Thursday 12 May 2016

Stained glass workshop



I have had a busy week!
Over the weekend I was a very excited student at .Emma Butler-Cole Aikens stained glass taster workshop in the Scottish Borders.

It was held at the beautiful Abbotsford House.
Abbotsford House

It was a bit of a grey day, however the excitement of trying out something which I had never tried before brightened everything!
I LOVE stained glass so much... yet I have never tried making it.
I thought it would be ridiculously difficult. Emma the talented tutor made it suddenly accessible!
Emma makes some beautiful pieces including church windows, if you have time check out her website Here 

Well... this is how we started, although I got so absorbed in making the glass panel I forgot to take photos of the leading and soldering process.


my panel after cutting, leading and soldering joints.

Then it was time to decide on a glass design inspired by the house and its contents. Abbotsford House has some stunning stained glass. I particularly like the glass in the entrance hall. It has beautiful mermaids painted on it.






But instead of the mermaids I decided to use the drawing room wallpaper as my inspiration. We didn't have long to draw out the design as this really was just a beginners workshop so I simplified the design so I could do something achievable in the time.


Then we used posca pens to outline our designs


Finally filling in the design with glass paints.



Everyone produced something special!



I was very pleased with my first stained glass attempt... I just love trying new workshops, I have no idea if I will be able to use some of the process in what I do but I am certainly impressed by the possibilities.

Then to finish off a lovely break I had a beautiful day out at Bowhill House, again in the Scottish Borders. The house is not open to the public on a regular basis but the extensive gardens and country trails are. 

Bowhill house from across the lake



Bowhill Rhododendrons

me beside Bowhill lake









21 comments:

  1. its beautiful and what an amazing spot!!
    You did an amazing job for your first try, wow, its beautiful,,

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  2. Wow, so beautiful my friend, gorgeous stained glass art..love the colors..thanks for sharing the whole creative process..such an incredible process to see , amazing! Abbotsford house looks like such a stunning place..magical! Wonderful photos!
    Have a magical day

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  3. Oh how wonderful for you! What a beautiful piece you made, amazing work for a first attempt! I love the beautiful pictures, a very atmospheric place, it must have been such a peaceful and inspiring day. Stained glass is beautiful, I'm so happy you had such fun and have that beautiful piece to remember it by. Oh and those rhododendrons are gorgeous too!

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  4. Great job! Your art is wonderful.
    Happy PPF xx

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  5. A really interesting and beautiful project. Love it.

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  6. So beautiful! I am impressed by your neat looking soldering. Thanks for also sharing that beautifull scenery. I love Scotland and its so long since I last visited there.

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  7. Oh I love your stain glass...I am such a fan of stain glass too! How wonderful to enjoy such a wonderful class. Love the photos too...At first I thought it was Bourhill not bowhill which is my dear Scottish friends maiden name! I thought maybe it was a lake with her name... so pretty! Thanks for sharing, glad you had such an exciting week!

    Hugs Giggles

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  8. You are incredibly versatile in your talents, Morag. I have always loved colored glass and have cobalt bottles in my windows now. You took a big leap and achieved such a gorgeous stained glass piece. I loved your photos of the area, too, since I've been there. I remember the rhododendron plants that were humongous and alive with blossoms. Thanks for the memories, as Bob Hope said. And also for showing us your beautiful work of art.

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  9. This looks amazing! I think I'd enjoy that - stained glass is so pretty and it works well with the mixed media/collage/mosaics you currently work with so I could see you adding it to your repertoire! It looks like a beautiful place as well.

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  10. that is fabulous..I have always wanted to try glass too..perhaps one day

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  11. Taking a new workshop is always an exciting experience for me as well. I love diving into new and unfamiliar worlds and coming up to incorporate what I learned with with I know. Thanks for sharing. Have a lovely week!
    ~~ Irene

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  12. Your finished piece of stained glass is gorgeous, so exciting to try something new.
    I always think that taking part in a workshop is really enhanced when it takes place in beautiful surroundings, and yours most definitely was! Lovely photos.

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  13. oh what a wonderful class and such beautiful surroundings too!!! My hubby does painted stained glass but the leading is faux also and he says it is so relaxing. Your piece is beautiful and I know you will be creating more too:):)

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  14. wow that looks like it was an incredible workshop. A fabulous piece of work, a great tutor in an incredible location... I am a tad jealous... thanks for sharing it with us...xx

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  15. A job well done! Looks gorgeous.

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  16. Thank you for sharing your beautiful day. Love the piece of stained glass that you made. I love light shining through stained glass.

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  17. love your stained glass project, for a first attempt it looks really good. Bowhill house looks beautiful, looks like you had lovely weather for it too! x

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  18. I read this post 2 days ago and I really thought I had commented on it already, but it seems I didn't ... ;-) I love the small piece that you made, it catches the light beautifully. And Bowhill House is gorgeous, wow!

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  19. What a great way to make stained glass! I had never thought of combining glass painting with actually soldering pieces together. It makes so much sense and makes the finished piece look so intricate! Really lovely :)

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  20. Stained glass project is beautiful. What a fun thing to do. Love the photographs too. Blessings,Janet, PPF

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  21. Your stained glass piece looks gorgeous! I've always been fascinated by stained glass and how they were made. Sounds like you had a great time, and such beautiful places to stay and visit too!

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