I made this for you so you’d see the key points and nothing else. To pause the show, move your cursor over the main slide. To re-start the show, move your cursor away again.
Watch now
Here's the full-sized design (125 cm diameter). This design looks old, because the client wants the window to look old
And see the outer border, the small pieces around the edge, which we're highlighting right now in the studio
So here's one piece of outer border. It's unfired glass - ready for its highlights, which is what we're focusing on here in today's slideshow
OK, let's get started now. The first point about highlights is, you always hold the glass firmly, so it can't move unless you want it to - see the hand on the right of your screen ...
You hold the glass firmly, because this means it won't slide, which means your highlights will look confident (not scratchy)
Second reminder is, in most cases it's best to highlight from the bridge
Again, this makes your highlights appear confident, because your hand is stable. Also, you can't accidentally bruise the unfired paint
Next reminder is, choose your highlighting tool with care - decide what shape you want to make, and find the right tool to make it with. If this means lots of testing and practicing, so be it
Here, a stick that's sharpened to a point
But other kinds of shapes are also useful, for example like the one you see here ...
This stick was originally meant for carving and modelling clay, but we use it here because it makes the kind of shape we want - it can be thick or thin, depending on its angle
Here's another highlighting tool, one we improvised ourself, and you can also do the same. Do you see what it is?
It's an old tracing brush whose hairs we've removed
Feathers are also useful ...
This is because you can carve the quill to any shape you want
Next reminder is, stencils are useful ...
They are especially useful when you have a repeating pattern and a lot of glass to prepare
You sometimes just need to use a stick again to tidy up
The stick is useful here because the stencil-and-scrub approach is often quick-and-messy
In all of this, it helps to have a plan (which is usually better than "making it up as you go along")
This is nearly ready to be fired - we'll first flick some spots of paint (not shown) then put it in the kiln with all the others ...
But this won't be a full firing - just enough to "tack-fire" the paint to the glass because ...
After the tack-firing, you see here how we now want to take the highlights even further. This is because the glass must look old by the time we've finished with it - as if the weather has destroyed a lot of paint
That's why we rub it down with sandpaper - remember, the paint is only lightly fired, so, with a bit of pressure, it's possible to wear away the tack-fired paint
Work in progress
Now a wash of paint on the back of the glass
Load the toothbrush
Flick and spray
When the paint is dry, use fingers to make more highlights
Just use gentle rubbing with clean, grease-free hands - it's an absolutely beautiful and subtle technique (lots more about it on the DVD documentaries)
And a scrub again. Remember, this is the back of the glass: we will want to stain it later on. That's why we must remove quite a lot of paint
This is getting to look as wrecked and ancient as the client wants. So now it's ready for a full-temperature firing
And, now fired, the pieces are all ready to be stained - with oil of course, not water or vinegar, because that would take too long, be too messy and also waste a huge amount of stain
Here's a sample we made earlier. You can see how the bold highlights work very well with the powerful oil-based silver stain. You'll find lots more information on the DVDs
And here you can start to get an impression of how the border area will look
That's all for this slideshow. Goodbye for now. Watch the DVD documentaries. Ask questions as you wish. And as for us - we'll soon begin the lion in the centre ...
More demonstrations here
If you’d like to see more highlighting, see here:
- Here’s the flooding.
- Here’s where David marks out where the highlights will go.
- And here’s the highlighting itself.
I hope you find these videos helpful to your work.
I have not yet done any glass painting. I have been reading your tips and tricks and getting ideas. Although I could not do the detail work done on this project (my hands are not steady enough), I found the slide-show very informative and full of tips that can be used on any project. Thank you for the instructions.
Hello Arlene,
Thanks. And yes you’re right – you can generalize or extract from a technique: the principles are there for all to see and use in many different ways. I can’t paint like David can (he does faces, I do borders and feet), but we use the same techniques – just as I hope you will here.
All the best,
Stephen
Thank you so much for this demonstration! Absolutely wonderful. Truly, a picture (or slideshow) is worth a thousand words – although I sincerely enjoy and appreciate your words of wisdom too.
Warmest regards,
John
That’s a pleasure, John. Glad it works for you. It’ll succeed for some people, and work less well for others (see Pete below). But the more we get the hang of these things, the more options we have to pick and choose from about how to make a point and (I hope) also entertain you.
