Glass Beads - Photo

Traverse City, Mich. - 05/17/2005 - Rebecca Poinsett slowly heats a glass rod and rolls it onto a metal rod as the melted glass forms a bead. “"While you do give up control of the way the glass flows you still try to control it to a point when making a bead,” Poinsett said. Each bead she makes is painstakingly crafted from soft glass. Soft glass is also called "soda-lime" glass, and melts at low temperatures and is a mixture of silica, calcium, & sodium. “"I think the best soft glass comes from Italy or Germany and I use Moretti, Vetrofond and Lauscha glass from those countries,"” she added.