Closed Taking Stock

Saiyin makes cups.

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The Diamond of Kalea is located on Kalea's extreme west coast and called as such because its completely made of a crystalline substance called Skyglass. Home of the Alvina of the Stars, cultural mecca of knowledge seekers, and rife with Ethaefal, this remote city shimmers with its own unique light.

Taking Stock

Postby Saiyin on May 16th, 2018, 3:57 pm

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30th Spring 518 AV
"Speech"


OOC :
Two days after Saiyin opens her business, she is still in the process of filling her shelves with stock. Today she works on glass cups.


The furnace roared as Saiyin shovelled more coal into the mouth of the beast. She reared from the heat that emanated from within, but although her mouth was firmly closed so as not to allow the heat to dry her mouth out, she found herself grinning with tight lips and crinkled eyes. The furnace was almost at temperature, and she could almost begin one of her many, many glassblowing days in her new business.

Saiyin still couldn't believe that Sesr Glassworks was actually a reality. There would never have been any way she could have predicted that the Glassworks would come into existence, but it had. Through a hectic time of rushing, coercing, and shopping, the young woman had set up the furnace and the shop and although there was a lot to get done, she was ecstatic. There was a tinge of fear to her emotion, but she couldn't afford to let that overcome her. No, Sesr Glassworks had to work, and so did she.

Now wasn't the time to dwell, however. The fresh coal shovelling into the raging heart of the furnace had ensured the young woman had enough heat for the time being, and the glass in the crucible tucked within the glowing centre was ready with molten sand- glass. She pressed her foot to the pump, designed to rush air through the furnace and stoke the flames and the fierce heat. The full physics of the act eluded her, but it didn't matter, as Hes had told her not to forget the pump. She knew, too, that fire needed air as much as it did the heat and the fuel, a lesson learnt from her father long ago, so she pumped her foot until she was satisfied, and reached for the blowpipe.

She wished Hessel had agreed to work with her, but the Eypharian had gently refused her excited proposition, explaining that she would be happy to work with her from time to time, on her own craft, but that she could never agree to work fully. Saiyin was disappointed, and she couldn't deny that she worried Hes thought she was foolish for taking on such a huge venture. After all, although she had been having lessons with Hessel for a long while now, she was not anywhere near mastery. Maybe she was stubborn, but was that a bad thing? Saiyin vowed to have a proper talk to her ex step-mother as soon as she could, but before that...

Saiyin reached over for the blowpipe that was her friend, and wrenched the scorching door of the furnace open. Using her forearm, she shielded her face, and thrust the blowpipe into the heat, letting the end warm before putting it into the glass. It was agonising, standing the aura of the furnace, but one kind of agony that she was willing to put up with. Finally, the blowpipe was heated red-hot, and Saiyin pushed the end into the middle of the crucible of glass and began to collect the molten material onto the end.

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Saiyin
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Taking Stock

Postby Saiyin on June 9th, 2018, 11:53 am

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"Speech"


She twisted the molten glass onto the blowpipe whilst shielding her eyes from the dry heat. It was almost exactly like twisting honey onto a spoon, and it wasn't long before she had finished the process and could begin the actual cup creation. The first few tries would almost undoubtedly be duds as she figured out the best method, but she dove straight in, as fired up as the furnace was.

Saiyin first began by moving the blowpipe and herself to the workbench with the marble and the rest of her tools. She kept the pipe turning as she did, otherwise like honey, the glass would drop to the floor. It required constant thought- keep turning it and what next? Saiyin had a rough idea going in, but whether it would work was another thing entirely. The problem, or rather not problem as that implied she didn't enjoy it, but the fact of the matter was that a glass piece often required taking off the blowpipe and turning around. Saiyin found this particularly difficult. She often got it right... But she often found herself missing something and losing focus, too.

