Blue Jay and Nuthatch stained glass panels installed

I prepared these 6" x 11" bird panels for installation the same way as the Cardinal completed last week. I soldered on 4 small brass clips, 2 on each side of each panel, as shown below.  These clips slid underneath the mullions on the back door.

Since this project was a "fill in" job started in April, the solder had oxidized a bit, so I needed to go over it with steel wool #0 in order to prep it for the black patina.  That done, I waxed and polished each panel.

Eric unscrewed the lower portions of the mullion and then we lifted it up and positioned the birds underneath, catching the brass clips as we went. They are securely locked in now.  To see the entire process which I repeated for each of the three birds, click here.  (Click on any photo to enlarge).

These birds add new life to the back door!  I'll be happy to make a custom door panel for you in any theme or color.  Call 201-600-1616.

Today I started the design process for a new commission, a 29" octagonal window.  Stay tuned ...

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Stained Glass Cardinal complete and installed

This Cardinal was a "fill in" project started back in April.  Please click here to see the Cardinal and two other birds started then.  I created each of them to fill in a few of the nine 6-1/4" x 11" glass panels in our back door. (Click to enlarge any photo).

Eric cut 4 small brass tabs which I soldered onto the back of the piece as shown below.  I used square balsa wood sticks to rest the tabs on during soldering.

Below is the front of the panel with the tabs soldered.  Its been patina-ed black. These panels feature clear textured autumn leaves glass from Delphi.  Its a thick glass that adds dimension and privacy yet allows light to shine through.  The brilliant orange-red is a wispy glass which I cut to show the movement of feathers.

I always use a partially clear glass for birds' and animals' eyes.  In this case, I used black-on-clear Baroque glass to add life to the piece.

 

And here it is!  To install this panel, Eric partially removed the mullions and slipped the panel underneath the center window, making sure to catch the tabs underneath.  Worked like a charm! 

Do you have this type of door?  If so, I would be happy to create custom panels to add color and character to your home.  Give me a call at 201-600-1616 and inquire.

Upcoming will be two more birds to join the Cardinal. (Or the designing of the octagonal window project, whichever comes first).

Click here for Boehm Stained Glass Studio website.

Stained glass cabinet panel completed

Another window completed!  This was a different challenge, to duplicate an existing window.  The one on the left is the original.  The one on the right is my copy, 1" wider.  (Click photo to enlarge).

 

A lovely note of thanks from my happy customer!

Dear Kath,
I was so so excited when I saw the finished product of my stained glass door insert! You did such an incredible job of matching the other panels -- now my kitchen matches again. I loved watching the progress of the workmanship on your blog. Please thank Eric for me for hanging everything back up. And thank you, Kath, for such beautiful craftsmanship... I am so pleased!
Kathi

Thank you Kathi!  It was a pleasure meeting you and restoring your kitchen panel. I hope you will enjoy it for many, many years to come!

Next project: An octagonal interior window.  The design process will be underway shortly.

Click here for Boehm Stained Glass Studio website.

Stained glass cabinet panel soldered

As of this morning, the panel has been tack soldered, the jig removed, and the pattern slid out.  The panel was then fully soldered front and back and strengthened with the addition of a thin metal "channel" frame around the perimeter. (Click to enlarge photo).

The original window which I duplicated did not have this frame but I made an allowance for it when I prepared the pattern because the frame gives the piece more strength and stability.  It is very thin, about the same width as a lead line, so it will be hidden under the cabinet mount.  With the added strength of this frame, it can be taken out of the cabinet and used elsewhere.

Tomorrow afternoon will be the "big reveal" .. A side-by-side photograph of the original window beside the duplicate.  See if you can tell the difference.  Stay tuned.

Click here for Boehm Stained Glass Studio website.

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.