Q&A Monday ~ Mosaic Jewelry Help!

No Days Instructor and Support Carrie Strope Sohayda

Hi, there! Carrie, here... Not only do I travel the country teaching folks how to use No Days adhesives (and other techniques), but I also answer customer support emails about using No Days. So, if you're having an issue with the adhesives, chances are good that I'll be answering your questions! Since I get so many good questions, I thought it might be a great learning opportunity for people that may be having some of the same issues but haven't thought to email us. Don't worry, I'll keep the emails anonymous! Also, don't forget that we've got a lot of really fabulous videos (I put those together, too...) on our YouTube channel. So for those of you who are visual learners (umm...we're visual artists, right?), you may want to check them out! If you've got questions, feel free to contact us at info@streuter.com.

---

Subject: Re: Customer needs help

Recently a customer contacted us about troubles with using No Days Mosaic Adhesive for micro mosaic jewelry...

Dichroic Dot Mosaic Jewelry using No Days Groutless Mosaic Adhesive

Hi ~

I’d like to raise my concern about the usage of  NO DAYS Mosaic Adhesive.  I have used the film – the thin one for my mosaic jewelry, and use a Black and Decker heat gun but it doesn’t work well because:

1.  It takes a long time to for the film to be melted (about 5 minutes).

2.  For small pieces, such as 1/8”, the air from the heat gun blows them away!

I haven’t used the thicker one (No Days Groutless) yet, but I think it will not be able to be melted at all because the thin one is already very difficult to use.  Since I only use small pieces for my jewelry, the NO DAYS Mosaic Adhesive seems to not work.

Thanks,

X

Dear X ~

 I followed the link you provided for the heat gun you are using. You should have no problems getting the adhesive to melt with that heat gun, whether it is on low or high. I'm curious to know what kind of pieces you are using in your jewelry. Both glass and ceramics are insulators, so it does take longer to heat them than it does to heat metal (a conductor). However, small pieces shouldn't take 5 minutes to heat. Also, when using small pieces, you'll want to start with the heat gun on low and hold it well above your work (6-8" or more) until you see the pieces shimmy. Let the adhesive melt and then it's safe to move the gun closer.

Micro mosaic shadowbox created with No Days Groutless

I have a video that I'm working on that shows a micro mosaic completed with Groutless Mosaic Adhesive (http://streutertechnologies.blogspot.com/2012/08/micro-mosaic-tutorial-no-days-groutless.html), but it's not quite finished.

Here is a video that shows using the groutless on small pieces. 

I also realized with your inquiry that I haven't made a video specific to jewelry yet. Many times when working with jewelry pieces and groutless (or mosaic adhesive), I'll put my pieces on a hot plate/electric skillet to heat set, avoiding the heat gun altogether. I don't have pictures of this yet, but here's a post that shows the hot plate at work with glass on glass:

Heat setting No Days Mosaic Adhesive with an electric skillet

Let me know if you have further questions.
Hope this helps!
Carrie Strope Sohayda

Hi Carrie,

Thanks so much for replying to my email.  I think that my heat gun is broken because it’s not hot at all!  It’s even less hot than my hair dryer!  So I returned it to Amazon and asked for a replacement.

The jewelry I make is quite small – 1" to 2"; therefore, I put all the tiny pieces (including tiny glass beads) very close together, so close that you barely see a gap between them, and I use the thin adhesive film.  I am waiting for the heat gun replacement and will try again.  If it doesn’t work due to the blowing air from the heat gun, I think I will heat it from the BOTTOM of the jewelry piece which acts similarly to placing the jewelry piece on an electric skillet.

Thanks,

X
 
Great idea, X!!!  What a good suggestion for those of you trying to heat small jewelry trays with a heat gun. Try using the heat gun on the bottom of your trays to heat!

Remember, if you've got any questions about using No Days, contact me at info@streuter.com, and I'm happy to help! Got any more suggestions or questions regarding this post? Please comment below!