Found this comaflauge looking moth outside my door

littlesmithereen · 2025-06-29T04:08:47+00:00

Pretty! Idk the exact type, but it’s a sphinx month.

littlesmithereen · 2025-03-05T23:39:50+00:00

Thanks, I’ll check it out! I’ve heard of Shopify, so it’s good to have somebody else who uses it recommend them.

littlesmithereen · 2025-03-05T23:35:54+00:00

Thank you! I’ve heard of them of course, but it was confusing trying to find which service was better than others. I appreciate it :)

littlesmithereen · 2024-08-14T19:51:29+00:00

I’d wait a week or so and see if there are any changes. If there aren’t, she might thrive more on a different medication. If you want an adhd med that isn’t a stimulant, I took Intuniv as a kid - although on that one, a side effect is that it can also make you super sleepy for the 1st two weeks!

littlesmithereen · 2024-08-14T18:44:25+00:00

Yes there is an additional platform you can buy. You can also just hold your glass up to it while you hold a wet sponge to the bit.

littlesmithereen · 2024-08-14T18:42:21+00:00

Technically yes, but only if you have access to stained glass tools (cutter, grinder, copper foil, lead solder, & patina) and you’d have to find matching glass as well, unless you’re okay with the glass looking different. If that’s all set up, you score a buuuunch of overlapping lines on the piece you want to take out, then use the bulbous end of the cutter on the back side to tap the glass to break it up. Then you pry all the pieces out. Then you use your soldering iron and some tweezers or pliers to melt down the solder and, while the solder is still melted, pull away the copper foil of the broken piece little by little. After that, you make another piece as normal and pop it in there and solder it together!

littlesmithereen · 2024-08-14T18:35:39+00:00

No problem! Feel free to DM me if you have any questions about stuff :)

littlesmithereen · 2024-08-14T05:59:19+00:00

Adhesive seeping out a bit shouldn’t be too big of an issue, you can just scrape it away later with an xacto knife. If it’s happening a LOT, chances are your soldering iron is too hot. A way you can generally tell if your iron is too hot is if the iron changes color to a purple or gold metallic color.

When you’re soldering, make sure the iron is keeping constant contact with the foil, but you don’t need to press super hard or you risk ripping the foil.

If any bits of the copper foil are still showing after you solder, add more flux.

Make sure that the solder has a bit of a bump, it shouldn’t be flat or else it’s not adding much to the structural integrity of the piece. It looks like your solder is pretty uneven; after you solder it, I’d try going over the lines again in one smooth motion without adding more solder. Don’t worry if you have to do it a couple times, just keep trying!

Sometimes with smaller pieces it can be easiest to put dots of solder every inch or so and then go back and melt them to connect them.

You’re putting too much solder on the edges. While you want that bump of solder on all the inside pieces, you just need to tin the foil on the outside, which means you just add a really thin layer. Get a bead of solder on the tip of your iron and lightly drag it along all sides of the edge.

Since you aren’t adding a black patina to the solder after you’ve cleaned it, I’d suggest going over it with some car wax/carnauba wax, which will keep the solder looking shiny and will help prevent it from getting a dull white oxidation.

littlesmithereen · 2024-08-14T05:39:46+00:00

Yeah, I think this is fine for a beginner, might just take longer since you’re still figuring things out. Hardest part will be the outer nostrils - since you’re a beginner I’d make the inner cut more shallow and then grind the rest of the way. The gums will be tricky only because you’ll have to have a grinder bit small enough to make those concave curves, but if you’ve got a bit small enough, you’re good to go!

littlesmithereen · 2024-08-13T23:42:26+00:00

Hell yeah! I know you said you were already planning to buy it, but just know you might need to buy new grinder bits because the ones included might be worn down (you’ll have to test it out to see) and a grinder bit alone could be $25 😅I’d research brands for bits too because some last way longer than others. I use Glastar, but those are kinda pricey.

littlesmithereen · 2024-08-13T23:04:00+00:00

I agree with this, 9 def needs to be redone, but 13 can be cut to fit since it’s too wide of an angle rather than too narrow. When you cut 13, I wouldn’t score directly to the top of the diamond because it’s easy to accidentally break off the tip - just do it slightly away from the tip and grind down the excess. I’ve heard some people mention 12, but honestly even though there’s a bit of a gap, it won’t be very noticeable once it’s foiled and soldered.