As it was, she worked with the glass she had for now, and she would think about the technicalities of the cup when she had to later. She began by keeping the pipe resting on the edge of the workbench and rolling it backwards and forwards. It placed her at an awkward angle to blow air through the pipe, but she was used to the uncomfortable position and angled her head to allow her to force air through the pipe. It bubbled into the glass at the other end and she kept the pipe rolling, watching the glass cool from bright to dark, cherry red.

It was due another round in the furnace. Saiyin quickly darted over to the furnace and lifted the door open, before dashing back to the blowpipe where she'd left it. She lifted the bubble up and off the bench and walked with it held extremely carefully away from her body towards the glowing entrance of the furnace. Without an assistant Saiyin was working double, and her foot was up and down furiously on the pump to crank the heat up, whilst simultaneously keeping the blowpipe turning. The few scars and burns on her hands and arms would be no surprise to anyone watching her working.

Saiyin left the glass in the furnace for as long as she dared. It was almost impossible to tell if it was hot enough, or even too hot, without taking it out and looking. She took it out, looked, and it was bright and glowing like hot glass should be, so she took the whole thing back to the workbench and continued there. By her estimation, she needed to blow more air into the blob of glass, so she huffed a deep breath and waited until she was satisfied with the size.

She began the next process, trying to keep up the pace of her work. Next came the shaping of the glass. She had to stop herself and think, properly, before she continued. Her hands had been hovering over the pincers, ready to open up the bubble and make the lip of the glass, but she suddenly realised that it would be upside down. She mentally slapped herself, but she was thankful that she had yet to do it, at least. Instead, she reached for a scrap of leather and ran it over the bottom of the glass to make the bottom of the glass smoother. It was horribly hot, and she worried about even glancing the scorching, molten glass against her hand, but she took the leather off as soon as she'd finished and rested her hand against the marble to cool it down before continuing.

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Saiyin
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Joined roleplay: March 17th, 2018, 3:24 pm
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Race: Human
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Taking Stock

Postby Saiyin on June 9th, 2018, 1:32 pm

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"Speech"


The next step involved several trips back and forth to the furnace to keep the glass hot whilst she continued to shape the glassware. They were baby steps each time, a careful pinch with the tweezers, or shaping with the leather scrap to achieve the best level of neatness she could. She worked hard, but her hard work was also eating time away, like the eroded banks of a river. Saiyin wasn't someone who got stressed often, but as she slaved over creating the perfect glass cup, she gradually started to become aware of the length of every one of her movements. Each trip back and forth to the furnace door to keep the glass malleable wasted precious chimes. Each cock-up left Saiyin worrying that she wouldn't have enough time in the day to complete her work. After all, she had only just started. Yet, what could she do but continue and try her very best?

It was a new business, and Saiyin was not a born businesswoman. She loved her craft, loved it deeply, but up until Sesr Glassworks her craft had been nothing but a hobby. An activity of leisure, spent relaxed in Hessel's workshop, sipping tea and chatting. The blast of the furnace in her very own shop was another thing, and Saiyin was not used to it yet. Still, she obviously had a lot to learn. She took a deep breath and calmed herself by measuring each breath in and out for a moment. Then she picked up the pipe and angled the vibrant red glass down towards the marble until it was as exactly vertical as she could make it.

The cup needed to have a flat bottom, otherwise once it was filled with drink, it would fall and crack and become a massive waste of kina. Saiyin couldn't have that. The reality of the debt she had accrued hadn't begun to weigh down on her yet, but it would in time. In the meanwhile, it was obvious to anyone with half a brain that a wonky cup just wouldn't sell. Saiyin kept the pipe tilted vertically as she twisted it, flattening the base of the cup.

It took a couple of trips to the furnace before the glass was hot enough to make a wide enough base, but she was finally happy with the result. The next part was the trickiest, and now she truly found her heart in her mouth. In some ways, her work in the workshop was her first true job, and the stress and worry were characteristic of a new worker. She was someone who was quietly confident in her own skills, but when it came to fast-paced work that depended on her getting things right, she just didn't have the experience.

