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Tag Archives: stained glass
Jenny and I have been taking the time to reflect on what we’ve achieved recently – updates from Vitreus Art
Well – it’s high time we eased in to 2021!
Jenny and I have been taking the time to reflect on what we’ve achieved recently and a lot of that is thanks to you – so thanks for your ongoing support!
And thanks also if you nominated a pandemic-hero for a free glass art workshop in recognition of what they’ve done for others recently.
We had loads of really deserving nominations – some that almost made our eyes a little moist – although I still say that was just dust in the room in my case!
We asked our arty chums Clare and Jo to make the final impartial judgement and we’ve now contacted the winners with an invitation to choose their workshops.
We’ve also taken some time to develop new workshops.
There’ll be a great new glass fusing workshop (from me, Mike, this time) next newsletter – we’re just finalising the format and costings right now.
It’s rather different from the other fusing workshops you already know about so watch this space.
It’ll be fun, informative, and will definitely appeal to gardeners and lovers of 3d projects.
New soldering and glass cutting master-classes on website now…
Following some great suggestions from past students, two new ‘masterclass’ workshops have just gone live – for anyone who’s already working in glass and wants to develop their skills further.
We’ve run similar bespoke sessions on request so it seems like the time to offer these more formally.
First off is the new Copper Foil Soldering masterclass.
Want to get your bead soldering smoother, learn how to address common soldering challenges when working on your own, and learn more about taking care of your soldering iron? Want to discover how to achieve a smooth edge bead to strengthen your foil?
Want to experiment with patinas and learn how to make your end result smooth and professional-looking?
This masterclass in soldering is for you!
Or maybe you’d like to develop your glass cutting skills?
This session is great for both stained glasses and glass fusers.
You’ll work on exercises designed to take your glass scoring and breaking to the next level, under our close guidance. We’ll show you how to successfully break tricky shapes and help you understand how glass behaves when breaking so you can continue to learn on your own.
We’ll also cover the merits of the different cutting and breaking tools you may be tempted to purchase in our usual unbiased way, and help you understand how better workshop layout can help you cut your glass better!
You’ll find lots of info on the website pages for each session – follow the links below.
https://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/classes/stained-glass-classes-glass-cutting-workshop.html
https://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/classes/stained-glass-classes-soldering-workshop.html
Workshop dates up to July now online…
As none of us can be quite sure yet when it will be safe to resume workshops, we’ve added new dates for our most popular classes up until July.
Fancy getting a bit crafty but not sure if it’s a good time to book?
Have a look at the workshops we’ve got from April onwards and sign up in confidence.
https://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/classes/index.html
We like to think our no-quibble guarantee is the inspiration behind all the travel companies’ offers we’ve been bombarded with this month!
Put simply, if it’s necessary to change a date, or re-schedule, or you need to cancel because of illness or local restrictions, or any other Covid-related reason, we’ll find future dates for your workshop as often as needed, and make every effort to offer dates that are easy for you to make.
After 2 re-schedules we’ll also offer either an open-ended credit note worth 120% of the value of the workshop you’ve paid for, or a full refund as well as further dates.
If you’re unwell, or have to shield, or need to change a date for any other reason, we’ll find a way to sort things out to your reassurance.
There are new dates for all our regular workshops in glass, silver PMC jewellery, silk painting, painting and printing with Clare Tebboth, art courses with Emily Brady, and our stained glass evening courses with Vitreus Art too.
This page has links to all the courses and workshops with new dates this year.
https://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/classes/index.html
Mini tutorials – what would you like to see?
Following on from the soldering and glass cutting master-classes we’ve just set up, we’d like to have a go at making some helpful videos for our lovely students while we’re in lockdown.
We’re popping over to the studio next week to record some little video tutorials.
What would you like to see?
For example, one of the videos we’ve been asked to make will show how to torch fire PMC silver. We know some new PMC jewellery makers find this tricky when starting out, and there’s always the risk of melting the clay and wasting it.
Maybe there’s an aspect of stained glass or glass fusing you’d like some guidance on?
Drop us a line and let us know. If it’s possible to do a little video to help you, we’ll give it a go!