Best,
Stephen
I love the calligraphic effect of the chisel pointed stick. And I have two questions … In photo #31, you mention having to remove a fair amount of paint before staining: is it possible to stain and fire before the antiquing of the back, or will the paint and stain “fight” chemically? And can you give an approximate temperature for the tack-firing?
Cheers,
Don
Don, hello!
I’m at home right now, and it’s coming up to Nell’s bed-time, so I’ll write back tomorrow with the full answers to your very helpful questions.
All the best,
Stephen
Hi again Don,
You ask if it’s possible to stain and fire before the antiquing of the back. The answer is, yes. But, having done a stain firing (about 560 c. / 1040 f.), it might not be a good idea to do a full paint firing (about 665 c / 1200 f.) for the undercoat and spots. This is because the higher temperature might re-activate the stain and bring about results you do not want. (On the other hand of course, you might discover something marvellous. If you do, please share!)
You also ask about tack-firing. Let me take a step back and be clear about why we chose to tack-fire. The reason is, we needed to scratch through and distress a flooded area of paint. If we tried to rub the flooding without tack-firing, holes would appear, and the paint would gather in a way we didn’t want.
As for the exact schedule, this depends a little on the paint. For the flooding, we used Violet of Iron made by Reusche. It’s a beautiful purple-red when you look at it on the palette, and it fires to a warm black-red. And one thing about Violet of Iron we’ve found, is that it’s fine with a slightly lower temperature to fire it so it’s glossy. I say again, this is what we’ve found, and maybe this is just for the kind of glass we use (which is hand-made and therefore softer than commercial glass). So a glossy firing would be about 640 c / 1180 f, and a tack-firing (for us) was 525 c / 980 f. We didn’t soak or anything fancy. Just up in two hours, then down at its own rate.
There are many uses for tack-firing. Here, it allowed us to make flooded paint looked wrecked and old (because that’s what we had to do). Of course you can also use tack-firing to give a degree of stability to work-in-progress without fixing it for all time. Sometimes that is very useful. So tack-firing is just another resource the glass painter can consider.
I hope this helps.
All the best,
Stephen
I absolutely love the close-up shots in this slideshow! Before I discovered glass in all its many forms, I worked as a photographer (still do but part-time). I know from experience how time-consuming these slideshows are to photograph and put together, but nothing equals them for getting the point across. The images are a bit larger on my computer than the usual slideshow, and sharp enough that I can see how precisely the highlights are done. I had not considered the difference in expression between a “strong, confident highlight” vs a sketchy one. Being able to pause and study the image is another great bonus. You’ve certainly outdone yourself this time, Stephen. Thank you! Thank you!
It’s a pleasure. And thank you so much for your earlier message – I want to write back properly (not briefly), and I will do that soon. It is very good on our side to have real correspondence with you and others because that’s the thing which is absolutely genuine.
All the best,
Stephen
Thank you very much for the tutorial! A perfect and clear example-technique of creating something excellent!
It’s our pleasure, my esteemed Russian colleague!
Best,
Stephen
Very thorough presentation, thank you! The techniques used do make each glass piece appear old, with abrasions and age spots, etc. I do have a question as to the overall look of the window appearing old: had you considered that the directional smearing or rubbing on each piece might be going against the grain, so to speak, of the piece next to it when all is put together? I can imagine that areas which seem to be rubbed one way and then an other might simulate an old window that had been cleaned over the ages. I can also imagine planning the direction of smearing, rubbing, etc. on each piece so that the pattern of aging continues in that direction, into the abutting piece, resulting in an entire window that looks like it was weathered in the same locations. Your slide show makes me understand and appreciate how important it is to have a plan for creating something that must appear irregular. Wow.
Hello Barbara,
You make a good point with your question: thank you. And yes we’ll assemble the whole window on a glass easel before putting it on the bench for leading up. And that’s the point when we’ll see if there are pieces which we want to move around to create a natural-looking effect.
Next point is, there are other things we do to age the pieces, in particular to darken them, which means the differences which are visible right now will become less so once we’ve taken the process a stage further. (I didn’t include these techniques in this slideshow, because it would have taken us well away from highlighting. So I’ll leave that for another day …)
And the last point is, this panel is way up high, suspended flat beneath a window in a ceiling. This means the distance will further negate the “against the grain” effect you ask about.
Like I said: your point is spot on.
All the best,
Stephen
Thank you for your perspective. Ah, there is always more to do! I look forward to seeing next steps.
