1200 and black carbon blanket protects to 1800 degrees. Perfect&nbs [...]
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by Al Heilman
July 06, 2020
When so much pain and inexplicable loss encompass our lives, how do we make sense of it? Life is so fragile, and the time we get to experience it, is far too short for too many.
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by Al Heilman
July 06, 2020
6 Comments
This blog deals with my journey as a healer and artist producing vessels. I discuss how healing can occur thru art. It also relates to the care of our own (vessels) bodies.
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by Al Heilman
July 06, 2020
This is a problem solving video published for fellow glass artists.
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by Al Heilman
July 06, 2020
1 Comment
It is time to really listen and feel the pain so many have. We need to learn from our fellow humans how we can all work together non-violently. We need to all be treated equally by the police and under our laws. We all have the same rights and needs for safety, respect and a right to be heard.
We are capable of change and healing. I hope that those who are in morning can find a way to heal. Having recently lost my Mom, I can offer that this process is not a fast or easy one. To have the violence and issues on top of this is unfortunate and something that is horrible.
As an Artist, I work with vessels and healing. I hope this vessel will be a seed for change and healing. Healing is possible in this difficult time. It will take time, reflection and change to forge a new way forward.
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by Al Heilman
July 06, 2020
6 Comments
A blog and video of how to safely and easily remove a glass vessel from the drop ring using a wet tile saw.
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by Al Heilman
September 03, 2018
A very nice article published on Voyage Houston , September 2018.
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by Al Heilman
August 23, 2018
2 Comments
I use a simple jig to keep the diamond drill centered when enlarging a hole in the bottom of a clay pot used for casting glass or for pulling larger Murrini glass.
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by Al Heilman
June 18, 2018
7 Comments
When I received the invitation to a summer wedding I was intrigued by the special invitation(s). One was to a wedding in India , and the another to the subsequent American wedding. I decided to make a couple of rectangular glass trays for the newlyweds to celebrate their life events. The first step was to scan the invitation into my computer and see what I could do to make this work.
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by Al Heilman
May 03, 2018
2 Comments
Cold working glass is an art that can be learned and finishes your work. I will walk you thru my process. I am sure there are many other ways to do this on a wet belt sander or by hand but I prefer a wet lap. After a learning curve it is my go to method. My wet flat lap is a 12 inch variable speed unit from covington engineering. I had them make the stand higher as I am so tall. Flat laps are a big ticket item but worth it for me as I use it on most of my work. The s [...]
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by Al Heilman
May 01, 2018
Here is the process I used to make this Drop ring Vessel Side ASide BSo this is how I made this vessel.I started by pulling Murrini from a Caldera Kiln on a stand. (See my blog about making this stand and pulling Murrini)I collect this info on the back of the sheet to try and keep track of the process.al_firing_schedule_sheet1.pdfFile Size:112 kbFile Type:pdfDownload FileI use this log sheet to record how I stacked the glass and what temp it fired. You can download it a [...]
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by Al Heilman
February 06, 2018
1 Comment
This you tube video describes the process I use to cut larger pieces of murrine into parallel pieces. I then use these pieces to fuse a blank that I use for making drop ring Murrine Vessels. A list of tools and supplies are in this blog.There are several great wet tile saws for glass. I like the Dewalt wet tile saw for several reasons. The first is it is very precise, Second it is easy to clean, Third it has plenty of power, Fourth it has a nice stand and it i [...]
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by Al Heilman
January 30, 2018
2 Comments
The next step was figuring out what to do with the murrine I had made. I decided to make a drop ring vase by fusing this murrine into a blank and then using a drop ring mold to slump a vessel. I fabricated a 3/4 inch stainless steel rings in my shop then added fiber paper 1 /16 inch to inside ring. Held fiber paper on w Elmer's glue and then placed on kiln shelf paper. Then stacked murrini in center of 2 sizes of blanks. Decided [...]
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by Al Heilman
January 23, 2018
When I added making murrine glass to my studio I had to come up with a way: 1. To cut it ergonomically and not stress my wrists and carpal tunnel, 2. To be able to set up repeatable cut lengths, and 3. To capture the cut glass murrine missiles so they did not end up all over the studio. Before you start making murrine take a class. I took a class for Larry Pile at Hollander glass in Houston. Also a big thank you to Cyndi who works there for her help and support. The course will [...]
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by Al Heilman
January 16, 2018
This stuff we call art is enticing and exciting but it requires a great deal of very hard work, learning and failure.Sometimes you need to take a class with a master teacher, and other times, with the web searches, and your brain you can figure it out.Your ideas are your stimulus to your work, no ones else. So you have to learn to trust your ideas and not be afraid of failure.Going to look at art online, in museums or in a gallery, or on pinterest is crucial to training [...]
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by Al Heilman
January 14, 2018
When I was setting up my cold working area in my studio I needed a simple way of getting water to my machines without expensive plumbing. Recirculating used water with a pump is possible but you risk introducing grit from previous steps, and thus scratches into your work from the wastewater contamination.Here is what I came up with and it works perfect. I started out with a trip to the Lowes. I am sure any home center will do.Hook one end of 1/4 inch tubing to your machin [...]
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by Al Heilman
January 13, 2018
1 Comment
Murrine glass is name for the small circles of glass with patterns inside them. "Murrine (singular: murrina) are colored patterns or images made in a glass cane that are revealed when the cane is cut into thin cross-sections. Murrine can be made in infinite designs from simple circular or square patterns to complex detailed designs to even portraits of people. One familiar style is the flower or star shape which, when used together in large numbers from a [...]
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by Al Heilman
July 27, 2017
1 Comment
As an artist I have spent many years learning to look, listen, and feel in order to create my work. Often, I look at an art work and wonder how in the world did the artist make that? So many times you have to take a course to learn a new process or technique. That can get very expensive when you figure in tuition, travel, lodging, and meals. I also understand that some techniques in art, like enameling, take years to perfect and learn with inherent dangers of a kiln and t [...]
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by Al Heilman
July 15, 2017
When I am working on a new piece of art friends always ask me what is the title? For me the title develops at various stages of the work. For me titles tend to be developed from a much deeper place, from my "emotional passages", or as a hidden surprise to the viewer. Reflecting on the ways I have navigated thru life, I find there is a fierce internal force burning inside me. Sometimes is is subtle and other times and it is brutal and knocks you flat on your butt [...]
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