New art online and available to buy:
Since we closed at Christmas we’ve been enjoying photographing lots of the new work we received from our lovely local artists, and adding it to our website.
There’s so much fantastic creativity around it would be a shame not to share it with you!
You’ll find the latest work from all the artists below now online and ready for you to view and purchase.
And of course, any purchases made online are automatically covered by distance selling regulations (although these are due to change soon thanks to Brexit). If you change your mind you can cancel your order within 14 days, and if you’re not happy with what we deliver or ship to you, you can return it to us, as long as you notify us within 14 days.
We know it’s sometimes difficult to imagine how a piece of art will look in your room.
In other times we’ve always offered to bring a piece to you to ‘road test’ at home.
As we can’t do that currently, we’ll happily create a mock-up of your room with a chosen artwork on the wall, scaled approximately (as best we can), using a photo of the room you take and send to us. It’s good fun – get in touch to try this service!
So here are the artists who’ve brought us new work recently or whose online galleries have been updated this month, and links to where you can see more – just click the pics. Enjoy!
Julie Edmunds – contemporary mosaics
Robin Souter– oil paintings
Marlene Snee– watercolour paintings
Richard Ballantyne – quirky bird and animal ceramic sculptures
Penny German– prints and oil paintings
Lou Thomas – oil, pastel and acrylic paintings
Kirsteen Holuj – ceramics
Juliet Brown (Julissimo Jewellery) – silver jewellery from cutlery and semi-precious stones
We’ve also updated the galleries online for these wonderful artists:
Clare Tebboth – oil, watercolour and acrylic paintings
Niki Thomas – oil, watercolour and acrylic paintings
Hilary Audus – bird and animal ceramic sculptures
Ken Flegg – fused glass sculptures & bowls
Diane Griffin – ceramic scroll vases
Roger Loxton – Fused Glass
Jane Warwick – pen, ink and mixed-media paintings and prints
Sam Burke – Fused Glass
We’ll be adding and updating more from our other artists in the coming weeks too.
And there’re also new fused glass pieces from Jenny to look at here too.
https://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/stained-glass-art.html
We’ll be cracking on and making more pieces, some large, some small soon – we’ve got some commissions to finish, further new workshops to develop, and some re-organising and re-hanging in the gallery all on the to-do list.
And now – one more question for you if we may?
We’re contemplating running a Beginners Glass Fusing evening course over the summer.
The idea would be to experience lots of different fusing techniques and materials, one project per week (or over two weeks possibly), building up to a body of work that explores a number of the key glass fusing techniques, and giving you a good introduction to what’s possible with fused glass.
Alternatively, where a student has already done some fusing already, they could work on a more complex or larger project over the course. There would be full tuition throughout, and hand-outs to keep.
We’d love to hear your ideas or suggestions. – just email if you’d like to send your feedback!
Contact details are here:
https://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/contact-us.html
Well – it’s time to say – stay safe and well and we hope we can all get back to being creative in friendly groups soon.
Best wishes
Mike & Jenny
Nominate a hero to receive a free glass workshop with Vitreus Art
Well, as 2021 approaches, we’d like to say thanks once again for your support.
We’d also like to say we hope 2021 offers some glimmer of easier times for all of us.
As this is our last email of the year, there are just a few pieces of news, starting with our opening and closing times.
We re-open for visitors on January 7th, subject to any new restrictions from the government. We’re open from 10am to 5pm weekdays and Saturdays, from 11 to 4.30pm on Sundays and closed on Mondays in January.
Nominate a hero to receive a free glass workshop with Vitreus Art
A reminder from last time – we’d like you to nominate just one person you know who you think has gone ‘above and beyond’ during the time of the pandemic who would appreciate a free craft workshop next year.
Please email us at hello@vitreus-art.co.uk telling us what they have done.
The competition will run until close of business Christmas Eve (16.30Hrs); nominations received after this time will not be included (sorry).
Mike and I will make a short list and then the final 2 winners will be chosen by 2 independent judges
.
The winners will be offered their choice of any of the beginners glass workshops run here at Vitreus Art for free, with the workshop being taken between February and April 2021.
