Pearls and Tidbits:Bowling Balls and Tempered Glass

Hi Everyone
Finally got down to making a bowling bowl/tempered glass for my garden. Some things I learned:

Don't use too much of the silicone - all the dried silicone that has oozed out from under the glass, has to be cut away so that the next pieces can be laid flat against the ball.

If there is an imperfection in the ball and you intend to use clear /crazed glass - it will show through the glass (my ball had a big split and of course the finger holes) - a piece of painters tape -painted the color of the ball hides it all nicely.

Keep a wet sponge near you and a small bowl of water to refresh it. You can scrape the extra glue off the ball with a knife and then wipe the blade on the sponge - also it is useful for wiping off the glass if it gets gluey.

Don't use expandable foam to fill the holes.. it can get an air bubble in it and then you end up with a foam filled hole with a hole in it! Also, unless you have a lot of work to do with the foam or another immediate project --it gets wasted.

YOU CANNOT wash that expandable foam off your hands..it must peel away after several days of doing alot of dishes. Goof Off doesn't work, soft scrub doesn't work, olive oil doesn't work, nail polish remover doesn't work, NO suggestion that your mother gives you or older sister gives you will work.
And, if you get it on your cabinets, doorknobs, floors, EYEBROW it is a big hard mess to clean. Maybelline pencil will fill in your eyebrow nicely.

If you are looking for a fight topic to clear the air or just add a little pizazz to your day - - ask your husband for advice on how to wash off the expandable foam.

DO NOT run your naked hands over the ball to test for height of glass - tempered glass is wicked and can cut. Stop the 81 mg of aspirin a few days before your project. Bandaid makes waterproof bandages

Keep a tweezer handy for positioning the really small small pieces of glass and also for getting the glass out of your hands - tape helps with this too.

Do not sit at the table with your shoes off..those glass pieces leap to the floor when you are not looking and land pointy side up.

A bit of the paint that you have used to paint the ball can be dabbed on the outside of a few of the glass pieces to hide imperfections in the ball that show through the glass. I did this with the part of the ball I covered BEFORE I thought to hide the crack with tape. It looks great. I used a copper paint for the ball and the copper sponged on the glass every now and again looks shimmery and actually adds to the look. (Don't know if it will weather tho..it was an outdoor paint)

The wrought iron stand that hold decorative flags are good to support the ball when you paint.

An upside down flowerpot will support the ball as you are placing the glass pieces.

NEVER hit the glass until you have it IN something - like a plastic garbage bag - the glass flies everywhere! You don't have to hit it that hard either.

Hope this helps!!
dorothy