CiM: Messy Color™ Electric Avenue, An electric blue opal.

Messy Color™ Electric Avenue

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An electric blue opal.

“Out of the nine Messy opals I tested, the four opals that opacified were Ming, Poison Apple, Electric Avenue and Kryptonite.” Read more about keeping opal glass translucent at the Frantz Art Glass blog. – Patricia Frantz

Click here for other interesting Electric Avenue discoveries.

Lori Bergmann

Joy Munshower

Patricia Frantz

Carol Oliver

Electric Avenue added to some old Venetian cane pieces

Robert Jennik

Clare Scott

CiM Tester Feedback

Testers agreed that Electric Avenue is unique to the 104 glass lampworking palette.

"Electric Avenue is a much brighter blue than is already available in 104." – Carol Oliver

"Nothing that I have seen even comes close." – Leslie Anne Bitgood

"No color can compare." – Starleen Colon

"Nothing else can even come close to its boot tops: color, clarity, smoothness and creaminess, I could go on and on . . ." – Sue Stewart

"It is a unique blue unlike others." – Teri Yount

Testers found this opal easy to work.

"The Effetre Turquoise opalinos, the closest colors to Electric Avenue, are much shockier and much easier to burn/scum/boil than Electric Avenue." – Carol Oliver

"I found this color very easy to work. No pitting, boiling, cracking." – Leslie Anne Bitgood

"I had no issues working with Electric Avenue, but I recommend annealing high as extra insurance." – Starleen Colon

"Nothing even close to the problems of working with Opalinos. Electric Avenue was easy to work and nothing adverse like devitrifying or as I call it, 'self etching.'" – Sue Stewart

"Electric Avenue isn't as shocky as the Moretti opalinos." – Teri Yount

“I did not find Electric Avenue difficult to work with. But, should one want to keep the glass from reducing, there would be a learning curve.” – Bonnie Polinski

“I’ve stayed away from trying opalinos before, because of their bad reputation. But I love all the CiM opals and haven’t experienced any of the problems as with other brands.” – Lori Bergmann

Testers generally agreed that encasing Electric Avenue, or using it on a clear base, or working it fast, resulted in more opalescence.

"Electric Avenue stayed opalescent. I worked it for about 20 minutes on my HH in the center of the flame. I super heated it in order to spread the twistie I applied, and this did not seem to affect the opalescence." – Bonnie Polinski

"By itself in a bead, Electric Avenue stayed opalescent on the outside while appearing more opaque on the inside. When used on a base of another color, Electric Avenue became a more opaque turquoise glass with or without encasing." – Carol Oliver

"I think the longer and hotter that you work Electric Avenue the more opaque it seems to become. I've put it over a base of clear and it glows." – Leslie Anne Bitgood

"I only got opaque from this color, regardless of working time." – Teri Yount

"It never seems like an opalescent to me, more like a creamy opaque. But it does layer over other opaque colors and shows more transparency then. It became more opaque and darker the more I worked it. The faster I finished with a bead and the less heat used, the more translucent and lighter it was, compared to a darker color if I had to use a lot of heat and/or work it longer in a design." – Lori Bergmann

"In solid beadwork, less opal. Encase, opal shines, encase deep and it sings translucent!" – Starleen Colon

"Electric Avenue worked out to almost the same opalescence as exhibited by the rod. Opal like but there is no mystery to it like so many of the Opalino glasses." – Sue Stewart

Testers report that Electric Avenue shifts in color depending on the type of lighting.

Testers report that Electric Avenue is difficult to photograph.

"Electric Avenue was very, very hard to photograph. It tends to look a bit washed out and dirty in most pictures . . . which I suspect has something to do with the translucency. Looking at the CiM website, I see I am not alone on this issue. In real life, Electric Avenue is more saturated than can be shown here." Read more at Kandice's blog. – Kandice Seeber

Special thanks to Elasia (x3), Dianna Trout, Sue Stewart, Bonnie Polinski, Genea Crivello-Knable, & Kandice Seeber for providing the photos in this section.

Amy Houston made a series of beads combining Electric Avenue, Poison Apple and Effetre white.

DragonJools notes where the name Electric Avenue comes from.

See the Frantz Art Glass blog about silver colors with Pat's Electric Avenue bead.

Join Trudi Doherty's FB group Lampwork Colour Resource Sharing Information for a catalogue of color study.
Claudia Eidenbenz’s "Vetrothek" (glass library) is a great resource for color comparisons.
See Kay Powell’s frit testing samples.
Browse Serena Thomas’ color gallery.
Check out Miriam Steger’s CiM color charts.
Consult Jolene Wolfe's glass testing resource page.

Left to right:

Atlantis, Effetre 356 dark turquoise alabaster, Tardis, Electric Avenue, Mermaid

– Claudia Eidenbenz

"Electric Avenue has a similar intensity of colour when used to create both the core and as thin petals on the top of the paler core colour. As with many other CiM opal colours, Electric Avenue is a stiff glass. It melts slowly and cools quickly." Read more at Kitzbitz Art Glass' blog.

– Jolene Wolfe

Robert added Electric Avenue to some old Venetian cane pieces.

– Robert Jennik

Melanie uses Electric Avenue frit in her blend "Ode to Blues." See more of her 104 compatible FrittyBits blends.

– Melanie Graham

"Electric Avenue encased well as a base with clear, and turned a bit opaque. As plain stringer, it stayed opalescent. When used as an opaque flower petal base, it went slightly opaque, but you can almost still see the black bead underneath. However, when layered on top of Effetre Light Turquoise, as seen here in the left floral, and underneath a dot of clear, it went a nice transparent light aqua." Read more at Kandice's blog.

– Kandice Seeber

Electric Avenue as a base for Triton. See more at Darlene's blog.

– Darlene Collette

Electric Avenue as a base for DH silver infused murrini. Read more at Darlene's blog.

– Darlene Collette

– Patricia Frantz

"The rod almost looks like a translucent colour - but it seems fairly opaque in a bead . . ." Read more at DragonJools blog.

– Dwyn Tomlinson

"Electric Avenue is similar to Poison Apple, in that it's smooth and non-streaky." Read more and see more comparison beads including etched versions at Lush Blogs.

– Julie Fountain

Gaia stringer on Electric Avenue. See more beads made with Electric Avenue by Amy Houston.

“Electric Avenue turns more of a turquoise blue when worked with another glass, but keeps much of its brightness when used alone. It is much less shocky and less prone to burn/scum/boil than other 104 opalinos.”

– Carol Oliver