Instead of doing a total relead, I was lazy and simply replaced the broken pieces, added a zinc border for strength, and puttied the whole thing. The old putty had fallen away.
A slave to the Goddess Flora shares his garden adventures.
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Although this could very well be a picture of me finding a new treasure at a favorite nursery, it's actually an illustration by David Catrow for a children's book called Plantzilla.
Thursday, February 7, 2019
A Few Blooms from the Victorian Era
Years ago, I bought this little American Victorian stained glass panel online. There were several broken pieces in the border and the lead was weak. It sat between pieces of wood on a closet shelf for a long time but it finally made it to the basement workshop.
Instead of doing a total relead, I was lazy and simply replaced the broken pieces, added a zinc border for strength, and puttied the whole thing. The old putty had fallen away.
The provenance of this panel is a mystery. Who made it? Was it part of a series of panels? Someone must have enjoyed it at some time. Fun things to contemplate while working on old windows. When all the outdoor blooms are frozen, we can still enjoy these.
Instead of doing a total relead, I was lazy and simply replaced the broken pieces, added a zinc border for strength, and puttied the whole thing. The old putty had fallen away.
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You have some wonderful little treasures! Thanks for sharing this one with us.
ReplyDeleteSo now that you've repaired it, what will you do with it?
ReplyDeleteProbably nothing. It'll either get hung in an upstairs window or get stuffed away with some of the oher panels kicking around the house.
DeleteI love the window! The design is very organic and balanced, it's beautiful! You did an amazing job on the repairs. Years ago, my FIL found a large transom window in a trash can (I wonder where Carl gets his dumpster-diving tendencies from??) and gave it to us to repair. It was one sad window, missing better than half the border pieces as it was bent in half to fit in the trash can. We took the shards of glass to the stained glass shop to try to find a match for the original glass that remained, but the shop owner was a bit disgusted and said, "You may as well rebuild the whole thing, what's the point of trying to fix up something like that?" Of course, we didn't listen to her. Our farm renter was very young at the time, and so enamored of the window and wanted it repaired, so Carl told him if he wanted to learn, he could help fix it and then it would be his. We ended up replacing all of the border with new glass and were lucky enough to find some glass that was just about the same for some of the interior design, replacing and moving around elements so it looked cohesive. Finding exact matches to decades old stained glass is dang near impossible, isn't it? The completed window hangs in the kitchen of our farm renter to this day. Sometimes we wish we'd kept it, but it has a new home once again. (Sorry for the saga, ha.)
ReplyDeleteIt really should have been totally releaded so I could straighten a few things up but it's kind of fun to leave some of the original soldering & lead. I'm very lucky to have a glass store that's been around for almost 40 years and is a treasure trove of old and made-to-look-old glass from the 70's. Love your story about the window your father-in-law found. Restoring old windows is a lot of fun.
DeleteIt's a pretty piece. My question was the same as Loree's. Did you have something in mind when you purchased it on-line, or were you just intrigued at the thought of restoring an old piece?
ReplyDeleteIt was so long ago that I don't remember. I think that, since it was in fairly rough shape, the price was pretty low and that attracted me.
DeleteThat is a treasure worthy of restoration. So glad it is out of the closet.
ReplyDeleteIt's nice to see light shining through it for the first time in so long.
DeleteIt's lovely! Now you need to find a window in which to hang it. :)
ReplyDeleteI'll have to start rotating panels as there seem to be more of them than there is available window space.
DeleteIt is a sweet window. This colorful arrangement of flowers is just what we need to see today. I am always impressed with your ability to do these glass repairs and builds.
ReplyDeleteIt is rather sweet. You could do glass too, it's just a matter of learning and practice.
DeleteThe one great thing about non-gardening weather is that it frees up time to do other things. Love your window repair! Where does it go from here?
ReplyDeleteThe sun is out, as is the colour. Zone 9 and that exquisite glasswork. Goodness.
ReplyDeleteWhat a great skill to possess. I love all your stained glass.
ReplyDelete