Fuseworks FW848 Beginners Fusing Kit

This is a fantastic product. I have always loved dichroic glass and been smitten with the idea of this little kiln since I first saw it in Hobby Lobby some years ago, so when I saw it for nearly half the price on Amazon, I had to jump at the opportunity. I am very glad I did! Let me preface this review by stating that while I am fairly crafty, I came at this with no knowledge of how to fuse glass beforehand, so everything I have learned has been through reading online suggestions and experimenting. For comparison purposes, my microwave is a more powerful model at around 1,100w and that seems to work great. I can say with certainty that this product has been an absolute success. I have found no downside. I've followed the given instructions precisely and have not lost a single project or had any cracking/breakage. I have heard some suggest that the provided instructions are not terribly clear: I would contend that they are incredibly specific and helpful in terms of process, although if you're looking for actual craft ideas, you should instead look on the fuseworks webpage. I do have a few suggestions gathered from experience as well as other helpful reviews that will make your projects a success: 1. The glass wants to be about 1/4 inch thick. If your project is not that tall, in the kiln it will likely coalesce in the centre much in the way a water droplet might so as to become about that thick. If you begin with a much taller project, it will tend to spread and flatten. 2. I would advise a preheat before every use: 3 minutes firing time, 30 minute cool-down. You ALWAYS want to adhere to the recommended firing and cooling times, and never peek once your project has been removed from the microwave until cooling time is up! 3. When using dichroic glass (i.e. the shiny pieces), try putting your microwave at partial power (I use 50% on my high-powered microwave) for about half the time and then stepping up to full power for the second half of your fusing time. This is best done in increments: maybe 30 seconds at a time until you get the hang of it, and then you'll have a better feel for the process and can push that to 1 - 1 1/2 minutes. To check, do NOT remove the kiln from the microwave! Just lift the lid up carefully and if the glass is white-hot, put it back down and remove the kiln. If it's not quite there yet and the edges still look sharp, give it a little more time. When in doubt, pull it out: you can always re-fire after the cool down period if it's not yet completely fused. I have done this with success. 4. Make the investment in the Bullseye kiln paper instead of the paper included in this kit. There's much more if it, you don't have to cut it down so much, and it works much better without leaving rough edges or traces of paper in your fused glass projects. It is a very worthy investment. 5. I would also recommend looking into glass pliers to more evenly cut glass pieces. I was able to find a number of glass tools as well as jewelry "bales" (the silver/gold parts that attach your piece to a chain), earring backs, etc. - even more Fuseworks official dichroic glass pieces! - at my local Hobby Lobby & Michael's stores. If you intend to use this kiln even semi-frequently, you might also want a good storage container set for all your pieces and jewelry attachments, as well as a nice set of tweezers to grab sharp little glass pieces. As far as my own perception of the kiln itself, I would say be prepared for it to be SURPRISINGLY light / fragile-feeling! It almost seems like its made out of the type of plaster that, if dropped, would explode into a powder rather than even crack. Obviously you want to handle it with care and store it somewhere where it is not likely to get broken. You may hear popping sounds while your glass pieces are cooling, don't be alarmed! Again, I haven't lost one to breaking yet, and my kiln is still going strong. This is so easy to use that it would be a great project even for responsible kids with very careful adult supervision: just make sure no little hands are directly handling glass or touching anything hot! The end result is something so special and beautiful that it will be a cherished project for the family. My mother and I have very much enjoyed making glass pieces together. I have included some photos of our early work so you can see what is possible for a complete amateur! We have made much more than this and gotten even better since these photos were taken. Overall, I am thrilled with my purchase of the Fuseworks Kiln. I have greatly enjoyed crafting surprisingly gorgeous glass pieces with much more ease than I would have expected, and I look forward to refining my technique even more in the future. I would absolutely recommend this kiln to anyone. Bullseye Thinfire Kiln Shelf Paper 3" X 3" - 100 Pack, Great for Microwave Kiln