We will announce the winners in the mid-January newsletter.
So once you have finished reading this one newsletter please get your thinking caps on!
Gift Vouchers – last date for emailing
We’re getting a great response to the new design for our vouchers.
Why not give the gift that shows you have great taste?
Vouchers can be printed here in the gallery right up until we close on Christmas eve at about 4.30pm, or can be emailed as a PDF you can print at home any time.
Vouchers can be purchased for a value, for a specific workshop, or for a special project by arrangement with us.
Workshop vouchers can be purchased directly from the website page for the workshop you’re looking at; or vouchers for values from £25 to £100 can be found here:
https://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/voucher.html
Next, we’d like to celebrate some of the new art just arrived.
You’ll find updated online galleries for Richard Ballantyne, Lesley Passey, Tina Ashton, Marlene Snee, Penny German, Graham Lester, Julissimo Jewellery, Clare Tebboth, Niki Thomas, and Jane’s Inky Arts on the VA website, and a whole host of new work on show at the gallery.
We’re steadily adding more new work to the website too.
And thanks to Lesley and Richard for being the latest artists to being brand new work in. As you can see, Richard’s quirky style is still in evidence with his Angry Battery Hens and Raku Pig series , and Lesley’s new, contemporary depictions of cities, skies and woodlands are just as captivating as ever.
And now, before wrapping up for this last newsletter of the year, here’s a special offer for you if you’re thinking of joining us for a workshop in 2021.
Please note – we haven’t said anything about ‘new year, new me’!
The offer is this:
If you book any of our beginners workshops in stained glass or fused glass, or Precious Metal Clay or Silk Painting, you can bring a friend for half-price!
This offer applies to workshops due to be held between 1st April and 30th June, and the offer closes on 15th January at 6pm.
The way it will work is:
- Decide which workshop and which day you’d like to attend
- Check with your potential second attendee
- Book your own place and then email us at hello@vitreus-art.co.uk to request an invoice for the half-price second place.
- We’ll confirm your second booking when payment is received.
- Please note – if it’s necessary to issue a refund or a credit note, this will be for the class fees paid.
- Our usual cancellation terms apply – these can be found via the link on every workshop web page.
- As all our full-day classes are limited to 4 attendees, please make sure there are enough places showing as available on our website before booking if you’d like to book for a friend.
Finally, many thanks to the many folks who attended our charity glass upcycling workshops this year. We’re just about to send off your donations to Myaware, and there’ll be some more money to send to Macmillan too, thanks to your generosity.
This year we made mini ‘Christmas wreaths’ from offcuts of glass.
Photos chosen purely on the basis of which could be cropped to fit the format of the newsletter – there are more over on our Facebook page!
If you have an idea of a mini-workshop you’d like to try next year that we could run for charity, we’d like to know your ideas!
Well – it’s time to say stay safe, and we hope you can enjoy some down time or family time when Christmas finally arrives!
Thank-you for your support this year – Jenny and I really do appreciate it.
Best wishes for 2021,
Mike & Jenny
P.S. Please do keep sending photos of your lockdown / Christmas / arty projects – we love seeing what you’ve been up to, and so do our Facebook followers!
The photo here shows an amazing glass advent calendar Alison made here over a few project days, using glass in layers, with wire work to add details, mounted on a base made by her hubby.
The whole concept was designed to be posted to Alison’s daughter in Dubai, with the base made in two halves, and with bespoke fabric pouches for each of the ‘days’ to allow the secret to be revealed one day at a time. Brilliant!
Vitreus Art Lockdown update and re-opening – June 16th
We are so very excited that we can invite all our lovely students and visitors back to Vitreus Art on Tuesday 16th June (subject to no changes from official guidance)!
We have certainly been missing you all very much, but our doors will be open again soon.
As with all businesses opening soon, Vitreus Art is following the most up to date guidelines to keep us all safe.
Both the gallery and the studio have been deep-cleaned with all surfaces, floors, tables and chairs cleaned and then wiped down with The Wharf Distillery Sanitizer (thanks Lawrence Connisbee!), which is made to the ‘WHO’ guidelines and is 80% alcohol.
