Homage to Baltimore Album Quilts, Summer

Here's a picture of the Summer Baltimore Album. It's warmer and livelier in real life as the red border really glows. In the closeup you can see the swirls in the clear glass background as well as lines in the leaves and the depth to the roses.

Getting Ready for the next show

So it's off to Ballston Arts Show in Ballston Virginai again this Saturday. I did well enough there last time to make the trip worthwhile though I'm seriously considering Thurmont too. Sigh, so many shows , so little time.
Di is making a few new pieces, some more Flying Geese, a new Appalachian Star and in a departure for us, a piece with bevels. I think she is making a convertible on a road, which would be absolutely amazing!
Just finished a new Homage to Baltimore, see the blog from March to see the earlier version. I partially sunk the roses so that they are not as far forward from the design plain. I also omitted the yellow dots. I'm not sure that was an improvement, so I may return them to the design in future. However, the next project is to make a companion piece with a cornucopia . I was originally going to make 3 in this series, but Di suggested I make 4- one for each season. I like the idea so the one here is Summer, with roses in full bloom. The next will be Autumn, with a full cornucopia and fruit, possibly some wheat or corn. Thoughts for winter are easy: Holly leaves and berries , maybe a topiary sort of thing . It's Spring that is causing problems. Since I'm limited to a palate of gold, mid to dark greens and scarlet, with maybe a few touches of another color, I'm finding any thing other than tulips to be a tough design. Most Spring flowers are either clear yellow or purple . I'm sure I'll come up with something

The Bride's Basket Inspired Panel

This as yet unframed piece was inspired by an old quilt patch called Bride's Basket. It's meant to represent a flower and leaves in a small footed basket. I've made some changes to the pattern. Mostly the changes are in using parallelograms or trapezoids for the flower shapes instead of using right triangles as you do in fabric. In fabric the seam line between two same-color triangles visually disappears. Cutting and stitching 2 right triangles into squares is easier than stitching a trapezoid into another piece. You get the dreaded Y shaped seam.

In stained glass though, a Y shaped seam is as easy to insert as a right angle. However, each "seam line" really shows up. So although the final visual effect is the same in a quilters version and ours, we really do have to redraft the quilt patterns for glass use.

Pink Ribbons and Heart Panels

Hope Floats, Hearts Tilt

This week saw a few improvements in technique, some exercises in color choice and a simple repair job.

I did not want to do a pink ribbon. Or a yellow one. Or any other color for that matter. But during a visit to my favorite glass shop, I found this ribbon bevel on sale. Now I've never used bevels before. I've seen too many just gorgeous vestibule and dining room doors in Victorian mansions to attempt a beveled glass anything. I'm intimidated. But at some point , you have to hunker down and do the deed. So this is what I came up with. It's a simple design but a difficult cut. I cut the background out of one piece of pink and yellow streaky stained glass so the ribbon would appear to float in the center. I purposely wrapped the ribbon in thicker foil than the break lines in the pink glass as I wanted the break lines to visually disappear.

I also made another heart in a square panel. This red streaky heart is in a pale champagne background with an olive green border. Again , it's a different color combo than I usually work in . I'm trying to work in Fall hues to expand my color range.

Finally, I repaired a unfinished Bride's Basket panel that was sitting on the table for too long, I repaired the bottom triangle so the that basket sits on glass, not on air.

New Studio Space

I've spent the last week fixing the glass studio since I still did not have a place for the glass band saw. I've a soldering stations/layout place, a cutting area and a staging table in between to hold all the stuff that magically gathers on the 2 other tables if I'm not careful.
All that's left to do is to put up some magnetic strips t hold ideas, patterns and other papers and I'm ready to get cracking again!

Tagged- I'm it

I've been tagged, wich means I have to reveal 6 things abouat myself and then tag 6 others. It's a silly but fun way to learn about other bloggers.
Here goes
1) I inherited 19 chickens and a rabbit last year.
2) Living near DC means always having the company of relatives visiting the capital.
3) I can wriggle my little toes independently of the others. Try it, it's not easy.
4) Peanut butter and banana sandsiches are great. Peanut butter and pickle takes some getting used to.
5)I'm afraid of horses, but don't let them know that.
6)Salt makes melons taste better.

Photos of Ballston Show

It's a bit small and hard to see, but here's a photo of the Ballston Arts Show we were at last Saturday. The stained glass looked wonderful in the light. You can see the Appalachian Star on the left and some of the Interlocked Squares in the center.

Back From Ballston Show in Virginia

Phew! A great show! I was at the Ballston Arts and Crafts Show today and had a great time. I sold a yellow Arkansas Star, a round piece with 12 different yeloowish triangles surrounding a rich brown center and our own Goose Wave pattern in rainbow colors. Surprisingly, I didn't sell any of the smaller hearts and Tumbling blocks that are our big sellers. Different audience I guess.
I also sold a number of the fish ACEO's. Since the show site is near the National Science Foundation and the Nature Conservancy, I guess the locals are into natural themes.
More later including photos when I have more time.
I have to restock and make new pieces for the next show!

Picture of New Trial Piece Stained Glass

As promised, a mock up of the trial panel I'm working on. Just some English muffle for the border, some swirled pieces for the background, and a red heart in the middle. I'm not sure it is solid looking enough; a stained glass piece needs some presence and I'm not sure this has it. I'm using odd scraps I have around so I've only a bit invested. Still, I find that working out a design in paper is useful, but at some point, you have to reach for the cutter.

I'm reconsidering the heart- it's not right. This may need a different shape heart, a completely different piece in the center- I'm not sure what.