I am on dial up at my studio – I’m frugal – and for some reason cannot see the slideshow that is getting such great reviews. I will consult my ISP. Look forward to seeing it!
Hi Steve,
If you can’t see the slide show, yes, this could be caused by the fact you’re on a dial-up connection (because it will take time for all the slides to load).
Or it could be down to your internet browser. That maybe the quickest thing to check … can you try another browser i.e. Mozilla, Internet Explorer, Safari etc.?
Please let me know how you get on with this.
Thanks!
Stephen
Excellent presentation. The close-ups were highly useful. My only displeasure was that I ended up with a button stuck in the middle of the screen, which concealed things somewhat. That may be due more to my lack of technical experience with slide shows.
I, too, am curious as to how low of a tack-fire you are doing, so that the paint scrubs off in that fashion. My first thought was, why not simply distress prior to firing, but then, you wouldn’t be leaving any “ghost” pigment behind, which would be indicative of gradual loss of paint on an actual old piece. Quite ingenious. Thanks much for adding to my mental tool kit!
Hi Terry,
Thanks for your comment. About the button stuck in the middle of the screen … this button should fade when you move your cursor off the main slide. It should then re-appear when you move your cursor into the main slide. But please tell me if things happen differently. I’m still testing this software to see if it’s a good way of showing you and our other colleagues useful things.
Best,
Stephen
P.S. I can see from your question (and also from Don’s) that I can add more details tomorrow. I’m happy about that because your questions are important to us so that David and I can take our direction from the kinds of things which are useful to you.
Stephen:
Thanks for the clues. Yes, it went much better after that.
I have to tell you that this particular line of comments has been highly enlightening. The tidbits on fiber paper vs. whiting and about tack-firing were priceless.
It was also good to hear about Violet of Iron, which I have no experience with. I think most painters tend to become stuck in a rut palette-wise, and we need to know that we have other viable options out there. Do keep us posted on your potential adventure. It sounds like a toss-up between Belfast and Baghdad.
Terry
Hi Terry,
I’m glad the “viewing experience” is now more harmonious. Please always say whenever something doesn’t (seem to) work, because that’s the only way we can fix or change things.
Yes, Violet of Iron is a beautiful tracing paint: very smooth and creamy, and (like I mentioned elsewhere) it also fires at a slightly lower temperature, which is sometimes useful, especially when one is combining techniques or media. Another thing about Violet of Iron is this: when it’s fired, and you look at in in reflected light, it takes on a reddish sheen; yet when you look at it against transmitted light, it’s black (to all intents and purposes). This paint, or one with identical effects in this regard, was used in a lot of Victorian stained glass, so it’s extremely useful to restorers.
All the best,
Stephen
P.S. Belfast, Baghdad, Stanton Lacy …
Hi Stephen and David. I’ve been diligently watching your videos for over a year-and-a-half now and have learned a huge amount. They are superlative.
I have to say, with regret, that the slide show wasn’t as compelling or seemingly informative. Not sure why. As commented above, the ‘pause’ button in the middle of the screen is distracting, as is the need to actively roll the cursor off-screen to get rid of it. Maybe it’s a symptom of the TV age? The slides are just not as involving. You don’t feel like you are ‘there’.
Re: mailing lists … your e-mails are some of the very, very few that I rejoice in receiving. Don’t hold back!
Pete
Hi Pete,
Thanks for your review and honest impression. We’ll consider things in the round and see what works best. As I see you know, always with us – honesty is much appreciated, whatever the opinion. The whole point is to make things interesting and to demonstrate beguiling techniques which then guide people to do things better for themselves. So it’s good to know what works for you and why.
Best,
Stephen
Dear Stephen,
THANK YOU, you’ve made my day.
You are doing such a lot for all glass workers who happen to discover your newsletters … and now I’d like to do something in return.
You mention a 7-year old daughter – are there any other youngsters in your family?
This is the reason why I ask: I am starting on another session of teddy-bear making next week. I’d like to make a teddy- bear for your 7-year old Nell, but I would hate to leave out any other small children who would like a teddy bear.
And what about David?
The bears I make are not very big ones. Just the kind of things my own children liked to play with.
Kind regards,
Ellen
Dear Ellen,
Well, that’s my day made: Nell would absolutely love a teddy-bear made by you, thank you! And I know David has a grand-daughter who would love one too. That’s so kind.
I hope all’s going well for you, and also for your forthcoming exhibition.