Cleaning is a major priority for us and all tables and chairs and hard surfaces visitors could come in to contact with will be cleaned and sanitised between uses.
Our mutual health and safety is our priority so a few changes have been made and will remain in effect for as long as required:
· The Gallery and Studio now have their own doors.
· Studio entrance is for those attending classes only
· We ask that on entry to either the studio or the gallery you make use of the hand sanitizer and wear a mask (which are provided, if you don’t have your own)
· Class sizes going forward will be for 4 students only – this ensures the required 2 meter distance between work tables and room to move around the studio.
· We can accommodate 2 people in the gallery at a time – this allows for safe distancing; there is also a one way system that we ask you to follow.
If you’d prefer to visit out of hours we’ll be happy to make an appointment – to talk about a creative project you’d like to make, commissions, or to allow personal viewings of any of the work we have (and there’s lots of new work on the walls now!).
· As always we have hand-washing facilities available and more hand sanitizer on hand.
· We have always had a policy of each student having their own set of tools on our workshops, but it’s more important than ever that these tools are not shared between students – even if you want to be helpful.
Not sharing is the new helpful!
· Tea and coffee will still be provided for workshops, with washing up of mugs followed by sanitizing between each use.
· Finally, we will be unable to provide lunches during our workshops for a while so we must therefore ask that anyone attending our workshops brings a packed lunch with them.
· Finally, Finally if there is anything you think we have missed please feel free to tell us; these are new and strange times for us all and we all need to work with each other to make our world a safer place to be.
We’ll be operating different opening hours for the time being, starting on June 16th:
Gallery
11am to 4pm – Tues, Wed & Thurs
11am to 6pm – Fri – Sat
11am to 4pm – Sunday
Or by appointment outside of these times.
Studio
Workshops will take place as per the times they are advertised, from July in our re-organized space.
As you can see, we’ve changed the layout of the studio and gallery to make space in the studio for classes, and layout out the gallery area to encourage distancing.
We understand that you might be reluctant to venture out on or shortly after the 15th June – so get in touch if you’ve seen something on our website or Facebook page and would like to test drive it at home rather than come to us.
When you are ready to come over, you’ll find new art and craft from Peter of WdWorks, Lou Thomas, Sam Burke, Linda Johns, Abby Cork, Marlene Snee, Ken Flegg and more.
There are lots of online mini-galleries to view on our website here:
https://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/wakefield-gallery.html
And we’ve made lots of new pieces in lockdown too; these are just a few examples…
Hit this page to see all the new pieces we’ve made – there are loads!
https://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/stained-glass-art.html
Workshops resume (cautiously) in July
The good news is that we should be able to resume workshops in July.
This could change, of course, but the plan currently is:
The first workshops to start are the ones where spacing can be easily achieved without reducing the learning enjoyment and where no tools or materials need to be shared.
The full list of workshops due to take place in July is below but there are a few we’d like to highlight.
On Friday Clare Tebboth will be running her next Wild With Watercolours 1-day workshop.
As places must be limited for spacing, there’re just two places available on this session – open to all painters who want to develop their use of watercolours in imaginative ways.
https://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/classes/wild-watercolours-with-clare-tebboth.html
On 4th July Clare is back again, to teach her one-day Introduction to Painting and Drawing for absolute beginners. Again, there are just a couple of places free on this one.
https://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/classes/introduction-to-drawing-painting.html
And then we have a pretty full month of workshops – most of which have one or two spaces remaining.
On each workshop the studio will be laid out for maximum space between work-spaces. Take a look at the photos of the studio to see how we’ve positioned the benches and teacher’s station.
It’s probably going to feel a bit strange for a while, but so many people have been asking about when classes can start again we felt this was a good time for an update!
As we said before, if you’ve booked a workshop and can’t attend, or prefer to join a session later in the year, just let us know. Just as some are itching to get back to being creative, some are understandably cautious.
So here’s the list of July workshops. As usual, there’s lots of info on the web page for each session.