Hessel had been kind to her, in many, many ways. Her emotional and financial support through the years since her family had died always left Saiyin flabbergasted and amazed... and beyond grateful. It had allowed her to recover from the grief in her own, slow way. It had allowed her to buy food, and although she was still material-poor, she was soul-rich. But as time passed, Saiyin knew she needed to grow up and find a trade. Childhood acquaintances followed in their parents' footsteps, but Saiyin couldn't and wouldn't do that. Magic wouldn't make her kina, but glassworking could, and might work. The business was a gamble in that respect, but she also knew that there was a strong possibility she could pull it off and although she worried, she also dreamt of making Hessel proud and finding a way to pay the woman back for all her kindness.

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Saiyin
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Posts: 134
Words: 91451
Joined roleplay: March 17th, 2018, 3:24 pm
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Race: Human
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Taking Stock

Postby Saiyin on June 9th, 2018, 3:17 pm

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"Speech"


With the bottom of the cup completed for now, Saiyin had to work efficiently to get the next stage in motion. She had attempted this once, several seasons past, and the effect hadn't quite worked then. She hoped that, with time to mature and think on the matter, she could manage it. The glass was ready, and so she let it cool a little as she grabbed the pincers and began to rub at the thinner point where the glass was attached to the blowpipe. It didn't take too long for the glass to narrow, and now was her chance.

The theory was that once the glass was cool enough and thin enough, sufficient force applied to the long pipe would cause the glass to break along the line she'd just made with her tweezers. In practice, it had taken two go's before she didn't shatter the stem of the glass too, previously at least. Now she was playing it safe, but even so she half-wondered if she would have to start all over again.

It was the moment of truth. The glass was a dull red, meaning it was cooling. Saiyin pinched the gap as close as she dared, and then reached to tap the pole with the jacks. Nothing happened. She groaned internally, but tried again a little harder. To her utter surprise, the glass came away from the pipe and Saiyin couldn't help but do a little tip-tap dance of excitement on the spot at the sight of the still unfinished cup.

She'd done it! Yet her excitement was short-lived as she rushed over to the furnace, first picking up her blowpipe once more. She watched the flames roaring inside though they were less like flames and more like a consistent, unholy glow, and then narrowed her gaze to carefully dab the smallest amount of glass that she could onto the end. The furnace was looking a little dimmer, so she quickly pumped air through the system to invigorate the burning before turning back to the project at hand.

The glass was still cooling, and it was in its most delicate stage. Any wrong movement or pressure and Saiyin was sure the whole thing would shatter and break, and the half going on three quarter bell she'd spent on it would be wasted. She approached and carefully used the burnt scrap of leather to turn the cup around so the underside was facing upwards. With quivering hands and bated breath, she oh-so-carefully pressed the molten glass to the underside of the cup, using the fresh glass as a glue to hold onto the cup in progress.

With the same amount of care, she lifted the blowpipe with its new attachment, praying to Izurdin that she wouldn't fail. To her immense relief, the rudimentary 'glue' held, and she was able to lift the cup (now turned around) and place it back inside the furnace to heat it up to temperature again.

It was a waiting game as she silently twisted the blowpipe and watched the cup gain colour again through slitted eyes. Her foot sought the pump and she pressed it a few times to hear the satisfying roar in response, until she was happy with the process. The manufacture of the cup was drawing to a close. Almost a bell had passed. Saiyin didn't know if that was a good time or not, but she was inclined to think she needed to improve.

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Saiyin
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Posts: 134
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Joined roleplay: March 17th, 2018, 3:24 pm
Location: Lhavit
Race: Human
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Taking Stock

Postby Saiyin on June 9th, 2018, 4:06 pm

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"Speech"


Saiyin withdrew the blowpipe from the furnace and slammed the door shut behind her. She kept the glass rotating; now more than ever it was important not to let the cup become misshapen. The next part would finally open up the bubble inside the glass, and Saiyin grabbed the jacks after looking around for them as they lay on the workbench. The adrenaline of knocking the glass off the blowpipe still hadn't worn off, so it was with sweaty hands that Saiyin delicately probed the jacks into the unworked part of the glass in an attempt to make a hole.

