'Twas The Week Before Christmas

This beautiful Fancy Oval Flower that Let made has numerous points of interest.  The pointed top and bottom of the oval, the scalloped lead trim that surrounds it, the carefully chosen shading of colors, the reeded background accent glass and the glass nugget all add up to a beautiful window.

  

 

Once Stitch was washed and colored Judy wasn't sure whether she liked him or not but after we added the white 'light glints' in his pitch black eyes he actually came to life (figuratively speaking).  All in all I think he's rather cute even though I've never seen any of his movies.

  

 

Susan R finished the Comedy/Tragedy Masks that she did in Mardi Gras colors.   She even plans to add Mardi Gras ribbons to these before she hangs them.  Due to a weak joint that runs between the masks we had to add some wire to make sure that they don't rip apart.   The wire is WELL hidden and in the end this could be held horizontally by only one of the masks without the other mask sagging at all.

  

 

Linda F's Bevel Heart looks exquisite and was completed in record time.  Straight lines and graceful curves are the highlights of this suncatcher because anything less would stand out like a red thumb. Following the pattern perfectly IS imperative on anything that is symmetrical and Linda did exactly that.

  

 

Mary Grace decided to make the two angels that she cut out last week as 3D standing angels complete with twisted wire halos.  Blue or green it doesn't matter which you pick because they are both equally beautiful.

  

 

Lorrie had these spare bevels laying around her workshop and decided to position them into a cross pattern and then surround them with a nice deep blue textured glass.  The end result is a beautiful cross by anyone's definition.

Betty's new Nativity Scene Suncatcher left the work table and is featured this week as another of Betty's completed projects. 

 

 

 

Linda put the finishing touches on the Mickey Mouse Silhouette that will fit into the second ear (opposite Minnie) in the Iron Mickey Mouse Frame  that she has.  When she returns next year she'll begin the LARGE Mickey in a Swimsuit Window that will go into the face section of the Iron Frame work.

 

  

 

 

Cindy had two Cross Hearts completed one one of the pictures showed up blurry in all three shots that I took of it.   But this one is nice and sharp!!

 

 

 

Bee has taken a break from her Tribute Window to start this 6 inch high Cross and Flower Panel.  The glass she used for the flower petals almost looks iridescent but the light green and pink hues are just the color of the glass.

 

  

 

Susan D has all of her Circular Bear ground and with this picture that I took straight on you can clearly see that she has left the perfect amount of space between all of her pieces to allow for foil.  Foil may be thin but like the pages of a book they add up to a large amount of space especially if the project has a lot of pieces like this one does. (And never forget that each space has to contain not one but TWO pieces of copper foil-- one on each piece.)

  

 

 

 Cindy began a New LSU tiger eye window and started by cutting out the Purple piece.  They look black her while they rest on the table but rest assured that they are indeed purple.   Yellow and white will be the two remaining colors that make up this window

  

Then we have June's Multi-colored Elephant and the colors are looking vibrant and cheerful.   I think this is going to light up spectacularly!  And it fits together nicely even in its unground state.  June is getting good with a cutter and there;s no doubt about that.

  

Martha has Multi-colored Christmas Ornaments and she managed to get all of then ground and ready for foil before class ended.  They may not be ready for Christmas this year but they will certainly be among the first Christmas Projects completed for 2025.

 

  

 

 

Instead of egg cartons full of glass pieces I'm sharing with you the pattern that MiMi will be grinding all of those pieces to.   Each piece in the pattern below is being cut 3 times to create her lamp and she's moving along at a nice steady pace.

 

 

Cheryl is putting the final border pieces onto the center portion of her Harley-Davidson Window.   once this is tacked together she'll have to decide whether she wants to start on MOTOR next or CYCLES.  They are both of equal complexity so there's no easy way out in sight!

