mini glass pendants – original and unique
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mini glass pendants – original and unique

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mini glass pendants – original and unique

mini glass pendants

Coming soon a new line of mini glass pendants. These beautiful made to order, one of a kind glass pendants are available in a wide range of colors. Each pendant measures approximately 3 1/2″ wide x 4 1/2″ tall, and comes with a G4 LED light, stainless steel canopy, cable, and transformer. For more information on when these pendants will be available please email guido@kuhldoors.com .

price $225.00 each

Our beautiful glass pendants are all handmade using the high quality dalle de verre glass.

Each pendant measures approximately 4 1/2″ tall x 3 1/2″ wide. About the size of your hand or fist.

Our pendants are available in a wide variety of colors. We can mix colors or try and match a color you are looking for. We can’t guarantee an exact color match but working with our supplier we can get close.

Consider adding one of our unique pendants to your bar or kitchen.

Stained Glass Door
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Stained Glass Door

Front Entry Doors, stained glass

Stained Glass Door

Custom Stained Glass Door

Normally when I start a new commission I prefer doing all my own design work. Partly out of ego, I like trying out my own ideas, but mainly because I want to control the process. A client gives me some ideas from my website and I sketch out a couple of different options and away we go. I am confident in the design and therefore confident in the outcome. If inspiration hits me with a new idea I make a design and a sample. Making a sample gives assures me the design will work. A drawing does not always translate well into a full size stained glass window.

This project, however, was different.

Stained Glass Front Door

Marty Rhein is a very talented designer for Bay Area Contracting here in Traverse City, MI. I always enjoy working with Marty. He came to me with an idea for stained glass door. The basis for the design is based on the picture shown on the left of a cattail and the sun reflecting off the water behind it.

Wood Entry Doors with Glass

Here is the design Marty came up with. The design beautifully captures the initial concept. However, translating to a stained glass window requires some changes. The biggest challenge is accounting for the lead lines. Lead lines are dark. When held up to the light they are black. This drawing has thick lead lines and blown up to scale will overwhelm the window.

Leaded Glass Doors

Rather than try to explain my concerns about executing the design, I had the drawing blown up to full scale. I also drew two different iterations of the initial drawing that builds on Marty’s initial design. I brought in Marty and the clients to review everything. I don’t have a sample to show but I can show enough to give us all some confidence.

Wood Entry Doors with Glass

I don’t always work with a designer but when I do I find the process rewarding. I learn something new and try a design I would never come up with on my own. It takes a good and trusting relationship to work successfully, but the results speak for themselves.

For more designs check out our portfolio. For doors check out our selection of doors.

Stained Glass for Bathroom Window
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Stained Glass for Bathroom Window

Leaded Glass Windows, stained glass

Stained Glass for Bathroom Window

Ah, the bathroom. Twenty years ago the bathroom was built just big enough to enclose a tub, shower, toilet and sink. A place you took care of your personal business and got out. Windows functioned to keep the space fresh. Today? Look up bathrooms in Pinterest or Houzz and you don’t see bathrooms, you see home spas. Bathrooms today are big and bright with beautiful tile and sculpted fixtures. After the kitchen the bathroom is the second most redecorated space in the home. That makes the bathroom a great place to consider adding a stained glass bathroom window.

Decorative Bathroom Windows

Stained Glass for bathroom window adds light to the bathroom while maintaining privacy. Anytime we do windows for bathrooms the first criteria is always privacy. We offer a wide range of hand blown glass to consider when selecting glass for your decorative bathroom windows. All our windows are custom made and easily customized to fit your space. To learn more about ordering a custom piece click here.

Stained Glass in Bathroom

Glass is an ideal material to add to a bathroom. It is easy to clean, is impervious to moisture, blends beautifully with other materials like marble, tile, steel. The leaded glass window shown above is purely a decorative element. It is a painting hanging on the wall.

Bathroom Privacy Window

For more design options check out our portfolio. Want to see our glass cabinet selection click here. For entry doors click here.

stained glass transom
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stained glass transom

Leaded Glass Windows, stained glass

stained glass transom

Stained Glass Transom

Stained glass transom windows provide just the right custom element to your home. A transom window is a great way to transition from one room to another without losing light or looking like you are closing off a separate space. The transom window on the left is an interior window over the entrance to the library.

Detail Transom Window

My design philosophy is to keep things simple t,o focus on the inherent natural beauty of handblown glass. The combination on the left of clear mouth blown glass with chunks of beveled dalle de verre glass adds texture and dimension to the window. It feels sculpted. The window changes as the light in the room changes.

Transom Windows

Rondels are another handblown glass I use a great deal in my designs. The unfinished room on the left uses large, clear rondels to give a traditional look. The design on the left is more intricate with a splash of color.

