I spotted this beautiful piece of blue sea glass in my stash today.
The perfect angle to go around a wrist.
Too large for earrings, too rounded for a pendant, it was perfect for the curve of a wrist. So I got out the much used jewel of my tool collection – my mini-drill press — and went to work.
You would be amazed how many people say to me – “I tried to drill a hole in my sea glass, but the glass kept breaking.” That’s because they don’t remember their beginning chemistry classes. By drilling at a high speed into glass, you are basically heating and cooling it very quickly, which will cause it to shatter. To remedy this problem, you always drill glass under a thin layer of water, and you raise the drill bit frequently while drilling to allow more water to go into the drill hole to continually keep the temperature even. I just take the wood block that is always on my drill press and drop it into a plastic container with just enough water to cover the block and any glass piece I might be drilling.
Look at my thumbnail, and you can tell the depth of the water above the wood.
I also use special diamond hollow bore bits from Rio. (Linda loves to tell people the only diamonds we will ever have are on our tools) These babies drill perfect hole in glass. You can use non-hollow bore if you want smaller holes, but make sure they are diamond coated.
You can use this item no. when ordering from Rio Grande.
Here is what the holes look like after drilling.
Nice clean cut.
I strung this piece on a not very attractive piece of ribbon I had. I would love it if someone out there would recommend a good source for some of the beautifully multicolored silk ribbons I have seen on other jewelry, since I am not so fond of the plain black.
Final pic – Anybody got a good source for ribbon?
It would look great on black leather thong over a patch of soft black leather. Sexy!
Hey – Family blog!!!
when I read that, I saw a cuff made of black leather, tied with the strips of leather called thing LOL
I would like to recommend Flights of Fancy Boutique for ribbons of all types. They are online – just google them.
Thanks for this suggestion. I already placed an order.
I hope you like Flights of Fancy Boutique. I’d love to see what you create with their beautiful ribbons.
I was thinking about a round braided (colored) leather. Just a note about drilling. Use water also when drilling shells. The dust is toxic and never clears out of your body once you inhale it. I tell everyone I know every chance I get.
I’ve been meaning to try this, but keep forgetting to order the drill bits. Thanks for the photo with the catalog number. No more excuses!
Go for it!
Thanks for the tutorial. I knew about drilling under water, but I could never figure out which drill bit to get. It’s now on my Rio Grande wish list.
Drilling is such a challenge, but now I have come to actually enjoy it! It takes practice, practice, and the right tools. I find that a drill press doesn’t give me the control I like, so I hold the drill myself, put the seaglass on a wet sponge in a shallow pan, and it works. Of course, like you said, frequent lifting of the drill from the glass! My blog has more info about seaglass, etc. It’s called Travels and Seaglass (you can google it).