Small Blue Lamp Repair

This cracked little lamp had been waiting in an attic for a long time.  Its owner finally brought it to me for repair.


Here it is, with two broken pieces.

The first step in any lamp repair is matching the glass.  Here I have the pale blue/white opal glass and the blue cathedral needed to do the repair.

Starting with the blue piece, I cross-hatched it with the glass cutter.  Then I used the metal end of the cutter to smash out the cracked pieces.

After all the glass was removed, I tugged off the old solder and copper foil from the borders, using needle nose pliers.

Using a piece of Manila folder, I'm preparing a template from which to cut a replacement piece of glass.

 

Here's the pattern on the new blue cathedral glass.

Here I'm using the oil-filled pistol grip glass cutter at a 90 degree angle to score the glass.

Grinding the edges of the glass, for safe handling and for better adhesion of the copper foil.

Now both pieces have been re-cut and foiled.  Its ready for soldering.

And voila!  Here is the finished lamp.  Since the solder will remain silver, I did not apply patina.  I just waxed the entire lamp after cleaning it thoroughly.

And here's a view in different lighting..

Here is a nice note from my customer!
"Thanks again Kathy, the lamp looks beautiful and I’m glad I can use it again.  I can’t even tell where you fixed it!"
You're very welcome, Cindy .. It was my pleasure!

For more information on my other projects, please click here to visit my website.

If you're on FaceBook, please click here to "like" my BoehmStained Glass Studio page to keep up with all the latest projects.  Thank you!

Business Logo in Stained Glass

Its rare that I set aside my customers' projects in favor of my own.  But in this case, I made an exception.  After having bi-lateral knee replacements early in 2016, I spent a LOT of time getting physical rehabilitation.  When I was finally done, I wanted to express my appreciation to the owners, the physical therapists, and the staff by making them something special.  I decided to re-create their business logo which appears here:

First, I made a pattern of the "rock".  Our town of Glen Rock, NJ is named for a huge boulder which sits at the end of the main street in town.  It was left behind by a glacier.

I had a nice supply of opalescent (opaque) glass in various shades of gray, so I traced the pattern pieces accordingly.

Using the glass cutter to score the glass.

Using "running pliers" to snap the glass after I've scored it.

There were a couple of difficult angles in the pattern, so I relied on my wet ring saw to cut them.

 After each piece of glass is cut I run it through the grinder.

Here's the glass "jigsaw puzzle" of the rock.

Here I've already applied copper foil to the edges of each piece of glass.  Then I stuck pins around the perimeter of the rock to assure that it would not move as I worked on it.  Then I applied liquid "flux" to the copper foil and soldered the glass together.  For the straight bottom edge, I clipped on a length of zinc "channel" which is metal made to fit the outer edge of the glass.  As I always do with my custom pieces, I engraved my name and the month and year with an electric Dremel tool.

Now I'm applying black "patina" to the solder, to turn it black.

Creating lettering in stained glass is a fun project, but there were simply too many letters to do so for this project.  So I settled for having an 11" card stock print made of the lettering beneath the rock.  Then I had it laminated at an office supply store (Staples).  I used Pebeo glass paint to paint on the crack in the rock on the right side, to add more realism to the logo.

I used a hole punch into the laminated card and attached it to the rock using black circular jump rings,

I made a chain a bit long .. but it is fully adjustable.
The owner and my physical therapist, Paul, was thrilled to see this and thanked me profusely.  I hope they've hung it where the whole team can see it and enjoy it.
Sincere thanks again to Paul, Kyle, Jeannie, Lauren, Nealy, Anthony and Olena for your kind attention and expertise.  And for all the laughs!

If you live in Bergen County, NJ and need physical therapy, I highly recommend Glen Rock PT and Sports Rehabilitation!  Click here to visit their site and to get in touch.

For more information on my other projects, please click here to visit my website.

If you're on FaceBook, please click here to "like" my BoehmStained Glass Studio page to keep up with all the latest projects.  Thank you!

Repairs to Stained Glass Rainbow Panel

This rainbow design stained glass panel was damaged when it fell over.  My customer wanted this to be repaired as a gift for his daughter.  See how I repaired it ..

Cracks can be seen in the blue sky, the center sun, and in the orange, red and amber rainbow.  I planned to repair it while it was still in the frame, but it decided to pop out of it.  So, I did the repair without the frame, and my husband replaced it afterwards.

I decided to begin by repairing the round sun.  Here I'm using the brass end of my glass cutter to smash up the glass in that space.

Now all the glass is removed and I'm using needle-nose pliers to tug off the old solder and foil.  For the parts I can't get off with the pliers, I melt off with a hot soldering iron.  The surface needs to be cleaned of all old solder, foil and adhesive to prepare for the replacement piece.

 

Here I'm tracing the opening onto a piece of a Manila folder.  This will serve as my template for cutting the replacement glass.

After measuring the diameter of the circle, I used a glass circle cutter to get it the exact size.