Exterior Transom Windows

Whether you are looking for an interior or exterior transom window, a transom window insert or a whole entryway design we can make a custom leaded glass window for your home.

For more designs or options check out our portfolio.

Stained Glass Windows for Home
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Stained Glass Windows for Home

Leaded Glass Windows

Stained Glass Windows for Home

When you hear someone say stained glass what do you immediately think of? A church or a cathedral, right? A stained glass window is big and bright with bold colors depicting scenes and figures from the bible. Not true, think of Frank Lloyd Wright or many homes from the Prairie Modern Architecture.

A custom stained glass window does not have to be large or complicated to make an impact in the home. A simple design using high quality materials is all you need to create a beautiful handmade stained glass window at an affordable price.

Here is one project for a small interior window in the bathroom of a home in Northern Michigan measuring approximately 44″ tall x 16″ wide.

The Process

When we start a project we go one of two ways. The first way is the client goes through our portfolio, selects a design and we customize it to the size of the window opening. We provide the client photos of the stained glass design and glass samples if necessary. Everyone is confident in the outcome. No surprises.

The second way we work is to give the client something new. A design that is consistent with our aesthetics’s but still new and different. I do not have a photo of the completed design. We work with sketches and samples. Everyone must trust one another during the process. We are looking for surprises.

Our client wanted something new for their interior glass windows. Our first step is sketching design options. I am very found of incorporating trees and tree branches in my design. The twist in this design is adding the glass chunks to suggest flowers or leaves. Not literal depictions of flowers and leaves but just the suggestion of a flower or leaf.

Originally I really wanted to make the window with white opalescent glass and shaping the chunks of dalle de verre glass into leaf pedals. The client selected a blue opalescent glass and blue chunks of dalle de verre. To prove my point and show how great the white opalescent glass will look, I made a sample panel.

While I do like the white opalescent glass I really love the blue glass. And I really don’t like the pedal shapes. Just too literal for me.

Like all our stained glass windows every step in the fabrication is done by hand. We cut the glass by hand, we assemble the glass pieces by hand and solder all the joints by hand. Custom, hand made stained glass for the home is what you get.

Details

The design is very simple. There are only two different types of glass. Not a very complicated window. But if you look closely you will notice the chunks of glass are hand beveled. They are three dimensional. Therefore those beveled pieces catch light coming through it from the back of the panel, light raking across the surface of the panel and light bouncing directly off the panel. All light interacting with the chunks from different angles causes the window to really sparkle.

Finished

This is an internal stained glass window for the home. The stained glass panel does not overwhelm the space. This is a piece of art built into the home like a door or cabinet or countertop. It is part of the home now.

Want to see more designs? Check out our portfolio

Stained Glass Panels
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Stained Glass Panels

Leaded Glass Windows

Stained Glass Panels

custom stained glass panels for the home

Five or six years ago I was fortunate enough, thanks to Marty Rhein of BAC Design, to work on a remodeling project in Elk Rapids, MI. Last summer the home owner contacted me about coming back and making two more custom stained glass panels for the basement. There was one big challenge. The stained glass pannels are in the basement and the basement has no natural light. How best to showcase a stained glass panel without natural light.

To the left is the glass entryway door I completed when the house was first remodeled 6 years ago.

stained glass panels made to order

The first stained glass panel is the stairway window. I kept this design very consistent with the front door. I used the same clear rondels and handblown glass I used in the front door and throughout the house. This gives it a real custom feel and ties the windows together. Small rondels in the bottom left moving to bigger rondels as they float up to the right. As you can see from the triangular shape our stained glass panels are made to order.

What I did not expect was having enough light in the basement to create patterns on the other side of the panel. A similar effect when sun light passes through. Unfortunately, unlike glass that has sunlight passing through it the pattern will always stay the same unless a brighter light bulb is used or the light source changes position.

The second project is a stained glass window for bathroom. It hangs on the wall kinda like a painting. It has a three inch space behind it with a light source at the bottom. I went a very different direction on the design. Because you don’t look through the glass and there is no depth I used an opaque white glass. I also used thick chunks of dalle de verre glass, beveled around the edges. The chunky glass is thick and dimensional and works great in reflective light. Had to add some rondels.

See how thick those chunks are.

Yes my ‘masterpiece’ is hanging in a bathroom but I’m not too proud. This stained glass window for bathroom looks pretty good.

Installing Glass Inserts in Cabinet
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Installing Glass Inserts in Cabinet

Cabinet Glass

Installing Glass Inserts in Cabinet

Installing Glass Inserts in Cabinet Door

Installing a glass inserts in cabinet door is a pretty easy task. But like most easy things there are a couple of small details you must pay attention to or disaster will ensue. You don’t want to learn by trial and error. Follow my overly detailed instructions and you’ll be fine.