My kit arrived today and within minutes I had everything out and proceeded to read the easy to follow instructions and was cutting out my first project. After only 30 minutes my first "masterpeice" was ready. I was pleasantly surprised that it turned out as nice as it did. I loved the ease of the process and almost instant gratification of the final peice! The kiln is small but you can still get a good sized pendant or two small earrings. My only complaint would be that the back came out rough and they don't really give you alot of kiln paper to work with. I have seen on the net where you can buy more sheets and will probably order more that way. All in all, for under a hundred bucks, I can see where this will become an additictive hobby! This is ideal for beginners or someone who is curious but doesn't want to commit to an expensive $500 kiln. I reccommend this product! I am adding some more information to my previous review! Ive been a fusing maniac now for seven days and Would like to add some useful information. You can find alot of fuseworks supplies at Hobby Lobby, i.e paper glass and a better cutter. The products are relitively inexpensive and no shipping and handling charges. I have also bought a dremmel to smooth out the corners and back. (much easier than sandpaper). And I am now so atticted to the kiln that I ordered yet another kit a few days ago. Now I can fuse TWICE as much!!!! If anyone would like to see pictures of my projects or have any questions, Please Feel free to email me at Pitboss34@aol.com

Overall I love this kit, but it does have some cons. I'll go over what I like and dislike: Pros: 1. This kit has almost everything needed to make a good bit of fused pieces 2. The kiln works better than I anticipated 3. You'll be making pieces on the very first day 4. It's fun and addictive!! Cons (and I hope the creators of this kit read this): 1. Considering this is supposed to be for "beginners" I give the instructions about 2 stars. How could they be better? Include a project or two to get us started. We get a lot of glass, and no idea what to do with it. That part was a little frustrating. 2. The cutting tool sucks (sorry but it really does). I butchered the first few pieces of glass because I had no idea how to use their tool. Also - a glass breaking tool is necessary which is not included. I ended up tapping mine with a hammer to get it to break on the score line. 3. The kiln paper they include is awful and leave the back of your piece rough and bumpy. Buy some smooth paper, like Bullseye thinfire. That's it for now! I've already ordered more glass (the round shapes are cool!) and can't wait to make more pendants. Overall, I will give this kit 5 stars just because it's so cool to finally have a kiln that's less than $100! Advice: DON'T use your dichroic glass until you get a hang of the kiln, otherwise you might ruin it while practicing. DO try lot of different glass combinations in order to learn what works with what. If you aren't getting good results (bubbles, sharp edges, etc) try reducing the power of your microwave and try different things until you find one that works for you.

I second the user that described this as a "gateway" kiln. For a small investment I was fusing in no time at all. The cutter that come with the glass was garbage - didn't even make a mark on the glass. Get a better "cutter" (really a scoring tool) and a pair of running pliers to break the glass easily. The glass that shipped with it was taped together and needed to be carefully cleaned. Also, I covered the inside of the kiln base and top with kiln-wash to keep the glass from sticking. I experimented to find the right fusing time for my microwave. My 1200 watt microwave ran hot and I had trouble with bubbles in the glass at first. I managed to fuse about 25 projects before a piece of glass exploded inside and actually cracked the Fuseworks kiln - a long running crack that is visible both inside and out. Definitely a gateway for me though, I found out I love working with glass and am now shopping for a regular kiln. Worth the money to find my passion, just wish it had lasted longer.

Nice little kiln for pendants and small items. You get a good little assortment of glass to practice and get started. Instructions minimal and not very good. You need to fuse slower and start at smaller percentage, then gradually increase. Fuse works need to rewrite the instructions. But the kiln works well and is fun. There are helpful You-Tube videos online. There is also a great Microwave kiln glass fusing group on Facebook. This is the small kiln and fine for pieces under 2 1/2". Fun little kiln though.

