Hi all,

I'm working on a lighting/chandelier concept and would like your input on light sources. The lights will be fabricated out of aluminum tubing and sheet metal, probably with some sort of patina. The lights will be very organic and instead of using the principles of transparency, like that of crystals in a chandelier, it will use the principles of reflection, thus some of the lights will be focuses into the metal. I'm considering candelabra incandescents and/or halogen(two pin) for the main light source and small LEDs or fiber optics for ambient accent light. I like the warm light of incandescents, but it has the largest base. I'm concerned about the heat from the halogen, it will be in close proximity to the aluminum(roughly 1/4-1/2") in some places. Will that heat dissipate quickly since it's aluminum or will i have to worry about the fixtures/wiring/tape/patina ect. The LEDs or fibre optics will only be used to provide soft glows, pinpoints, and such accents. I'm choosing LEDS/fibre so I can get light through very small tubing and into hard to reach spaces. The white light from LED is two white/blue in my opinion to provide the main light. The lights will have space for transformers and such, so that's not an issue. All wiring will be inside the tubes, and the fixtures will need to fit inside an aluminum tube housing that will be specifically designed around the fixture.

I have a lighting commission that was going to use glass shades, client has just asked me to investigate mica which I have not used before. 

I need to shape the shade into a either half cones or shallow troughs that would be closed at both ends and I have seen mica curved for lighting but have googled forming & bending mica sheets but can't find any info ....  any pointers very gratefully received!  Can you form it with heat or hot water, will it drape over a form?

The second part of this video documentary covers blacksmith techniques for hot forging 1" solid steel bar into large leaf forms. In the second half of the video, I demonstrate the forge welding of these leaves into cluster sets of three.