A History of my Studio

January 15, 2010 monarchskiesstainedglass

Hello again; I thought tonight I would post about how I got started with the hobby – now my business – of stained glass. The city I live in has a decent setup where you can take classes of a wide variety, for which you pay a reasonable fee. Tiffany Stained Glass happened to be one of them, so I signed up – just to try something new. I had no idea if I would like it or what it involved; the most experience I have ever had was making the kind of sun catcher that you cook in the oven, which melts these little plastic beads inside a metal frame.

No, this class was completely different – no ovens, but very large sheets of glass, these strange-looking contraptions – which I would soon find out were grinders, an essential for any stained glass studio – as well as a station for each class member. These stations had a variety of tools that I had never seen before, such as a soldering iron and handheld glass cutter, not to mention spools of solder and strange-looking scissors with three blades. All of these tools that were present were necessary; each had a different purpose to complete the project we made in class.

The class itself was very interesting; it ran for four hours the first night, then all day the next day. During the first night we watched a video about how the different colors and textures of glass were made. We also went through each of our tools to learn about what they were used for, and how to properly use them. I couldn’t wait to get started!

Each student made the same pattern – I had thought that we were going to come up with our own pattern, but looking back I’m glad we were all doing the same one. We were all using the same colors as well – green, red, yellow, and clear. However, we were allowed to use whichever combination we wanted. Some of us used green and yellow only, while others used all four colors. The only thing that the instructor told us was not to use too much of the red – you see, red is one of the more expensive colors of glass. This is because of the gold that goes into the glass itself – I don’t know much more about it than that, but the price of glass partly depends on the metals that are used to color it. At any rate, all of the panels looked different from one another – there were a few shades of the yellow and the green, so this helped.

One thing we also talked about in class was safety measures – glass is sharp, as well as the soldering iron is hot! No, I did not burn myself, but yes, I did cut myself. I believe I was the only one to do so in class that day. No big deal though – it definitely did not stop me from completing my project!

I knew that I had a talent for this craft – I am no expert by any means, at least not yet - when the instructor told me that my first piece was better than his first piece; he has been doing this craft for over thirty years!! That was a boost to my confidence.

It did not take me long to want to set up my own studio. Luckily, my house has a back den area with linoleum flooring – carpet in a stained glass studio is a very bad idea, with all of the glass shards that go flying – so all I needed was the glass and equipment. My mom helped me pick out my first pieces of glass, and all the equipment I needed to get started. I even have my own grinder! 

The most difficult part of the process was finding a suitable work bench. I am known to be particular with a lot of things, but a good, solid work bench is a must with a stained glass studio. You do not want something that will rock around at the slightest bump, and height is a very important thing to consider, as it is not good to be hunched over for hours at a time. My mom and I went all over town looking for the perfect table, but no luck. We ended up building one entirely from scratch! We went to a hardware store, picked out a panel of aspen, had the workers cut four legs made from 4×4 pieces of pine, and we nailed and drilled the table together. Funny how things work out, because that is one of my favorite pieces of furniture that I own. It is so solid, and the unfinished wood adds so much character to my studio.

Also another challenge was finding a storage cabinet for all of my glass and other supplies. My studio used to be storage for my extra appliances, namely this beautiful white cabinet. I spent 6 hours one day rearranging the closet in that room so I could empty out my appliances and put them in that closet, so now I use the cabinet as storage for all of my supplies.

I also spent 9 hours another day repainting my whole studio. It is a light blue now, with white trim – before it was tan with dark brown trim. The new color scheme makes my studio much more inviting and I really enjoy spending time in there now.

Space is still limited, but I almost prefer it that way. My studio is a cozy room in the house where I can focus on creating beautiful works of art. I find that spending a day in my studio is very relaxing and my day is fulfilled. I cannot wait to get started on the three projects that I have lined up.

Well, that is it for my history for now. Thank you for reading!

Entry Filed under: Stained Glass

One Comment Add your own

• 1. M&D  |  January 15, 2010 at 7:48 pm

  Very interesting! You definitely have designed a studio that will work for you. Am looking forward to see how the projects are completed.

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