Susan's Craftsman Style Dining Room Windows

I'd like for you to meet my new Gallery Glass friend. Her name is Susan and she is the new "poster girl" for Gallery Glass.

Well not really, but she would be a good one. Here is her story:
"We have a 1920's craftsman home in Grand Rapids. This is our first home, and we love the older neighborhood, just not the proximity of the neighbors. I was talking with my friend about possible solutions and she mentioned Gallery Glass--having used it herself. Now she is an artist, so despite her telling me Gallery Glass was easy, I remained doubtful. I do love sewing and creating. I love vintage style and Pinterest absorbs way too much of my time. But an artist, I am NOT! I did tons of googling and pouring over this blog. I was still hesitant to try it on the vertical original windows, so I had panes of glass cut locally to fit just inside the frame (cheaper than the plexiglas). I also did online searches for "prairie style" or "Frank Lloyd Wright" styles of stained glass windows. I found an image that instantly appealed to both my husband and I, so I measured out a piece of wrapping paper the size of my window--used a long straight edge, and did lots of erasing."

"I was able to place each pane of glass over the template and outline the design with the liquid leading. I used one of the new colors - Gallery Glass Frost Honey Quartz --for the edges and several coats of Gallery Glass Amber for the accents (which coincidentally matches my grandfathers depression glass that I have on display!) I also used TONS of Crystal Clear. I seriously went through five bottles!! Because I had the luxury of working flat, I used way too much. and ran into a little problem. I was applying it too thickly, in order to get the level of opacity and texture that I wanted. It took three days to dry clear and my concern was that it would cloud up later during humid weather. Carol assured me that even thick paint will eventually cure. She also gave me some tips on getting maximum texture with minimum paint and I incorporated the suggestions as my project progressed. I was able to achieve a couple different textures near the top of the piece (vertical lines)."

 "I had my Dad help solder on zinc came lead (used in real leaded glass) around the outside edge to finish it and make it look more authentic. I discovered that it really IS easy to fix a section of paint(say, from a soldering iron mishap). Just cut out the bad section and start over. I installed the windows using plastic mirror clips, leaving a bit of space all around for the window for them to "breathe" in winter. I'm loving the results and friends cannot believe they aren't real stained glass. My neighbor is happy, too. She thinks they look great from her side, as well. I know that the panels were a necessity, however, because she happened to ask me about the process that changes the white to clear.  (I only worked on the project in my dining room at night--she was obviously WATCHING--the whole time.)"

My, my, my! We've all had neighbors like that, right? I love the look that the windows create with the table. I love that she coordinated the accent colors of her window with the sentimental accessories. I love her clear textures - so classic and well executed. The primary feature of Gallery Glass Paint is --privacy and light. A secondary benefit is creating a pleasing artistic compliment to furnishings. All the features and benefits blend to create your unique decorating style. Susan did an incredible job on her first project. Her panels will be the focal point of her home for years to come. And they are not temporary or short-lived. I have peeled windows off that were in place for 20 plus years--and they still looked great, we just wanted to re-decorate. Thank you, Susan, for sharing your wonderful experience with us. You didn't mention the hours and hours of work that it took to accomplish this amazing feat, but I know--I KNOW that it was a considerable chunk of time. Good job. I'm so proud of you. Thank you for sharing it with our readers.