Handling Leaded Glass Inserts

The most important part of installing your panel is handling your panel. Handling a leaded glass panel is not difficult but does require some care. It’s not like handling a solid piece of glass. If you are not careful the panel will bend. But no worries, once you understand how it is no big deal.

Before I show you how to handle a leaded glass panel let me briefly explain why it is different than a solid piece of glass. I know I am going overboard here but I always work better when I understand the ‘why’ of how you do something rather than just being told what to do. A leaded glass panel is held together with lead, duh. What makes lead great is its malleability. Bends real easy and cuts with a knife real easy compared to other metals. When a leaded panel stands on its edge and is supported on four sides it is very strong and stable. However, when it is not supported on all four sides and it is held flat like a tray it is very vulnerable and will bend.

Step One

How to pick up a leaded glass panel. Step One. The first thing you want to do is find the most secure spots to grab the panel on the longest edge of the panel. These are the spots where there is a lead joint. On the picture you see three circles showing three lead joints on this panel. If you are an octopus grab and lift at all three spots. Everyone else grab at the two spots shown here.

Firmly holding the panel lift up from one side in one steady motion.

Step Two

Now the panel is standing on its side. The panel is in a secure position and will not go anywhere. From here pinch the lead joints as shown in the picture. IMPORTANT, don’t grab the edge lead between the lead joints. You do this and you will pull the edge lead away from the glass.

With panel firmly secured between pinched fingers lift your panel. If you have sweaty hands like I do, use gloves. Preferably gloves with rubber lining on the outside.

Step Three

Next step. Lay your cabinet frame face down as shown here.

Next, caulk the inner edge of the frame.

*Note before you actually caulk the frame follow the remaining steps to make sure your panel fits the frame. If you followed our steps on taking measurements I know there will be no problems but I like to take a dry run before breaking out the caulk. Caulk is great stuff but if you mess up it can get unwieldy and messy.

Step Four

Take your panel and lift like a pro.

Set the edge into the inner edge. Woodworking pros call it a rabbet.

Note – Make sure the front of the panel is facing you so when you lay it down the back of the panel is up and the front is down.

Now just do the reverse of lifting the panel. Take care that the edge of the panel stays in the rabbet.

Voila! You have just successfully installed a leaded glass panel into a cabinet frame. Let the caulk set up before handling. Once the panel is in the frame is very secure.

Learn How To Measure Cabinet Door For Glass Cabinet Insert

custom stained glass
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custom stained glass

Leaded Glass Windows

custom stained glass

Custom Stained Glass

My design process for custom stained glass work is a little backwards. Normally, before I have a client I will see something or think of something to give me an idea and wonder how that something will look in glass. Patterns are a big inspiration, left over materials give me ideas or I discover a new technique I want to try. My process is backwards because I am not a paying client, I am just curious and I want to see what my ‘idea’ looks like. So I will go ahead and make a custom stained glass panel for myself. If I like what turns out then I find a client for the design. Clients can view my portfolio of designs and pick out a design they want for their own custom window. It is the way I work best, or rather I am most comfortable.

Once in awhile I get a client who likes my designs but wants something different. This project started with that kind of client. He wanted a new design using color for a free hanging panel. That is not how I normally work. I don’t like creating something not knowing how it will turn out. Glass is tricky, you can think you know how a panel will turn out but until you put all the pieces together and hold it up to the light you never really know. I have a studio full of panels I was convinced would look great and are not too good. I hate to disappoint but I was willing to deviate from my normal method and had some ideas I wanted to try and if the client is willing I am too.

The sketch. This is just one of probably five different sketches. Takes me forever. I know I am not a great drawer but I am good enough to get by and convey a simple idea. My big idea for this project was my beveler. I have this big fancy beveler in the studio I inherited from my father and have been dying to use it. This was the project for my beveler. Fortunately my client was all in on my idea.

The most anxious part of this project was using color. If you look at my work I use very little color. My client was patient and through some back and forth we found a color scheme that worked. The glass I used is not traditional hand blown glass I normally use but dalle de verre. Dalle de verde glass is thick slab glass approximately the size of a sheet of 8″ x 11″ paper.

After the design is approved I go to work and start smashing up the dalle de verre glass using a special carbide tip hammer. Makes a huge mess and is kinda fun, except for the splinters of glass. I bleed for my work.

I take the broken chunks and go to work on the beveler. The results make me think this project is gonna be awesome.

After the beveler I lay out the chunks. Maybe not so awesome. Have to wait and see.

