Lollypop, lollypop, oooo lolly-lolly-lolly...

(Yeesh, what's with these 1960's lyrics?)

This is a slightly more complex version of the twisty, using three (or more) colors. From this base, you can make much more complex canes.

Supplies (lollypop twisty)

Tweezers
Jar of water
2 metal punties, 1/8” mandrels work great for this

1 rod of glass for the base color. In this example, white is used.

2 transparent rods for either side of the base

Basic Information

Two things that are critical for successful flamework, in general, are your location in the flame and reading the heat.

Working areas of the flame:

Heat scale:

This is an approximation of what I’m talking about when I say…

NOTE: This scale relates to the glow in the glass rather than the color of the glass itself.

Procedure

1. Create a gather on the end of the base color rod. A good size is about 1/2" in diameter or the size of a large blueberry or small grape.

Side View	End View

2. Allow the gather to cool a few seconds, until a white skin forms. Then press flat. This is your lollypop base.

Side View	End View

4. If you rock the flattened part under the light, you can see tool marks from the tools. This will need to be heated out. Quickly pass one side of the lollypop base in the Flashing Area of the flame and check the tool marks. Repeat as necessary to remove the marks on one side.

5. Repeat Step 4 to remove the tool marks on the other side.

Side View

3. While keeping the lollypop base warm in the backflame, collect a gather on one of the transparent rods. Make it approximately the same size as the gather for the base.

Side View	End View

4. Heat the second gather to mid-orange. Using gravity to assist, hold the base horizontally and the second gather vertically, gather down.

5. Press the second gather onto the lollypop base and flame cut above the gather.

6. Immediately flatten the gather with a tool.

7. Repeat steps 3 through 6 with the second transparent rod. Your gather should now look like this.

8. Because opaque glass is less viscous than transparent glass, the white glass will tend to pull out of the middle of the gather when you pull the cane. To alleviate this problem, apply some clear to the end of the gather before attaching the punty.

9. Pick up a punty and heat the tip until orange while heating the tip of the glass structure. Hold the glass at an angle to the flame so that the heat is focused on the tip.

10. Place the punty into the center of the end. Hold for a moment while it sets.

Side View	End View

11. Flame cut the core rod off and apply a small amount of clear. Attach the second punty to the center of that side (repeat steps 9 & 10).

12. Go back to the cooler end of the gather and heat at an angle so that the heat runs up into the center. Alternate sides until the gather maintains a mid-orange heat color.

13. Once the gather maintains a mid-orange heat color, begin to heat the center of the gather. Remember to rotate the gather at all times. The goal now is to melt all the valleys out of the gather and make it a smooth, football-like shape.

Some tips for getting the gather ready to pull:

a. Do not stop rotating the gather. Whether in or out of the flame, continue to rotate.
b. Take your time. Patience is a virtue.
c. Rotate the gather slowly and watch the heat color.
d. If the heat color becomes too yellow, come out of the flame and continue to rotate the gather. Allow the skin to cool to dark orange before going back into the flame.
e. Do not pull or push the punties. Molten glass is a liquid and wants to behave like a fluid. So, it will try to become a sphere, pulling itself in. Hold the punties gently and allow them to pull in with the glass.
f. The gather may begin to twist before you are ready to pull. Watch for this and untwist as it occurs.
g. Remain calm. If your glass feels like it's out of control, simply come out of the flame and let it cool to dark orange before going back in.

14. When the surface of the gather is smooth, heat to a consistent mid-orange heat color. You are now ready to pull!
15. While still rotating the gather, come out of the flame and watch the color drop into the dark orange range before twisting. This will take 3 to 5 seconds.
16. Slowly begin twisting the gather, watching what it is doing. If it is too molten, stop twisting for a second, then begin again. After the twist has begun and looks good, start to pull as you twist. Feel the glass!

17. Troubleshooting:

a. Pulling too fast – latticino is thin and the twist is stretched out
b. Twisting too fast – twist is too tight, latticino may become too thin in places and lumpy
c. Pulling too slow – latticino is too thick, lumpy
d. Twisting too slow – lumps, not twisted enough.

18. When you have your gather pulled and twisted, flame cut the punty off the end where your dominant hand is.
19. Dip tweezers in water and grab the other end of the latticino at the punty and break off.
20. After allowing the cane to cool, cut it into workable lengths with a nipper or by flame cutting.