Sky filigree oil cell kaleidoscope with stand

artmakersworlds

Sun and clouds filigree oil cell kaleidoscope with matching stand.

faux green opal egg kaleidoscope

I'm excited to finally have this fancy filigree scope finished.
Here are all the details I can think of.
My first oil cell scope, (see the steampunk one) has one problem. The end piece just slides right off. Well I fixed that.
This time I pre baked a band of clay around the tube. And pre baked a ring of clay inside the chamber section of tube. Then slid one onto the other, and proceeded to finish the piece.
So now the chamber end can be rotated and will not pull off.
The motion still feels a little rough as I am still using cardboard cores to clay over. So picture turning one cardboard tube over another. That's what the twisting motion feels like. It works fine but just doesn't have the smooth feel bearings would provide. I don't have a metal shop and for now this is the best I can do. Perhaps some day I'll attempt a metal core.
Don't let that term "cardboard" fool you. After I apply several layers of clay, baking each along the way, the finished piece is very solid feeling and very nice to hold.
The design.... first I used translucent "stain glass" clay cane slices. (My own design of course.) Applied over a white background they look really nice. Look close, the sun design is repeated in the mid section in the center of the "stain glass" design.
The filigree work.... wow. My aching hand! Clay has to be well conditioned then put into an extruder and pushed through to make the long ropes of even strips of clay. Each piece applied by hand and trimmed to fit. Then repeat. Over and over. I actually finished the scope some time ago and broke TWO extruders in the process.
Well I finally went ahead and purchased a big extruder made specifically for polymer clay and was able to finish a matching base.
I lined the inside of the base with black foam rubber so not to scratch or chip your scope when you set it back in it's stand.
This scope is intended to be every bit as much a unique piece of home decor, and a great conversation piece, as well as a fun and functional kaleidoscope. So when your guests say wow, what is that? You can pick it up and let them see.
I used a three mirror design so the image you see will fill the field. (sorry but I'm still trying to get good pictures of what you see looking through it. Seems I have to do that before closing up the end with the eyepiece. In this case, it's too late.)
I did include a shot of the actual oil filled chamber. It's got a very colorful assortment of bits and it's really beautiful to watch. Being an oil cell means the pieces continue to move slowly even after you stop rotating the end.
Scopes I have for sale can be found in my Artfire shop in the Kaleidoscopes section.
I loaded nice large photos here. If you have a slow connection, be patient.

Sun cloud stain glass and filigree oil cell kaleidoscope


I'm excited to finally have this fancy filigree scope finished. Here are all the details I can think of. My first oil cell scope, (see the steampunk one) has one problem. The end piece just slides right off. Well I fixed that. This time I pre baked a band of clay around the tube. And pre baked a ring of clay inside the chamber section of tube. Then slid one onto the other, and proceeded to finish the piece. So now the chamber end can be rotated and will not pull off. The motion still feels a little rough as I am still using cardboard cores to clay over. So picture turning one cardboard tube over another. That's what the twisting motion feels like. It works fine but just doesn't have the smooth feel bearings would provide. I don't have a metal shop and for now this is the best I can do. Perhaps some day I'll attempt a metal core. Don't let that term "cardboard" fool you. After I apply several layers of clay, baking each along the way, the finished piece is very solid feeling and very nice to hold. The design.... first I used translucent "stain glass" clay cane slices. (My own design of course.) Applied over a white background they look really nice. Look close, the sun design is repeated in the mid section in the center of the "stain glass" design. The filigree work.... wow. My aching hand! Clay has to be well conditioned then put into an extruder and pushed through to make the long ropes of even strips of clay. Each piece applied by hand and trimmed to fit. Then repeat. Over and over. I actually finished the scope some time ago and broke TWO extruders in the process. Well I finally went ahead and purchased a big extruder made specifically for polymer clay and was able to finish a matching base. I lined the inside of the base with black foam rubber so not to scratch or chip your scope when you set it back in it's stand. This scope is intended to be every bit as much a unique piece of home decor, and a great conversation piece, as well as a fun and functional kaleidoscope. So when your guests say wow, what is that? You can pick it up and let them see. I used a three mirror design so the image you see will fill the field. (sorry but I'm still trying to get good pictures of what you see looking through it. Seems I have to do that before closing up the end with the eyepiece. In this case, it's too late.) I did include a shot of the actual oil filled chamber. It's got a very colorful assortment of bits and it's really beautiful to watch. Being an oil cell means the pieces continue to move slowly even after you stop rotating the end. Scopes I have for sale can be found in my Artfire shop in the Kaleidoscopes section. I loaded nice large photos here. If you have a slow connection, be patient.