Glass Testing: CiM 823 Koala, CiM Aegean Limited Runs

Next in line today we have two colors - a brand new one called Koala, and one that came out last year (I think), called Aegean. Both are limited runs.

So when I got the new batch of glass last month, I thought for sure there were too many gray shades. However, when I actually melted each rod, most of the opaque gray rods struck to different shades of brown, green and golden. Koala was the one opaque that actually stayed gray to my eye!

I had no issues with shocking or pitting with this glass, and it wasn't too stiff or too soft. I also had no issues with this glass bleeding under encasement or spreading out when melted in.

Koala is a lovely true medium neutral grey - not too blue and not too brown. It's lighter and cooler than Adamantium. In rod form, it actually does have a bluish cast, but that goes away when melted, for the most part.  As a plain spacer, it retains much of its shade, but when encased in clear Koala lightens up quite a bit, as you can see here with the spacers I made.

When left alone as a base, Koala only streaks and separates a tiny bit - really nice for a layering color. After you layer it, the streaks pretty much go away completely. I liked the way it looked with the pale transparent color Bashful - it adds just a touch of warmth to Koala. It's a perfect neutral to add some interest to bright and/or dark color combinations.

In the same set of beads, I used Aegean, a gorgeous medium teal.  Since this is a color I hadn't yet blogged about I decided to test it, even though it came out a year or more ago. I was glad I did!

I love colors that sit between blue and green - and this one straddles those colors perfectly. It's not green or blue.  Aegean reminds me a bit of Effetre Light Teal - if perhaps a touch darker and a tiny bit bluer. It's so much more well-behaved, though!  Not much in the way of scumming or bubbling, and it isn't too stiff, which makes it nice for layering.

Speaking of layering, I did so with Aegean and Quetzal, the new turquoise I blogged about earlier. I think those two make a brilliant pair. Aegean and Quetzal make really lovely encased stringer and gorgeous flower petals, both raised and melted in. Together they make a vibrant medium teal that has a lot of depth and clarity.

The beads below are made with Quetzal, Aegean, Koala, Bashful, Lapis, Trapeze, and Effetre Ink Blue Violet, along with Zephyr clear and DH Triton for the metallic.