This is not a toy, one should be at least sixteen years old to use it. This is awesome item, but as reported in the reviews that the instructions are not to power. This is why I recommend 100% that you get the book, "Fuseworks Simply Fused Project Book" also with your kiln." Book is worth your ten dollars on information on how to do projects, what to do and what not to do....like for instants you can fire PMC metal clay in this kiln and how to do it. This one fact makes this kiln all the more fun to use. The book also explains: what is kiln glue? ... as suggested by some people. I have always wanted to fuse glass and do PMC metal clay....but the cost of good kiln is a major investment that I could not afford as a professional artist that just wants to mess around in other mediums. I am looking into buying a few more of these kilns in the near future basically I feel they are more then worth it.

I love fused glass jewelry and was really excited about this, but it really isn't reliable at all. I followed the directions exactly, but on my 3rd piece the glass split and attached to the sides of the kiln and cracked the black stuff in the lid in four places. After that, it never fused right and I returned it. Then I got the new one, and made about 20 pieces, all with the glass that came with it, and then suddenly it just stopped working for no apparent reason. The last piece I made came out perfectly, but since then, everything I try in there just burns the paper and even the glass if you leave it in for a full 3 minutes. I have tried it in 2 different microwaves, tried multiple heat settings, and two different kinds of kiln paper; no luck. It just stopped working and is junk after 20 uses.

I am brand new to glass fusion - like this morning when I ordered this (Amazon Prime same day delivery). As instructed I pre-baked the kiln for 3 min. I can't get the glass scorer to actually score deep enough to make a difference (using as instructed). You do need to separately buy glass breaking pliers. Huge lack of instructions. I am going to take a guess and say the thicker pieces are supposed to be the bases? I used a bit thinner piece and at 2 min it blew apart & my kiln paper is scorched??? The time for my micro was up to 3 1/2 minutes but I decided to be super conservative and I am glad I did. I do feel that the kiln is sort of small so it will limit the size of things I can make (I like big stuff & envision mini-scapes). The larger tiles (bases?) actually hit the edges of the middle circle so I can use those without cutting them. Leaving 5/8 in around the borders is hug so that makes what I can make even smaller. I see some large kilns which I am going to guess I will get very soon. I am very interested in the glass molds (probably need the bigger kiln). It seems like a lot of people who are reviewing have a little bit of knowledge - I am starting with the knowledge that dichroic glass is cool & I didn't realized I could do it in the microwave & I watched a few youtube videos today. If you know how to do this already I would say this is a great start for a supervised kids medium. I would have loved it. I am not knew to a variety of mediums and I am actually really good at figuring things out but I honestly have no reference point for this and really need instructions in the kit....and pictures of what I am doing. I am not saying this is a horrible kit b/c I don't have enough knowledge to say that so the 2 stars are really for the lack of instructions and lack of ability to really function straight out of the box. Glass breaking pliers & instructions would fix those two things. I get that when I start with new mediums I am probably going to suck at it for a while. I think I am going to to think of this as paying for lesson supplies and I don't feel so bad about spending $75 (ish). This is not pocket change for me and since I have used it I won't return it (even if I could). I guess for me just buying the kit is opening the door for me to enter into this world of glass fusion. I am confident that I will figure out glass fusion and have a blast with it - I just need way more info than the kit gives and I definitely need to get more glass supplies so after I break the first few I can make some cool things.

easy to use

Very happy with purchase. Bought for my husband for his birthday and he is delighted. It's like a little cottage industry emerging in our study! I hadn't read the product info properly and expecting just a kiln, it was a very pleasant surprise to find all the extras. Fusing is something we have both wanted to do for a long time after making many stained glass pieces but didn't have high expectations of a 'microwave' kiln but it's great. Easy to use with great results. Please take safety warnings seriously as the kiln gets very very hot! Highly recommend

I am in love with fused Glass!. I already do stained glass so this was the logical next step . My kiln works very good even though my microwave is only a 700w I believe. I just leave it in longer. Only Complaint is the bails and earring backs never came with it as advertised. I was happy to have purchased some before the kiln came in.If you do not have the running plyers, consider purchasing some

This is a great way to get into glass fusing without breaking the bank. The Kiln works well and I have had loads of enjoyment from this kit; so much so that I have bought a larger microwave kiln so I always have one fusing whilst I prepare the next piece. I strongly recommend this product

Nice gift for the artsy person