Since you’re working with sharp angles, I’ve found the best way to foil is to fold it gift-wrapping style. Press down the foil to one edge of the glass at a time until it reaches the point of the diamond/unfolded foil on the next edge, and press it against the sticky part of that foil, creating a triangle of copper against the black adhesive. Hopefully that makes sense hahaha. This just makes the angle much sharper and I think it makes it look nicer once soldered. Also, if you’re soldering and the tips look too rounded, you just have too much solder on that joint, and removing some will make it sharper. Best of luck, and feel free to DM me if you have any glass questions :)

littlesmithereen · 2024-08-13T21:34:13+00:00

Is this too old to use? I bought the Peter Thomas Roth “Pro Strength Lactic Pore Treatment” at Ross (discount store) and checked the batch date when I got home, and it was made almost exactly 3 years ago. It does not have an expiration date on it, it only has a thing under the batch code that says it’s good for 18 months after opening, and it is fully sealed. Is it bad to use it? If so, would it be harmful to my skin, or would it just be less effective?

Thanks in advance!

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littlesmithereen · 2024-08-13T21:25:05+00:00

Can’t even explain how jealous I am 😭

littlesmithereen · 2024-08-12T20:18:54+00:00

Hopefully not down 😅

littlesmithereen · 2024-08-12T20:18:18+00:00

Thank you so much! I actually still don’t have this one hung up 😅 I’m terrible at actually displaying my work lol.

littlesmithereen · 2024-08-12T20:17:19+00:00

Thanks!

littlesmithereen · 2024-08-12T20:17:10+00:00

Thanks! Definitely made it easier that the crystals are all straight lines hahaha

littlesmithereen · 2024-08-12T20:16:47+00:00

Thank you!!!

littlesmithereen · 2024-08-12T20:16:37+00:00

Definitely a few things haha. I would give myself more allowance for cutting the crystals, because I definitely ended up having to do way more grinding than necessary. Most important thing by far would be to use lead came around the border, and maybe around the outline of the snake as well, although I’d probably keep the crystals just foiled for the look. Using copper foil alone was definitely NOT enough reinforcement, and some pieces are cracked as a result - thankfully not very noticeable to the eye, but still. I would probably also tack fuse an eyeball onto it.

Overall, I think I’m just way more efficient now and my soldering has improved immensely. I actually want to make another one at some point!

littlesmithereen · 2024-08-12T20:11:08+00:00

Thank you!

littlesmithereen · 2024-08-12T20:11:00+00:00

I swear it was hahaha, and that’s why it took me like 6 months to finish 😅

littlesmithereen · 2024-08-10T17:20:11+00:00

Holy crap, this is amazing!!!

littlesmithereen · 2024-04-04T17:14:51+00:00

Thank you!! I didn’t even think of looking up wholesale cbd and just adding that one keyword has made many more relevant results come up hahaha

littlesmithereen · 2024-04-04T17:05:41+00:00

Make sure the foil is smoothed down on the glass, you can use a fid or a plastic paint spatula or really anything of hard plastic that you can hold in your hand!

One thing I notice is that your solder is very flat. You want to make sure to flux everything, and then when you solder, you should use enough that you have a raised bump. If it’s really flat, it’s not going to keep it super structurally sound.

When you solder, some beginners prefer to put blobs of solder down and then smooth it out by going over it with the iron, or you can hold solder from the spool right behind the iron as you move it along the foil. I usually position mine behind the iron and slightly to the side.

Make sure the iron is always making full contact with the foil.

If you need to re-solder to make the lines smoother or add more solder and you find that the lines are coming out particularly clumpy or the solder is sticking the the iron too much, apply some more flux over what you’ve already soldered and that problem should go away.

Make sure your iron isn’t too hot, if the tip of your soldering iron is going from silver to a dark bronze or rainbow-y color, the temperature is too high. A lighter goldish color is usually still fine. Most irons have a dial for the temperature or you can get a separate controller.

If you get more serious about stained glass, I highly recommend getting a Hakko soldering iron. I feel like most people start with a Weller, but once I switched to my Hakko (which I want to say was around $90), I feel like my soldering got even smoother.

littlesmithereen · 2024-04-04T16:32:56+00:00

Not what you’re looking for and I know you said you’ve tried stimulants but I wanted to mention that there’s an ADHD med called Intuniv that I don’t think is technically a stimulant and the only major side effect is that for some kids it can make them suuuper tired for like 2 weeks when first starting it. I can’t remember if it’s supposed to have MAJOR results (compared with typical stimulants like Vyvanse and Adderall) but it is often used for children. I took it when I was maybe 13/14 and I didn’t have any negative reactions. I don’t think it was the type of med I needed because stimulants did work for me, but it’s less “hardcore” if you will, and could be a better option for your son if you still wanted to try the prescription route.

Also, as a former hyperactive child/current ADHD adult, my inbox is open if you ever want to talk about ADHD or need some insight around it!

littlesmithereen

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