 

  

 

Sheri is under a deadline of sorts with her large Beveled Window.  She wants to get it completed before Christmas and in all honesty I know that she'll do it.  She was able to get her border attached, a zinc channel added to it and the front side completely soldered which leaves only the back side to go.  She's done some great work on this and I believe that her confidence has grown dramatically as well (for good reason).

 

 

 

Lorrie has her Underwater Fish Scene started  as she cut and ground two of the Angelfish for her large window.   Seeing how quickly she got this far with two fish and some underwater leaves in just two and a half hours, well I can't wait to see what she walks in the door with next year!

 

MiMi also shared this look at the next Hexagon Window that she's been working on.   She obviously likes making things with lots and LOTS of pieces!  Now that she has this ground she's ready to begin foiling.

 

 

 

 

Wrapping things up we have a look at the Cat Windows that both Cindy and Martha made for a friend of theirs.  Here they are on display hanging where they will reside for years to come.   They sure do make perfect bookends!

 

Believe it or not, this is the last post of the year!  Time has really flown and I'm betting that Christmas of 2025 will be here before we can say, "Saint Nick"!  We want to wish all of our students and readers a very Merry Christmas and a most Happy  New Year.

Paul

Bayou Salé GlassWorks

 

Save Yourself Time and Do It My Way

Susan R's Peacock Hoop was completed and all of her hard work has paid off magnificently!  This may be the Piece de Resistance in Susan's Stained Glass portfolio.  In other words, this is a wonderful feather in her cap and I know she's very pleased with it.

 

 

 

Ann's Nativity Scene Window came together in time for Christmas and was even changed to be correct!  Sometimes a detail like a halo (or in this case the lack of one) goes unnoticed.  That being said, Ann caught the lack of Joseph's halo right after she began this window and still had time to repair Joseph's slight.   As you can see the window looks amazing and Ann came through beautifully.

 

 

 

 

Linda L finished her right (or left) mouse ear insert.  Yes, it's Minnie Mouse    I've photoshopped a mock up of just part this is in the project that she is making to help explain what is so hard for me to express in words here. 

 

The black lines in the picture below show what will be metal framework.   Mickey and Minnie will go in each ear opening while a larger circular Mickey Mouse in a Swimsuit will go in the larger central opening.

 

 

 

 

Kerry's Santa Hats got completed and although I've only pictured a pair of them he actually got a half dozen of them completed.  They may look simple but trust me when I say that there is more to these than meets the eye!

 

  

 

Steve and Lisa each took a painted glass piece, surrounded them with background glass and then added a border to them as well.  By the time class was finished they walked out the door with two beautiful Window Hangings.   Sadly, this is Steve and Lisa's last class with us as they will be starting 2025 doing some extreme house hunting and moving on over to Lafayette.  We'll miss them but will certainly remain in touch. 

 

 

 

I told you about a week or two ago that the end was near when it came to the seven windows that Lorrie was making for Christmas  and this week I'm pleased to announce that his is the final Address Window that Lorrie had to have completed.  A job well done! 

  

 

And to wrap up our completed projects for the week we learn that Betty has finished six more Dragonflies of assorted colors and textures, one of which is pictured here. 

 

 

Cheryl's making headway with her Harley-Davidson Window and is tacking the inner border pieces onto the window to make things stable and secure so that she can put some glass under what she already has tacked together to fill in the few pieces that are missing.  That splash of orange is giving this thing some life.

 

 

 

Susan R also worked on a pair of Mardi Gras Tragedy and Comedy Faces.   She was hard pressed when it came to deciding what to do with the eyes and the mouths in these masks and she's pretty sure that she is going to fill them with black glass to denote the empty space that the wearer's features would be seen through.

 

 

 

 

Lara wants her Flower/Sunburst completed when she comes back in and I'm sure that will happen since the border which is made up of bevels are ready to be wrapped.  She'll attach those bevels when she comes back in  and then solder it right away.

 

 

 

 

Lorrie also began working on this beveled Cross Suncatcher and got it all cut, ground AND wrapped in foil before she called it a night and headed home.