If you want to discuss any potential concerns you have about how a workshop would run before booking, just reply to this email.
July classes with places –
- 3rd July – Wild With Watercolours with Clare Tebboth – £120 inc materials & lunch
- 4th July – One-day Introduction to Painting & Drawing for Beginnerswith Clare Tebboth – £110 inc lunch & materials
- 5th July – Glass Tack-Relief Fusing for Beginners with JT – £139 inc lunch & materials
- 11th – 12th July – 3d Copper Foiling Stained Glass Weekend course for Beginners with MC – £249 inc all materials & lunch
- 16th July – Glass Fusing Tealight Holders for Beginners with JT – £60 inc materials and refreshments (half-day workshop)
- 17th July – Fused Glass Lanterns for Beginners with JT – £149 inc all materials & lunch
- 19th July – Stained Glass Leading for Beginners with MC – £149 inc all materials & lunch
- 22nd July – Stained Glass Copper Foil Lanterns for Beginners with MC – £149 inc all materials & lunch
All workshops are here:
https://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/classes/index.html
Finally, next time we’ll include details of the mini workshops we’ll be offering exclusively to everyone who’s agreed to move the date of a workshop as a result of CV as a thank-you.
And now it’s time to say thanks for reading, thanks for your support and do remember to support as many of the independent businesses around you as you can – they and we will be especially appreciative over the next few months!
Best wishes and stay safe,
Mike and Jenny
Stained glass classes from Vitreus Art – a summary
Fancy trying your hand at stained glass?
Maybe you have a project in mind? Make windows for your home, glass sculpture for your garden, glass art for your walls?
Or perhaps the idea of learning a thousand-year-old craft appeals?
Well – read on – we run all sorts of stained glass classes (and more) for all levels from beginners up, and have a programme of project days to enable you to create your own projects without having to buy tools and find a suitable space to work!
Below is a summary of the stained glass classes we run; if you’re looking for something more specialised get in touch.
Stained Glass copper foil method
http://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/classes/stained-glass-classes-beginners-foiling.html
Suitable for – all levels including beginners, those who’ve tried leading, those who want to learn to cut glass accurately. This class can be held on a weekday if required.
What you will learn – glass cutting, using the grinder to achieve accurate fit, the ‘Tiffany’ method of SG, a little about the history of this method, bead soldering, some design basics.
This method is suitable for – highly decorative pieces, 3d designs (like lamps and boxes), indoor display, large pieces where supported by a board or frame.
The copper foil method of stained glass emerged in the Tiffany Studios of New York in the 1880s, and is sometimes called the ‘Tiffany Method’ even now.
Foiling is particularly suitable for domestic art as designs with many small sections of glass can be made without the constraints of the properties of the lead used in the traditional leading method.
On our copper foil class you’ll make a window hanging piece roughly A4 in size, plus a mini project in the morning to practice the key skills.
We provide a choice of 5 designs to make, ranging from a Victorian style panel to a Mondrian-inspired design, with art-deco, sunrise and Mackintosh-Rose designs too.
You’ll choose from a wide range of coloured glass and learn a little about how art glass is made too.
Stained Glass traditional leading
http://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/classes/stained-glass-classes-beginners-leading.html
Suitable for all levels inc beginners, those who’ve tried foiling, those who want to learn how to make weatherproof panels – eg windows, doors, garden sculptures. This class can be held on a weekday if required.
What you will learn – glass cutting, using the grinder to achieve accurate fit, the traditional method of assembling a panel using lead cames, joint soldering, some of the history of traditional stained glass, some design basics.
This method is suitable for – larger panels, window or door panels that need to be weatherproof, designs that benefit from clean join lines of consistent width, where a traditional appearance is desired.
Using lead to join together pieces of glass to form a weatherproof window is a construction method that can be traced back to around 750AD in the UK.
On our leading class you’ll make a garden panel – a piece of glass art you can display in your garden (or indoors).
As with the foiling class, you’ll make a mini project in the morning; you’ll then have the rest of the day to make your main project. We provide 5 starter designs to choose from, and a range of coloured glass.
No two students’ projects are alike!