Time to assemble the piece. This is a tedious, time consuming pain in the rear. I love what I do but some times I question what I do. I am confident the custom stained glass panel will look good, the question is how good. Is it going to turn our just ‘nice’ or is it going to be ‘NICE !’.

Assembling is a pain and so is soldering and cleaning. There are all these big chunks and sharp edges and crevices. Takes time and patience and I just want to see what it looks like.

NICE!

Hand Blown Glass – Mouth Blown Glass
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Hand Blown Glass – Mouth Blown Glass

Leaded Glass Windows

Hand Blown Glass – Mouth Blown Glass

Throughout my website I keep emphasizing hand blown glass, over and over ad nauseam. But what does that really mean, ‘hand blown glass‘? (Before explaining further I recognize the proper term is mouth blown glass. I should always write mouth blown glass, but since most people say or more importantly search for hand blown glass and because I want to increase my Google Ranking, I am going to stick with hand blown glass.) What does that mean? Exactly what the proper term says, mouth blown glass. Someone, a very skilled someone, gathers a lump of molten glass at the end of a hollow pipe, takes a deep breath and blows into the glass like you would a balloon. What the artisan does from there is truly incredible. Below are two videos from two of my favorite suppliers showing how hand blown glass is made. Take a look and see for yourself why I keep emphasizing hand blown glass.

Lamberts Glass is a glass manufacturer in Germany. Watch how they make sheets of glass. I use Lamberts glass in all the windows I make. Rarely do I use anything else for the flat glass. If you ever make it to the Washington National Cathedral and see the West Rose Window or look at the clerestory windows or the George Washington Window and the Lincoln Window you are looking at Lamberts Glass. My father revered Lamberts Glass and so do I.

Rondels, I love rondels and if you look at most of my work I use a lot of rondels. I get most of my rondels from Kokomo Glass Company in Kokomo, Indiana. Great folks to work with who supply me with beautiful hand blown rondels.

custom stained glass window
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custom stained glass window

Leaded Glass Windows

custom stained glass window

Every custom stained glass window we make is made to order. We can take any design to fit any space, whether it is for a door, a cabinet or just a window. When making a custom window we first draw out the design.

After cutting out the patterns we cut the glass and layout ready for assembly. Everything is done by hand. We use only hand blown glass.

Using lead came each piece of hand blown glass is carefully assembled by hand and fitted together until all the pieces are snug tight into place. Once everything is in place the panel is ready for soldering.

The final step in making a custom stained glass panel is cementing. This provides waterproofing and additional strength to the panel. It is the final step before cleaning.

The finished piece. We can make any of our windows with a wooden frame for easy handling and installation.

Blog – custom glass

mini glass pendants

price $225.00 each

Our beautiful glass pendants are all handmade using the high quality dalle de verre glass.

Each pendant measures approximately 4 1/2″ tall x 3 1/2″ wide. About the size of your hand or fist.

Our pendants are available in a wide variety of colors. We can mix colors or try and match a color you are looking for. We can’t guarantee an exact color match but working with our supplier we can get close.

Consider adding one of our unique pendants to your bar or kitchen.

Custom Stained Glass Door

Stained Glass Front Door

Wood Entry Doors with Glass

Leaded Glass Doors

Wood Entry Doors with Glass

I don’t always work with a designer but when I do I find the process rewarding. I learn something new and try a design I would never come up with on my own. It takes a good and trusting relationship to work successfully, but the results speak for themselves.

Stained Glass for Bathroom Window

Decorative Bathroom Windows

Stained Glass in Bathroom

Bathroom Privacy Window

Stained Glass Transom

Detail Transom Window

Transom Windows

Exterior Transom Windows

Stained Glass Windows for Home

The Process

Details

Finished

custom stained glass panels for the home

stained glass panels made to order

Installing Glass Inserts in Cabinet Door

Handling Leaded Glass Inserts

Step One

Step Two

Step Three

Step Four

Custom Stained Glass

After the design is approved I go to work and start smashing up the dalle de verre glass using a special carbide tip hammer. Makes a huge mess and is kinda fun, except for the splinters of glass. I bleed for my work.

I take the broken chunks and go to work on the beveler. The results make me think this project is gonna be awesome.

After the beveler I lay out the chunks. Maybe not so awesome. Have to wait and see.

Time to assemble the piece. This is a tedious, time consuming pain in the rear. I love what I do but some times I question what I do. I am confident the custom stained glass panel will look good, the question is how good. Is it going to turn our just ‘nice’ or is it going to be ‘NICE !’.

Assembling is a pain and so is soldering and cleaning. There are all these big chunks and sharp edges and crevices. Takes time and patience and I just want to see what it looks like.

NICE!