All the best,
Stephen
Absolutely fascinating! When you paint on the backside of the glass, what sort of kiln shelf paper do you use to protect the front side? I think you said you use vermiculite for both sides, but I’m not sure how much to use. Should I put kiln shelf paper underneath the vermiculite?
Hi Catharine,
Yes, this time we used fiber paper (- which reminds me of a tip I must share about how to prolong its life and keep it perfectly smooth over many firings …).
So, this time, no kiln trays filled with compacted whiting (calcium carbonate): just fiber paper on its own.
Reusche glass paint doesn’t stick to it (this is when the top is fired face-down because the underside, with oil-based silver stain must be fired face-up).
But (in our experience) many enamels would stick … meaning, you must test things for yourself before attempting to fire enamels face-down on any surface.
I hope this helps.
Best,
Stephen
Thank you for the wonderful, detailed coverage of highlighting. I found the slides very easy to pause and study the results of each step you described. Do you have a particular wood to shape for scrapers and scrubs? Is trusty old pine good or does it deform too quickly. Once again, thank you.
Hello Bill!
We try most things. I certainly got suspicious glances in the local knitting shop when I bounced in and bought a handful of needles (I just got one of each, and they thought this kind of weird …).
And David’s wife is an oil painter, so we’re forever “borrowing” her old brushes.
Most of my tracing brushes I carve and sharpen at one end because that way I can use one tool for two purposes.
One of the best tools I ever found was in a London night-club. My companion was drinking those cocktails where the fruit comes piled high on sticks. Well, she got through five drinks. And those five sticks have proved invaluable. To this day I’ve never had to sharpen a single one. I don’t know what kind of what it is, but maybe this doesn’t matter because nor do I know what was in those cocktails …
All the best,
Stephen
Yet again another truly wonderful video, each one fills me with inspiration and desire to start painting. I hope we get the chance to meet soon and experience first hand all these wonderful techniques
I’ll be in touch soon, Mark!
As usual, your presentation is useful and understandable. I’ve benefited from all of your DVDs (I think I have them all now). Thanks for the time you put into this forum. And take care!
It’s a pleasure, and I’m glad you and Cheri like the things you find here!
Best,
Stephen
Hello Stephen,
It’s always nice to get your emails – this is because when reading them they make me want to try the things you covered in your post. You said in the final slide; that we can watch the DVD, so is there a DVD for this project? And how can I get it?
Also if you can give us more information about the tack-firing, such a schedule or a temperature and hold time? Also you said something about a powerful stain, so is there a certain brand for a strong stain or is it the mix of the stain that makes it strong or weak?
All the best from Kuwait,
Hassan
Hi Hassan,
It’s great that what you see encourages you to try things for yourself – I’m happy about that. You ask about the DVD – I meant the two documentary DVDs we released last year, because these show a huge lot more about highlighting with your hands and silver staining with oil (not water or vinegar).
But I will definitely film the lion when we paint it – that’s too good and useful for all of us to miss.
You ask about tack-firing, and I’ll reply to Don’s comment to answer it (because that’s where it was first raised). Here’s a link about tack-firing.
You also ask about a “powerful” stain, which is an excellent question and a huge topic. Yes, some stains are more “powerful” than others, e.g. amber stains are stronger than lemon stains. More than this, however, we find that, using oil (not water or vinegar) it’s far easier to make a particular stain stronger (or weaker) within its natural dimension.
I suspect this is because the oil binds the ingredients together in a sticky and less volatile way (whereas water and vinegar evaporate so quickly, one’s results are uneven and unpredictable).
That said, you can also get strong brands. Ken Leap’s book on silver stain is a magnificent resource here – Ken has done an incredible job of photographing hundreds of different tests. This doesn’t mean we don’t have to test things for ourselves; but it does mean you always have a good idea of where to start.
I hope you and yours are keeping well.
All the best,
Stephen
Hi Stephen and David,
I liked this new way of showing us tips and ideas and the possibility to stop and observe details. A very useful tool!
By the way, I would like to know more about fiber paper and its uses.
All the best,
Fábio
Hello to you, Fábio, in Brazil!
Right. Fiber paper. Mainly we use custom-made kiln-trays that we pack with whiting (calcium carbonate), because glass and most kinds of glass paint don’t stick to whiting when fired in a kiln. Also, the underside of the glass (resting on the whiting) comes out very smooth.