If your goal is to learn how to make a window for your home, this is the ideal starting point.
The leading method is still used to make windows today, and is also the preferred choice for larger pieces where the strength limitations of foiling would be a problem.
When making a window, there are considerations concerning panel fit, strength and weatherproofing that are key to a successful and long-lasting installation; we suggest getting some further experience in leading before committing to a window. Of course we’ll be happy to help with this; in fact, this is what our Leading Level 2 class is intended to support – see below.
Stained Glass mirror making (using copper foil method)
http://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/classes/stained-glass-classes-beginners-mirrors.html
Suitable for all levels inc beginners, those who’ve tried foiling and want to develop their skills, those who want to make art with a function.
This class can be held on a weekday if required.
What you will learn – glass cutting, using the grinder to achieve accurate fit, the ‘Tiffany’ method of SG, using silvered glass in stained glass, a little about the history of this method, bead soldering, some design basics
This method is suitable for – mirrors of sizes up to a practical maximum of 75cms on the longest side, indoor mirror designs, incorporating mirrored glass as components in to decorative stained glass designs
This class (although also suitable for beginners) goes beyond basic foiling and introduces a number of new techniques. The outcome is a practical mirror that can be displayed and used!
The structure of this class includes additional steps specific to mirrors, and covers the use of patina too.
There’s more to learn for students who’ve already tried foiling so we recommend this class as a fun and interesting level two class for those keen to develop their foiling skills beyond the basics.
Stained Glass lamp making (using copper foil method)
http://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/classes/stained-glass-classes-beginners-lamps.html
Suitable for- Suitable for all levels inc beginners, those who’ve tried foiling and want to learn how to make 3d objects, those who want to make art with a function.
What you will learn – glass cutting, using the grinder to achieve accurate fit, the ‘Tiffany’ method of SG, how to assemble and solder 3d objects using jigs, using patina to enhance your lamp, fitting lamp hardware in to a finished lamp.
This method is suitable for – column lamps (as made on this workshop), ‘Tiffany-style’ lampshades, fan-style lamp shades, tea-light and candle-holders, terraria and decorative glass boxes.
This class develops on the foiling basics covered on our 1-day beginner’s class with more challenging designs, and the added learning opportunities associated with building a 3d object in glass.
Students who’ve done some foiling will benefit from the greater emphasis on cutting accuracy and an introduction to the methods used to solder glass sections in to 3d objects.
The outcome of the weekend will be a stylish stained glass column lamp – a style that’s very much in vogue these days, and one that suits most interior decoration styles!
Stained Glass etching
http://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/classes/stained-glass-classes-etching.html
Suitable for – those who made some copper foil or leaded projects and want to learn how to add etched details.
This class can be held on a weekday if required.
What you will learn – using etch resist and scalpel to prepare glass for etching, handling, preparing and using etching cream.
This method is suitable for – etched glass can be incorporated in to foiled or leaded projects, and is suitable for outdoor use in leaded projects.
Perhaps you’ve seen glass with an attractive frosted design?
Or maybe you’d like to add delicate details (especially numbers and letters) to your glass-work?
Etching is a studio-friendly way to achieve this look without the need for a sandblasting set-up with chamber and air compressor.
The chemicals needed are safe to handle if used as specified, and suitable for home experimentation.
This class requires some experience of stained glass work, as the majority of the class time is spent on designing the etched components.
As etching is equally suitable for leaded and copper foil projects this added technique will appeal to all glass experimenters – and it can also be used on fused glass (after fusing).
Stained Glass design workshop
http://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/classes/stained-glass-design-workshop.html
Suitable for – those who’ve attended beginners classes in leading or foiling and want to create their own designs; beginners are recommended to attend at least one beginner’s class before joining this session.
What you will learn – the design rules for working with glass, how to translate a sketch or photograph in to a workable stained glass design, cutting difficult shapes in glass.
This method is suitable for – your new design skills can be applied to all sorts of stained glass projects, including both foiling and leading.
This class requires some experience of stained glass work, as the majority of the class time is spent understanding design principles and the constraints working with glass brings.
