Stained glass cabinet panel foiled

Almost done!  The edges of all of the glass in the panel have been wrapped with 7/32" adhesive copper foil, as shown.  Each piece is set into the center of the foil so that there is an equal edge, front and back. The foil is then flattened onto the glass with a fid, a thin, durable plastic wand.

I used "black backed" foil for this panel, so that if any of the inside of the foil can be seen through the glass, it will be indistinguishable from the solder, which will be patinaed in black.  (Click to enlarge photo).

Here is the panel, still in the jig, with all of the pieces wrapped in foil. (Click to enlarge photo).

The next, and final, steps will be to brush the copper foil with flux, tack solder the pieces, remove the jig, slide out the paper pattern (cartoon), solder the front and back, and then add a thin metal reinforcing frame (channel).

I'll be working behind my cameras for this Memorial Day Weekend, courtesy of Fleet Week assignments.  Be back shortly afterwards.  This duplicate panel is shaping up to be indistinguishable from the original.

Click here for Boehm Stained Glass Studio website.

Stained glass kitchen cabinet panel glass cut

More progress.  All of the glass is now cut for the kitchen cabinet panel. Notice that the glass is contained within a metal jig or "fence" which is firmly pinned to the homasote board.  The jig serves to keep the edges straight and will remain in place until the glass pieces are tack soldered.

This glass was a joy to work with!  Both the frosted clear and the Lambert hand blown green were very "agreeable" to cut by hand which is always a pleasant bonus. (Click to enlarge photos).

Tip:  When cutting many thin pieces, such as these leaves, it always best to line them up side by side and then cut a wider piece off.  It will give better results in the long run and there will be less chance of the glass cracking in the wrong place.  Leave a little "breathing room" between each pattern so you can make a pretty straight cut between each leaf.  Then you can go back in and trim them to size.  Cutting thin pieces like these requires a bit of finesse .. Starting off this way makes life a little easier.

Next step:  Adding adhesive copper foil to each piece of glass.  Another update to be posted soon!

Click here for Boehm Stained Glass Studio website.

Stained glass kitchen cabinet panel pattern

Re-creating a duplicate of an existing stained glass window is a different process than creating a new one.  Here's how I'm doing it.  

Using tracing paper (click to enlarge photo, See #1), I traced directly over the lead lines in the leaves panel.  Then I added 1/2" to each side to make it the same size as the amber glass it will replace. (Glass shown in the previous post).

Since the tracing paper is too delicate to build the panel on, I had a paper copy made at Staples. (I recommend them over Kinko's). (See #2) From the paper copy, I used carbon paper to trace it onto manila folders (See #3) which then becomes the pattern used to cut the glass.  (Click on photo to enlarge).

I labeled the pieces of the manila folder pattern by quadrants, left and right, with each quadrant assigned a different letter.  This will keep the pieces organized as I lay them over the glass and outline them for cutting. 

I cut the pattern with double-bladed pattern shears which allow for a small bit of space between each piece for the adhesive copper foil which will come later.

The next step is to start cutting the glass.  As the glass "jigsaw puzzle" gets filled in with glass pieces, I'll be posting further updates with photos.  Stay tuned.

Click here for Boehm Stained Glass Studio website.

Stained glass kitchen cabinet panel

At the craft show last weekend, we met a wonderful new customer who has asked me to re-create a panel for her kitchen cabinet.  She has a lovely set of leaf-pattern panels on two facing doors, but on the other side of the kitchen there's a mismatched, slightly wider window with an amber glass insert.

With any repair or re-creation of a stained glass piece, the first step is always to get a good match for the existing glass.  (Click here to see an example of well-matched glass in a repair).  I brought the panel to my glass supplier who identified it as Youghiogheny glass which is not only costly, but hard to find.  Her distributor would have required a far larger order than I needed, and it was outside the budget.

But I got lucky.  She had a lovely frosted glass which is identical to the opacity of the Youghiogheny.  And I found a beautiful Lambert hand blown green which is the exact shade and opacity of the existing green.  Here is the stained glass panel I'll be re-creating, and samples of the glass I'll be using.

Since the new panel needs to be 1" wider than the existing, my next step will be to trace the existing panel and enlarge it. In order to keep the leaves the same size on the new panel, I'll duplicate the existing design and add 1/2" to each side.

After my photo shoot in the morning (see photo blog), I'll be back with photos of the tracing process, and of the panel which is being replaced.  Stay tuned, this is going to be a beauty!

Click here for Boehm Stained Glass Studio website.

First show, quiet and rainy

Well, we would have been happier with better weather and better attendance at the Emanuel Cancer Foundation fine arts and crafts fair on Saturday, but as our first time out we had a pretty good day regardless.  (Sunday was rained out).  We enjoyed chatting with the few people who came by, and we added a handful of prospects for commissions and repairs.

Photo by Brian Reilly of Franklin Lakes Patch ... Click here for full story.

I am happy with our booth and the materials I prepared to exhibit the work.  We'll plan to do one or two more shows this season, which I will announce here. (Click on any photo to enlarge).

Eric chilling .. crickets chirping ...

Our simple booth, with a rented canopy and rented tables.

40 artisans and craftspeople participated

Today, I'll be meeting with a new customer from the fair to re-create a stained glass panel in her kitchen cabinet door.  This week I'll be preparing design proposals for potential customers ... an octagonal window, a reproduction of a microscopic photograph, and a Victorian rose.

Click here for Boehm Stained Glass Studio website.

Emanuel Cancer Foundation Fine Art & Craft Show next weekend

I am happy to say that I will be offering my custom stained glass windows at the Emanuel Cancer Foundation Fine Art and Craft Show next weekend, Saturday and Sunday, May 14-15.  Eric and I both have a great deal of experience working trade shows for past employers, but this is the first time I'm going "live and in color" with my own work.  Exciting!

"We are pleased to announce the return of our popular fun-filled weekend event with fine art work, sculpture, jewelry, and all kinds of crafts. It will be held at its usual location, McBride Field-Franklin Lakes Road, (across from Market Basket), in Franklin Lakes, NJ, on Saturday and Sunday, May 14-15, 2011 from 10:00 A.M. - 5:00 P.M. Admission is free, however a $2.00 donation per person is suggested."  Click here for their website .. a very worthy cause.
 
We will display several of my windows as samples for my custom work.  Stop by our booth and get ideas for an heirloom quality window for yourself or someone special.  Or bring your damaged stained glass piece for a free estimate on repairs.

Click here for Boehm Stained Glass Studio website.

Stained glass birds foiled and soldered

Here are the three birds in various stages after foiling, tack-soldering and removing the jig and the pattern from underneath.

The Cardinal is soldered, front and back ... The Blue Jay is partially soldered on the front ... the Nuthatch is soldered on the front and back and this is the back view.

The next steps are to cut and solder a thin metal channel (frame) around the perimeter of each piece, then install them over the window panes in the door.

Update:  The channel is installed on each of the birds, but I'm setting them aside in order to prepare for the fine art and craft show in two weeks.  (See blog entry above). When my work bench is quiet again, I'll return to them.

Click here for Boehm Stained Glass Studio website.