The kiln-trays are a simple way to load a kiln – but they don’t always make the most economical use of the available space: without the trays, it would be possible to fit more. And that’s why we sometimes don’t use trays but use fiber paper instead. It comes in sheets or rolls which we cut to fit the whole space in the kiln.
Now, if we had used the trays here, we couldn’t have fired all the pieces in a single firing. That’s why we used the paper here.
So, fiber paper is good and useful in a situation like the one we faced here.
But it wouldn’t be my first choice, in part because it doesn’t always leave as smooth an underside as whiting. But also because my experience is, it releases fumes (even when you’ve done an “emty” firing to “fire off” the fumes), and I suspect these fumes can sometimes interfere with sensitive materials such as silver stains and maybe enamels too. This means I would not want to use fiber paper to fire silver stain for a restoration project, where we had to achieve a very particular result. In such a situation, I’d always use whiting, no matter how uneconomical the firing: whiting’s very simplicity is what guarantees the predictability of the result.
I hope this helps, and also that you’re keeping well, happy and busy.
Best,
Stephen
Hello Stephen,
Thank you for your response!
And yes, I’m well, with health and busy. Naturally what, I’m busy with “small” projects in comparison with your next project for 2013 what, if I understood well, is going to demand a body guard… I’m anxious to know more details of this story that you will tell us.
Well, regard the fiber paper, it seems to me a useful tool, depending on the case. Speaking about this … You said that sometimes, depending the kind of glass paint, the underside of the glass comes out very smooth. I generally use calcium carbonate, but I’m not satisfied by the results after firing, specially when I did painting on underside of the glass. The paint that kept in contact with the calcium carbonate, acquires (dull) wrinkled appearance after firing. (Or something like that…I don’t know the right word to express the idea) How can I improve that? I use the Reusche paint.
By way can I consider plaster as calcium carbonate? Or could we have here problems with other minerals contamination?
Thank you.
All the best,
Fábio
Hello Fábio,
Yes, our underside is a little bit rough – whereas the side above is absolutely smooth. But I wouldn’t call it dull or wrinkled. Maybe we mean the same thing, maybe we don’t. But – unless we go and replicate the float glass procedure, with molten tin … – I imagine there must always be some difference to the respective difference on top and underside: the top is blasted by the direct heat of the kiln, whereas the underside is resting on compressed powder. The only thing I can say is to compress the whiting until it’s as firm and smooth as you can make it. But I am sure you know that already!
Best,
Stephen
Hello Stephen. Thanks for replying by email to my previous questions. Because your video clips, DVDs, and tips are so good, I have decided to do this on my own without going to any classes. So far so good. Just a bit of trouble with that perfect undercoat. Tends to be a little streaky because the the hairs on the hake tend to separate a bit. I suppose its too dry? It’s OK when its nice and moist, but then its no good for the under coat …
Thanks!
Farook
Hi Farook,
Thanks for your comments. You mention undercoats and raise a good point: when the paint is dry and good for undercoats, it also seems to be too dry for the brush (so the hairs separate and split). And (on the other hand) when the paint is wet enough to hold the brush together, it’s too wet to be much use for undercoats.
That’s an excellent point: thank you!
Now what I’ll do with David is film how to load and shape the brush. We’ll do this in the next two weeks or so. I’m sure this’ll help.
All the best,
Stephen
P.S. Yes, that’ll be in two weeks or so (we’ve already got a huge lot planned for this year so it’s a tight schedule). In the meantime, for anyone who missed it, here are some clips about undercoating in general. Watch them here.
Greetings Stephen!
The slide show was excellent and high tech. Sorry you’re going through an anxious time. Let me know if I can do anything. My prayers are with you and David and your families.
John
Hello John,
Thanks for your message and thoughts. Yes, our regular newsletter readers (like you) will know from something I wrote how we’ve a project on the horizon which is likely to prove so controversial it might inspire the dogmatists of this world to wrathful actions. If this happens, it is something we will face up to and face down – because it is too important a project for us to be deterred by bigotry and bullying.
Best,
Stephen
Bonjour Stephen,
Je tenais à vous remercier pour vos DVD, vidéos et mails qui sont pour moi une mine d’informations. Je fais actuellement des vitraux pour une ancienne chapelle et j’utilise quotidiennement vos conseils et trucs. Mon seul regret est la barrière de la langue (je ne parle pas anglais) et les logiciels de traduction donnent parfois des phrases assez incompréhensibles.