If you’d like to use what you’ve learnt on this class and make a stained glass panel of your own design, our Project Days programme may be the best way to develop your skills further.
Stained Glass Leading Level 2
http://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/classes/stained-glass-classes-leading-level2.html
Suitable for – those who’ve done leaded stained glass before or who have attended our beginner’s leading class (aka garden panels).
Beginners are recommended to attend our 1-day beginner’s class before joining this session.
This class can be held on a weekday if required.
What you will learn – cutting glass more accurately than is expected on a beginner’s class, cutting and shaping leads to higher standards of precision, cutting and leading to pre-set dimensions.
This method is suitable for – – larger panels, window or door panels that need to be weatherproof, designs that benefit from clean join lines of consistent width, where a traditional appearance is desired.
This class is all about developing existing leading and glass cutting skills. If you’d like to make your own windows, this class is especially valuable as the structure revolves around building your panel according to the design.
On our beginner’s class we don’t expect your panel to exactly match the design; on this class you’ll build up your panel on top of the design, in the same way you would if you were making a size-critical panel.
This class is intended to give you the confidence to tackle your own projects, and to work independently towards a finished panel of your own design.
Beyond this level 2 class, you can use our Project Days Programme to work on your own stained glass pieces, or join one of our 5-day courses.
Stained Glass Project Days Programme (also available for glass fusers!)
http://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/classes/project-day-vitreus-art.html
Suitable for – those who’ve done some stained glass work before, in the method to be used for the project.
Beginners with a project in mind are advised to discuss their plans with us to identify the best way to proceed.
These project days are intended to help you achieve your project plans in a supportive environment, using our tools and facilities.
What you make is up to you – but we recommend sharing your plans so we can help you get the best use of your time and materials.
You’re welcome to bring your own materials or you can use ours, charged at cost at the end of your project.
Project days are bookable in advance and usually take place on weekdays although weekend sessions are possible if there are no formal classes taking place on your chosen days.
You can pay for your sessions at the end of the day(s) when we’ll work out the cost of any materials you’ve used too.
Project sessions are ideal for those who are confident in working independently; of course we’d never allow you to struggle and are always on hand for a reminder or gentle encouragement!
Recent projects have included – glass garden sculptures, large windows, garden panels, wall art, fused glass art, slumped glass dishes and more. What would you like to make?
For glass fusers, the cost of each project day includes one firing in the kiln. Additional firings are charged at a nominal cost.
Because of the need to schedule kiln use we invite you to plan your fusing project some time in advance!
Stained Glass 5-day courses in Cornwall or Northamptonshire
http://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/cornwall2014/index.html
Suitable for – absolute beginners, those who’ve done some (or a lot of) glass work before, anyone with a stained glass project to make who needs a fully tutored course.
The structure of these 5-day courses is tailored entirely to the needs of the students. If you’d like to start at the beginning and follow a class plan, that’s fine.
If you’ve done some glass work before and you’d like to develop your skills through a series of planned exercises, that’s also fine.
Or if you’d like to work on your own project (or more than one project) that’s equally possible.
The course in Cornwall is like an art holiday – Porthleven is a great place to stay and an ideal location for our course – the Lifeboat Studio is an atmospheric venue with plenty of space and light. The harbour village has a range of pubs and restaurants and a choice of accommodation to suit most budgets.
Past attendees on our Porthleven courses have made windows, garden sculptures, all sorts of lamps and lampshades, decorative art, 3d glass objects, large wall art and much more. We’ll discuss your plans with you in advance to make sure they’re achievable (and transportable!) and all attendees are eligible for our ongoing support and advice so the course really is a launchpad for the prospective stained glass artist!
Our 5-day course in Northampton follows a similar concept, with the addition of the option to try glass fusing with the kiln in our studio.
The group size is smaller but we still aim to have fun as well as creative!
http://www.vitreus-art.co.uk/5daycourse/index.html
Both 5-day courses (and all our 1-day classes) have their own website pages; if you have any questions get in touch!
Thanks for reading – feel free to get in touch, or learn more about each cvlass on its dedicated website page.
Mike (and Jenny) – Vitreus Art