The final main panels of the stained glass (sorry for the bad stitching job. This is from the top looking down. Once it is installed I should be able to get a better picture.)

Left panel of the boy reading.

boy

Here are a few other things I learned along the way:

5: Finger cuts. It’s inevitable. I learned to measure success (at how well I handle glass and tools) by the number of cuts. No more than 2 cuts per session until the last two sessions when there were none.

2: Blisters. I thought my fingers were invincible and didn’t wear protection. Blisters remind me that I’m mere mortal. And that duct tape solves all problems.

0: Eye injury. Thank goodness! I did get glass dust in my eyes during grinding once and learned my lesson to always wear safety glasses. Very important.

A ton: Patience. I can swim in my own patience. Except when I didn’t, I took a hammer and smash a bunch of discarded glasses. It’s cool cause I can use the smashed pieces for a mosaic project later. Always thinking ahead…

30 hours: Time. Did I mention a lot of patience for self? oh right, see above.

I am so, SO grateful for the time and effort Howard took to teach me. I have much to learn by doing, and only hope to pass on his teachings by documenting it here. Thank you Howard!

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Below is the original design in photoshop. The original pencil sketch can be found here. All 5 panels will be 100″ x 16″

11x17-small