Encore une fois merci de faire partager votre savoir, je n’ai jamais trouvé aucun livre traitant de la peinture sur verre comme vous le faîtes vous-même.
Très sincères salutations.
NC.NOIRJEAN
Hello Nathalie,
Thank you for your kind message. I understand French well enough to read a lot without a dictionary. (I also respect you so much I will not risk damaging your brain by writing it.) So I am glad you find this information interesting, and I am glad you also use it – that is wonderful, absolutely wonderful. And whenever you have a question or an idea to talk about, please always write.
I wish you all the best with your continuing work,
Stephen
Hi Stephen,
Loved the latest demo, as usual! I just had a quick question regarding the ‘tack firing’. Why? I mean why fire before removal of some of the paint for the aged look? Would it not have worked the same if you had lightly scrubbed some of the areas pre-firing? If the answer is obvious, sorry!
Thanks, and keep up the good work!
Steve ‘the student!’
Hi Steve,
Not obvious at all. Others wondered the same thing. It’s this – flooded paint won’t rub off evenly. I mean, flooded paint that’s not been tack-fired. Instead, this’ll happen: it’ll rub off in ugly patches, precisely because it’s thick. So, to stop that happening, we tack-fired it: then we could abrade and rub it off in a more controlled and deliberate way.
Another point: it’s also possible to wet the sand-paper, then rub the tack-fired flooded paint, and this causes fewer scratches – it gives a smoother effect.
I hope this helps.
Best,
Stephen
So much interest and pleasure, as always.
Thank you!
Maf
Hello!
Thanks as always for everything! Wanted to ask a quick Q about the stenciling in the above slideshow … photos 16 and 17
Would you mind revealing how on earth one prevents the stencil itself from rubbing off the painted work in the areas you’re NOT removing? Are you simply using enough gum Arabic that the unfired paint is strong enough to endure your hand pressing a stencil down upon it? Thanks in advance, and your works are beautiful indeed!
Zach
Zach, yes, it is the gum Arabic in the glass paint which, when dry, gives the unfired paint its strength, so that it isn’t undesirably bruised when we hold the stencil to it. In fairness, I must also say that this border and the whole window are meant to look old. So we can afford to be a little bit rough and careless.
I want to renew my subscription, thank you.
Adela Segura
(Guatemala)
Hi Adela,
New letters and posts coming soon … just got a ridiculous amount of work in the studio right now!
Best,
Stephen
Hi Stephen,
I was on vacations, I visited East Europe, and I love to see all the nice stained glass in the churches,
that make me think that I need to work hard and paint as good as you, I enjoy every one of your posts.
regards, Adela. Guatemala.
Hello Stephen,
I was looking for any updates, and I found this Slideshow about the highlights. Nice work and useful tips about the issue. Yes the highlights can be tricky sometimes but; like you and David always said; always start little and then cary on and do more.
Thanks for sharing the information.
All the best to every one
Hassan
Incredible! That was a very good read. In conclusion, someone who actually thinks and understands what they are blogging about. Quite difficult to find of late, especially on the web! I have bookmarked your web blog and will make sure to keep coming back here if this is how you always write. Thank you, keep it up!
Hi! Thank you so much for sharing these images online. I am learning a lot, and although I have not yet put much of your techniques into practice, I am looking forward to giving them a try when I find the right design. One question, when you flicked the paint on with the toothbrush, you say ‘Flick and Spray’ – did you spray with water to get that lovely effect on the back? Thanks again.
Gaynor
Hi Gaynor,
What it is, is: you load the toothbrush with sloppy glass paint (not thick paint, not water), then spray. Then let it dry. Then rub gently.
Best,
Stephen
P.S. Best to practise first on a spare bit of glass with an undercoat already on it and nicely dried.
Please know how much I appreciate your approach to teaching the art of glass painting. I’d love to be a “fly on the wall” at your studio, but me being in California across a continent and the “pond”, and with you in England makes that difficult. I started stained glass in 1985 and have finished many stained-glass projects for private and commercial clients. My work consists of multi-level, multi-layered, sandblasted, and just about anything I can think of to make my work different from others. I approach stained glass with the same mindset as if I am using glass as a medium instead of oil paint. However, in my current project, for my first time, I’m including glass painted faces and skin (I’d love to share some “work in progress” pictures with you [don’t know how]). The window will be four feet in height, and eight foot in length. I appreciate the feeling I get from you of not being spoken to as a complete amateur.