It was slow-going, with a couple more trips back to the furnace to make sure the glass was hot enough to work properly. Saiyin eventually managed to make a hole in the glass, after several slow attempts. Her hands were aching and her fingers were cramping from pressing the stubbornly stiff iron jacks together, but she was grinning nevertheless. She thought about using the soffieta, but after a quick consideration she dismissed it as being too large for her purposes. She used the tweezers instead, widening the slightly wonky hole until she had a cup with a neat rim and a slight curve to the edges.

Saiyin's first cup was on the cusp of completion. She felt like cheering, but she was too collected for that kind of display of emotion. Instead, she carefully worked the glass once more, checking it with the jacks to make sure that the rim was neat and as even as she could make it. There was a tiny wobble running along one portion, but other than that small blemish, she was satisfied with it.

Now all she had to do was take it off the 'glue' blob of glass on the base, and she was finished. Feeling a little more buoyant after the first minor success, Saiyin lifted the blowpipe vertically into place so that the rapidly cooling glass was resting upsidedown with the base of the cup facing upwards. She had the jacks, and she carefully pinched the blob then tapped the pipe above... once, twice, three times! The cup came away from the blob, and Saiyin immediately leaned in to check and see if the blob had remained on the base. It had a little to her intense annoyance, but whilst the glass was still hot she pressed the jacks into the surface enough to press the forming lump down to a more smooth surface.

With that out of the way all she had left was to grab the delicate glassware and put it into the small furnace entrance, where it would be able to cool slowly and not shatter. She picked up the leather, offcuts from the market, and gently took the makeshift mittens into her hands. Before it disappeared into the small furnace, Saiyin looked at the cup with childlike wonder. It always amazed her, what she managed to create. Once it had cooled, she could pour liquid inside and drink from it. The principle was simple, but the practice was incredible. It was just sand, after all! Sand and fire and concentration.

Saiyin carefully deposited the cup into the furnace, and ran her hands through her hair with closed eyes. That was the first one done. She had many more to make, but the task could only get easier. With a little smile, she picked up the blowpipe, and continued. By the end of the day she would be exhausted, but sleep would come easily, and Saiyin was nothing but glad that she was an official glassblower.

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Saiyin
~☆~
 
Posts: 134
Words: 91451
Joined roleplay: March 17th, 2018, 3:24 pm
Location: Lhavit
Race: Human
Character sheet
Storyteller secrets
Plotnotes

Taking Stock

Postby Saiyin on June 9th, 2018, 4:07 pm

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Grades Awarded

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Saiyin


Skills
Glassblowing: +5 EXP
Observation: +4 EXP
Meditation: +1 EXP
Endurance: +1 EXP
Lores
Glassblowing: How to maintain the furnace
Saiyin: Setting up Sesr Glassworks
Hessel: Won't work at Sesr Glassworks
Saiyin: Worried Hessel thinks she is foolish
Glassblowing: How to gather glass onto blowpipe
Glassblowing: Saiyin finds the release tricky
Sesr Glassworks: Needs an assistant
Glassblowing: Using leather as a smoothing tool
Glassblowing: Using jacks in vessel making
Glassblowing: Need to increase speed for greater efficiency
Meditation: Counting breaths to keep calm
Sesr Glassworks: In debt to Lhavit
Saiyin: 'In debt' to Hessel for her kindness
Glassblowing: Glass as 'glue'
Glassblowing: Basic cup design
Notes
This was a self-grade. Please please PM me if you find something wrong! :) Thanks.


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Image
User avatar
Saiyin
~☆~
 
Posts: 134
Words: 91451
Joined roleplay: March 17th, 2018, 3:24 pm
Location: Lhavit
Race: Human
Character sheet
Storyteller secrets
Plotnotes


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