 

 

 

 

Mary Grace began cutting out a pair of Angel Suncatchers and has the first one almost ready for foiling and soldering.  I'm sure that at least one of these will be finished upon her return and I know that she wanted a twisted wire halo for these angels and the good news is that I found some twisted wire in the shop that she can use.

 

  

 

 

This is the second ear for Linda L's Mickey Mouse Lawn Ornament.  Or should I call it a Pool Ornament since it will be decorating her pool.  This one is just about ready for solder  which means that the larger, more detailed Mickey will be started when the new year rolls around.

 

 

 

Judy ensured that her Stitch Suncatcher will be completed in time for Christmas by getting all of this guy ground and mostly foiled as well.  She's actually ahead of the game at this point since I expected her to have to take this home to get it wrapped.

 

 

 

June is full swing into cutting glass for her Elephant Window and the colors are really starting to show now.   The beauty of this project is that she's able to use scraps that she has as well as pieces of glass that are in our scrap bin. 

 

 

 

Let has decided to make her Flower Hanging a large suncatcher rather than a squared off window so she has increased the size of the final border to make it just a little more prominent and possibly a little more resilient.  She's also cut out a Dog Paw with Angel Wings as a separate project which you can see below her Flower.

 

 

 

Shelley is cutting away on her Trio Of Ladies Window and now that she has three dresses cut out this is really taking shape.  She wasn't sure on the color of the third dress but once she suggested the color green I was all on board.

 

  

 

 

Susan D's Bear Window is really taking shape and even shows up nicely in the picture this week!  Her exactness in grinding and cutting really shine through when you see this in person.  Once the pieces get some foil on them you'll REALLY be able to see the complexity of this round panel.

 

 

 

 

It's hard to see but after getting another Egg Carton and a half filled with lamp pieces MiMi traced out her next set of pieces onto some green glass.   She's ready to put her cutter to the glass and will begin that upon her return.

 

 

 

 

Betty almost completed her Nativity Suncatcher which means that you will DEFINITELY see this among our completed pieces next week.

 

  

 

 

Linda F's assorted collection of Christmas Ornaments are being made with bright and festive colors which, as you can see, she has begun grinding.

Martha is making a number of Christmas Ornaments of her own and is also in the process of grinding them.  She's got more orders for Franklin Street Lamps so expect to see her working on more of them next year!

 

 

Sheri cut of the last two pieces of the background glass for her large Bevel Cluster Window.  After they  were wrapped and tacked into place she cut her border pieces, ground them, bagged them, and took them home to wrap there.  As you can see I took this picture after she bagged all of her border pieces.  :-(

 

 

 

Bee is foiling some of the pieces that she has cut out for her Dandelion Tribute Window.   When you have a lot of pieces like this it can be helpful to secure things by tacking them so that less can move around while you are trying to fit other pieces.

 

 

 

Lastly we look at the pattern that Lorrie will begin working on in earnest during the new year.  This Underwater Oceanscape is going to be impressive for sure since the finished window will end up being 37 by 25 inches! 

 

 

Don't forget-- This isn't the end, it's the beginning of anything you want.

 

Paul

Bayou Salé GlassWorks

Rum and Gin Around

One down and one to go!  Kandise got the left side of her pair of mirror image Corner Accents completed this week and it looks fabulous.  Her use of assorted clears highlighted by drops of color in the centers really lit up and sparkled when we hug this up and got even just a little light behind it.  I can't begin to imagine how great they are going to look with actual sunlight behind them!

 

Lisa finished her pair of  Sleepy Bears On The Moon Suncatchers and then decorated them with wire accents and a cute yellow star above each bear.  These are precious and will make great shower gifts!

 

 

 

Lorrie's newest Wedding Box was easily completed before class ended.  I must admit that the minimal design of the invitation allowed Lorrie to run wild with her choice of subject matter.  To tie things together she picked a black and white glass for the box sides which matched the invitation perfectly.

