suncatchers

Mixed Media Wreaths – stained glass and chain/scale maille

Posted by Amy

I am delighted to finally offer the first of hopefully numerous mixed media projects where I combine stained glass with chain maille and scale maille!

scale maille flowersA little background… Every summer I spend a week in Maine at a fantastic place called ‘Camp’ Camp. It’s a camp for LGBT adults, and I’ve been going since 2008. I actually teach stained glass while there. Happily, I also get to enjoy other offerings during the week. For the last few years, I’ve taken chain maille classes from my friend, Jason. He’s passionate and patient and has created a lot of new maillers as a result of his excellent class. It was not long after returning home the first year I got to try it out that I started digging into that form more deeply, discovering far more than the word of jewelry and other wearables (though I have been making a lot of bracelets and other things to practice). Wheels started turning about how I could combine glass and maille, to make some new and hopefully exciting, enticing things.

Last week, I pulled up some photos I had taken of leaves a few years ago when walking around Lake Waban at Wellesley College, and created a wreath pattern to make in glass. Meanwhile, I received some supplies and the flower tutorial from The Ring Lord for ways to fill that wreath. Then it was just a matter of making both elements, and making them work together.

Stained glass wreath scale maille flowerJust in time for Mother’s Day, or even just to have something new and different in your window, I am delighted to release this line of flowers that will never wilt, never need watering!

There are two sizes available, at about 7″ wide ($45 each, plus shipping) and about 5″ wide ($35 each, plus shipping). Specific details are included with each photo. Each flower right now is different, and I utilized a variety of different green and clear glass options to make the wreaths for each one. The only way to know how they will each look is to make them! Clear glue chip already offers a really cool natural look, with the appearance of leaves, twigs, etc ’embedded’ in the glass. And Pilkington makes a clear glass called Autumn that has the texture and shape of leaves in it. I really like how it looks on the larger wreath. Clear glue chip works great for both sizes of wreaths.

Please enjoy the photos below, visit the Etsy shop if you’d like to put one of these in YOUR window (or your mom’s!) and let me know what you think. I will be happy to customize flowers and glass for future versions of these, if people have specific desires along those lines. Thanks!

Stained Glass Butterfly Ornaments

Posted by Amy

Lots of new little butterflies awaiting construction.Up here in the northeast region of the United States, it’s been a particularly long and brutal winter. Cold has been ceaselessly relentless, and the snow depth has reached record levels in some places. After a while, cabin fever and dreams of spring become completely dominating. This year, that meant I started thinking about new, bright pieces to bring back some color. My thoughts turned to the butterfly, and I decided to make up patterns and pieces for stained glass butterfly ornaments.

I am doing a brand new event on March 21, Zing into Spring event in New London NH, created by Kearsarge Magazine, so I have been working on making some glass for that day (in addition to many glass hearts!). I started thinking about butterflies which could be a little smaller, both in terms of piece size and to have a less expensive take away item. I started fiddling around with drawing butterfly wings in photoshop, consulting the almighty Google image search to look at actual butterfly wings for comparison and inspiration. After a little trial and error, new lines and lots of erasing, I landed on a pattern.

Red/orange/yellow butterfly cut and foiled, about to be soldered together.Because I don’t do any new pattern simply, as usual it was not enough to make just one or two to start. I went through my scrap glass collection (as well as a little of the regular glass stock) and wound up with 18 new little butterflies.

The end result is a lovely stained glass butterfly ornament for any window, or even on a Christmas tree at that time of year. It measures 3.25″ across and 2.75″ high. A hanging hook is securely attached so that the butterfly hangs on an angle. They are made with the copper foil method, and the seams are finished with black patina. The color combinations are practically limitless and I think this is going to be a fun piece to make. I am offering them for $10 each, plus postage where applicable (ie not at a show). I’ve posted a gallery of the first butterfly ornaments to show some of the potential ranges. Please feel free to contact me with any questions or special color requests. After the Zing into Spring event, I expect I will be putting some of these up on Etsy as well.

And if you are free on March 21 and able to get to New London NH, please stop by Zing into Spring. There is a lot of great stuff in store with vendors, classes, demonstrations, and more!

purplewispy wispypink yellow-redamber

Tardis stained glass suncatchers and nightlights

Posted by Amy

Tardis nightlightThough I have only just started watching Doctor Who, myself, I seem to know a lot of Whovians, and have seen a lot of related merchandise, tchotchkes, etc from the show. One of the most enduing and oft-used icons is the Tardis. This is the vehicle in which they get around, and it seemed easy enough to render in my own stained glass patterns.

My first thought was to offer handmade stained glass Tardis nightlights as I had not really seen that out in the market as much. My motivation was to offer something a bit unique. After soliciting opinions from a few Whovians, I wound up with two patterns and made each. This is the best way for me to figure out what works and what doesn’t in terms of what I feel comfortable making again.

Tardis night lightThe end result is one I will gladly make again, and one I plan to retire. The ‘keeper’ Tardis is a little bit wider and so the long skinny pieces are easier to cut and maintain an essentially straight edge (harder than it sounds with the grinder). It also allows for two versions, with sides (pictured, above) and without. Because of considerations for weight of the glass on the night light works, the smaller size of these projects really makes a difference for the two patterns.

The front panel of the ‘keeper’ night light measures about 3.5″ wide and, including the light on top, 4.75″ tall. The side panels are each about 1.3″ wide and about 4.5″ tall. It costs $45 as seen, $35 without the sides, plus shipping.

And then, I also decided to make a couple of Tardis suncatchers. First, not everyone wants, needs, or likes night lights. Making a suncatcher additionally means I can make the pattern a little bigger, which makes the skinnier Tardis a lot more comfortable to make. So here I present two Tardis suncatchers, both available for order. The one on the left is just under 6″ long (including the light) and 3.75″ wide. The one on the right is just over 6″ long and about 3.5″ wide. Each is $30 plus shipping. Hanging chain and a suction cup are included with each suncatcher.

bothtardissun

You can see a few more photos in the Tardis gallery. And if you would like to order one, don’t hesitate to get in touch. Thanks!

Dancing Star Suncatchers/Ornaments

Posted by Amy

Who doesn’t enjoy colorful, joyful little suncatchers in their window?

I save a lot of the scrap glass that is left over from most stained glass projects. Some pieces are much to small for any additional use and so are discarded (into recycling, not trash). But then there are the bigger bits… Those are ideal for making into these little dancing stars. I keep a small oaktag pattern piece at my cutting table so I can check right on the spot to see if a leftover bit of glass is big enough. And then those pieces of scrap are stashed to be reused for making these dancing stars. The finished suncatchers are about 2″ by 2″, and can be made with any glass, with any (complementary) color center. I’ll be making lots of red stars soon, from scrap leftover from making a big pile of cardinals last December. What other color combinations would you like to see? Most are all one color glass, but I also make rainbow versions. At $10 each, these are terrific gifts, lovely handmade Christmas tree ornaments (I can put ribbons on those for easy hanging), or just a little colorful suncatcher to hang in your window.

I’ve got several small bins getting full with scrap glass so I think I will making a lot of these little dancing stars as I go. They are nice, quick little projects to do in between bigger ones.

Dancing Star ornaments and suncatchers