Slapton Ley (glass panel)

Slapton Ley is a large, freshwater lake in Devon with amazing wildlife which includes many rare species.  It lies right next to Start Bay, separated from it by a fragile shingle spit.

This glass panel was designed and made for someone who has a lifelong connection with the Ley.  As I've never been there, I had to make sure I got it to "feel" right!  I did a lot of internet searching, and talked about how the place looked with people who know it well.  This is the final design:



Starting from the bottom, we have the sea (Start Bay), the shingle spit, the freshwater lake with two grebes, and a sky with giant hogweed silhouetted.  Although it's possible to see rare species such as Cetti's warbler and bitterns at Slapton I didn't include them as they tend to stay hidden.

Here are two pieces of the panel ready to be fired in my kiln:



I really enjoyed making this one, starting from no knowledge and learning a lot about the Ley in the process.  And here's a close-up of the 'shingle' and 'sea' pieces:



After lots of hours spent scratching paint, two firings of 12 hours each, then cutting and soldering the lead (plus polishing!), it was done.  As I couldn't find the right pink for the sky, I went with blue - and now I prefer it.



One more for luck:



Next, I'm doing some glass paint tests to see if I can improve the firing results.  There'll be lots of little mini-glass-pictures!
Vicky xx

Painting on glass

It's called Frosterley Bazaar for a reason - and the reason is, I can't just do one thing!  Last year I began experimenting with painting on glass, firing it in a kiln at 600 degrees C and incorporating it in miniature leaded windows.  Previously, I've made stained glass with 'normal' coloured glass, but this technique brings a whole new level of detail and possibility!

One of my first experiments was a shoal of fish rushing through their underwater world, some emerging from the dark depths, some silhouetted against the light.





The process involved in this is to paint (or 'matt') the glass completely with black paint, and then using nothing more complicated than a pointy stick, to scratch the design through the paint.  It's very like using a scraperboard - mistakes can't be undone, they have to be incorporated (so, COMMIT!) and you have to start thinking in black and white, not shades of grey.



Inspired, some 20 years after the fact, by my marine biology degree, these pieces were put together into this window for a friend which incorporates a favourite headland:



I'm still sewing and knitting (and crocheting a new mad teacosy), but glass is going to predominate in 2017! I hope you like glass!  Happy new year!

Vicky xx