 

 

 

 

Mary Grace fine tuned the grinding on her Mardi Gras Mask Suncatcher and then wrapped and soldered it.  By the end of class she was able to take this along home with her and call it a day.

 

 

Linda L has the first rounded Panel for one of her Mickey Mouse ears almost completed.  The front side is finished leaving only the back to go and then she'll add some sturdy hooks to it so that it can be secured firmly into its wrought iron frame.

  

 

 

Now that her orders have been completed Susan D is back at work on her Bear Panel.  It's going to be tough to see this as it is constructed because any brown glass sitting on a table just looks black, but when this is hanging and it has some light behind it all of the details of this bear will be revealed.

 

 

 

Steve has another pair of painted stained glass 'windows' that he's setting into a background glass.  Lisa has suggested a borer to finish the pieces off and I whole heartedly agree.  It's a simple step that really makes a window look complete.

 

 

 

Meet Stitch of Lilo and Stitch fame.  Sadly, I'm so old that I thought this was a pokemon!  Now that I have the proper identity of this lab created creature I can tell you that Judy is working at breakneck speed to finish this in time for Christmas.  If she can get this ground next week she'll be able to take it along home with her to wrap and then finish it off just in time.

  

 

 

Let has got all of the center of her Fancy Flower cut out and ground so she will next wrap it and tack it together before  she adds the border to it.  She initially wanted to widen the border but before she left class Let was leaning towards squaring this off to make it a full fledged window.   If she decides to do that I believe the thinner border surrounding the oval would be the way to go.

 

  

 

June has begun cutting out glass for her festive Multi-Colored Elephant Window and something tells me that his is going to be a hit.  With the pattern only being colored in with colored pencils you can already see how rich and vibrant the end effect will be.

  

 

 

Shelley began cutting glass for her Lady's On A Beach Window and she's going to add a towel or two into the mix.  The ribbon on the left side already looks like a towel if she simply adds color to the center and she'll be able to add a towel to the right side fairly easily after she grinds everything else since she's already cut apart her pattern pieces.

 

 

 

Sheri started a large Bevel Cluster Window which will measure 36 x 24.   She has only two large corner background pieces left to cut and grind after which she'll be able to tack them into position and then cut the finishing border pieces.

  

 

 

Jan switched gears this week  and began work on a long, tall Santa Face.   She's decided to forgo the round decorative circles in his hat feeling that Santa's hat never had those anyway.  Jan has this all cut and ground which means that this could very well be completed when she comes back in.

  

 

 

Martha is working on numerous Christmas Ornaments (eight of them to be exact) and spent her night cutting away and grinding as well. Who says that she doesn't have any Christmas spirit??

 

 

 

 

Wow, Susan R's Peacock Hoop is SOOOOO very close to being completed.  Everything has been attached saved for the wire work and the beads that for the Peacock's crown.  That means that we'll see this completed upon Susan's return!

  

 

Kerry is working on 6 Christmas Ornaments featuring Santa's head.  With everything cut, ground and now foiled he'll be ready to solder these up next week.

 

 

 

MiMi got two more dozen and a half egg cartons  under her belt which means that she's traced out and cut out 108 pieces of glass within 3 hours.   That's a lot of glass!  

  

 

 

With all of the missing pieces of her Nativity Scene having been filled in Ann next added a border to it and then settled down to solder her window.   She's already got the front side completed which means that she'll finish this with time to spare when she comes back, just in time for Christmas! 

 

 

Lastly, Cindy is working on two more Crosses which reside in a heart shaped frame.  Since these are so very small she has to grind out a lot of the inner curve and she did indeed do that-- only to have one fall onto the cement floor and shatter.  I guess I know what Cindy will be doing when she returns.

 

  

Remember, if you're over the line you MUST grind!!!

Paul

Bayou Salé GlassWorks