 

After the circle is "scored", I scored additional lines along the sides of the circle.  Then I used these blue "running pliers" to snap off the sides of the circle.  Then I used another tool called "groziers" to nip off the remaining glass around the circle.

After the glass is cut as closely as possible, I bring it to my electric grinder.  Grinding the edges of the glass makes it safe to handle and allows the copper foil to adhere.

Now the circle is cut and ground. Now I'm pressing the copper foil down onto the sides of the circle.  After its pressed down, I burnish the foil with a flat plastic wand called a "fid".  Then I apply new copper foil to the inner border of the circle.  Then I apply liquid "flux" to the foil.  This is a catalyst that enables the solder to flow freely.  Then I solder the front and the back and clean the area thoroughly.

Now the new sun is in place.  I used the same process to repair the cracked piece of blue that was to the left of the sun.

Now I'm moving onto the rainbow.  Here I'm tugging off the old solder and foil.

 

I wanted to keep as much of the original glass in place as possible.  Therefore I only repaired what was necessary and what worked with the design.  Here the outer orange rainbow has been replaced.  I've removed sections of the red and the amber to prepare for their replacement.

Following the same process, I made templates for the missing pieces, cut the glass, ground the edges, foiled them and applied liquid flux to prepare for soldering.  After I thoroughly cleaned the panel, I waxed and buffed both sides.  Stained glass looks very different in different lighting.  Here is a view of the finished panel on top of a large light box.

And here it is against a white wall.  It's still outside the frame here.

And here it is against the same wall, with light on it, and the frame secured back on.  (Note that you can see the thin hanging wire in the upper right.  I suggested that my customer replace this with a stronger wire).  Thank you so much, Rich, it was a pleasure meeting you.  I hope your daughter loved her gift!

For more information on my other projects, please click here to visit my website.

If you're on FaceBook, please click here to "like" my BoehmStained Glass Studio page to keep up with all the latest projects.  Thank you!

Repairs to Stained Glass Panel

This stained glass panel was brought to me by the same customer who created the glue chip glass and bevel panel posted previously.  This panel had a few cracks in it, and needed hanging hooks installed.  Here's the process ..


This abstract panel has cracks to three pieces.  They're marked by the round colored stickers.

I began the repair by scoring and then cracking out the glass in the yellow piece as shown.  Here I'm tapping the scored piece with the metal end of a glass cutter, in order to loosen the glass.

All of the glass is removed.  Now I'm using needle nose pliers to tug off the old solder and copper foil.

The copper foil and solder have been removed.  Now I'm burnishing new copper foil which I just placed along the border of the open area.

Now I'm tracing around the border onto a piece of Manila folder which will serve as my template for the replacement piece of yellow glass.

The new yellow glass is in place.  With this piece of glass removed, I have access to the cracked red border piece.  Therefore I decided not to solder it in place until the red piece is replaced.  Here I'm preparing the template for the new red piece.

Here I've moved aside the yellow piece and the red piece is ready for foiling.

Now the red border piece and the yellow piece are both foiled.  I'm applying liquid flux to the copper foil.  This chemical enables the solder to flow freely over the foil.

Now the yellow and red replacement pieces have been soldered in place on the front and the back of the panel.

Note that there is glass missing in the reddish-white strip beside the flower-like design in the center.  I sent off that chip in hopes of finding a good match for it.  However, there was nothing available.  Therefore, after consulting with my customer, I suggested replacing both panels beside the flower with the light blue glass which appears on the border.  I thought it would be a nice tie-in and bring more cohesiveness to the design.  She agreed, so I went ahead.

Here's a blue panel being run through the electric grinder.

Now I've replaced both sides of the flower with a nice strip of blue which matches the borders.

One of the final steps is to clean off the liquid flux, let it dry, and then apply the black patina as shown here.  Its a blue liquid which makes the solder turn black instantly.

Using a product called Kwik-Clean, I'm washing off the excess patina after giving it some time to set.

Now I'm moving on to creating and installing hooks as requested by my customer.  Since this is a heavy panel, I'm using 12 gauge wire which I cut into short lengths.  I wrapped them around a pen as shown, and crimped the ends together using the needle nose pliers.

Then I used a steel brush to scrub off the old patina from the corner needed a hook which I marked with blue tape.  Then I applied some liquid flux onto the scrubbed area.

I added some hot solder to the area.  When it cooled off, I used the needle nose pliers to hold the new hook in place.  Then I heated up the hook until it sank into the pool of solder, creating a very strong and permanent bond to the frame.  I repeated this process on the other side.

And here is the repaired panel, with new hooks for hanging.

Another view, on top of a light box.  Thank you Jane and John, for bringing this panel to me also!  I'm pleased that I was able to put it back in service so you can enjoy it for years to come.

For more information on my other projects, please click here to visit my website.

If you're on FaceBook, please click here to "like" my BoehmStained Glass Studio page to keep up with all the latest projects.  Thank you!