Three Generations, Lots of Glass & One Very Creative Day!

I always love welcoming students into my fused glass studio, especially when I have a mix of returning students and someone new. Before we start creating, everyone completes the required liability forms—not the most exciting part of fused glass class, but we have to get the paperwork out of the way first! 😂 Then we move on to one of my favorite studio traditions: everyone gets to choose a free fused glass gift. As you can see, I put out quite a selection! There were patriotic pieces celebrating America’s 250th birthday, along with pendants, magnets, pocket hearts, and lots of other little fused glass treasures I’ve made. I love watching everyone look through them and decide which one is going home with them. Sometimes choosing the free gift may take almost as much thought as deciding what they’re going to make in class! With the forms signed and everyone’s new little treasure selected, it’s finally time to get to the glass! ❤️

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Normally, I begin each class with a tour of my Finished Room, Finishing & Inspiration Room, and Gallery Area so new students can see examples of finished projects, different techniques, and all the possibilities fused glass has to offer. This time, however, Glenda, Shana, and Jase had all taken classes with me before, so there was no need for another tour—we could get right to creating! Jill was the newcomer to my studio, and Shana showed her around and helped introduce her to all the glass-filled spaces. I also have to confess that there aren’t quite as many pictures from this class as I normally take. At one point, I couldn’t find my phone. Apparently, I can keep track of kilns, glass, tools, four students, and dozens of projects—but asking me to keep track of my own phone may be expecting too much. 😂 Needless to say, Jase had plenty of fun making fun of me about that! ❤️

Finished Room: Before we get to all the creating, I always enjoy sharing a little peek inside my studio. One of my favorite spaces is what I call my Finished Room. This is where many of my completed fused glass pieces live before finding their forever homes. The room is filled with everything from jewelry and small gifts to dishes, wall art, and decorative pieces, so there is always plenty to look at—and plenty of inspiration for students who aren’t quite sure what they want to make. This is also where I photograph much of my finished work, so you’ll spot my photography setup tucked right in among all the glass. I love having a room where students can see what is possible with fused glass. Sometimes all it takes is seeing a certain color combination, shape, or technique to spark an entirely new idea. And yes, I’ve managed to fill just about every available shelf, wall, and tabletop with glass. 😂

This is my Finishing & Inspiration Room, and the name really says it all! This is where many of my fused glass projects receive their final touches, but it’s also a room filled with ideas. There are finished pieces, books, specialty glass, decals, jewelry supplies, molds, embellishments, and examples of different techniques everywhere you look. I encourage students to explore because sometimes seeing one little detail—a color combination, a shape, or an unusual technique—is all it takes to inspire their next project. This is also where I do much of the work that happens after a piece comes out of the kiln— assembling jewelry, attaching findings, and turning fired glass into finished art. It’s definitely a busy room, but I love it that way. Creativity isn’t always neat and tidy! 😂 For me, being surrounded by glass, supplies, and pieces I’ve created over the years is often exactly where the next idea begins. ❤️

And then there’s my Gallery Area, where many of my finished fused glass creations are displayed while they’re waiting to find their forever homes. This is probably the best place for students to really see just how many different things can be created with fused glass. There are dishes, garden art, jewelry, nightlights, wall pieces, seasonal decorations, gifts, and lots of one-of-a-kind creations. Some pieces are functional, some are purely decorative, and quite a few are simply things I made because I wanted to try a new technique! I love bringing students through this room because I always encourage them to look around and find inspiration. They don’t have to copy one of my pieces—in fact, I love it when something they see sparks a completely different idea. A color, technique, shape, or tiny detail can become the starting point for their own creation. Looking around this room is also a wonderful reminder that every single finished piece began with nothing more than some glass, an idea, and a little imagination. ❤️

While most of the group didn’t need another studio tour, I had the work area set up and ready before everyone arrived. Each student starts with the basic tools they’ll need, including mosaic nippers, a glass scorer, breakers, glass cleaner, and a cleaning cloth, along with plenty of workspace to spread out and create. I like having everything ready so that once the paperwork, free gifts, and introductions are finished, we can get right to the fun part!

First up is Glenda, who has taken several fused glass classes with me and came prepared with an idea for her latest project. Before class, she looked through my website for inspiration and decided she wanted to make a set of my snowman dishes. These are really intended more as fun holiday decorations than dishes to eat from—although they certainly look like little plates! Glenda created four snowmen using white glass, bright orange noses, black glass dots for their eyes and smiles, and brown stringers for their twig-like mouths. What I love most is that each snowman developed his own personality as she arranged the pieces. One looks happy, another looks a little surprised, and a couple seem like they might be up to something! 😂 Once they were fired and slumped into their gently curved shapes, they became an absolutely adorable little snowman family. I think these will be so much fun for Glenda to bring out every winter! ⛄️❤️

Next up is Shana, who created this gorgeous, fused glass flower for her garden. Just look at those colors! She combined beautiful shades of blue around the petals with greens, yellows, and little touches of other colors toward the center. I especially love the little bee tucked right into the middle—it’s such a fun detail and makes the whole piece feel like a flower you might actually find growing in the garden. There’s also something special you can’t fully appreciate from the photograph: the back of the flower has texture, which adds another layer of interest to the glass. Once mounted on its green stem and placed outside, the transparent glass will allow the sunlight to shine through all those colors and textures. Shana did a fabulous job, and I think this is going to be absolutely stunning surrounded by real flowers in her garden! 🌼🐝

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Next up is Jase, one of my young returning artists, and I always look forward to seeing what he comes up with! He has such a wonderful imagination and sees possibilities in pieces of glass that most of us would never think of. This time he started by creating the little white character with wire arms and legs. Sadly, I can’t remember which show the character comes from, but Jase knew exactly what he wanted to make and brought him to life in glass. I also make lots of little odd-shaped fused glass pieces, usually combining at least two colors, and Jase absolutely loves them. He looks at those funny shapes and sees faces and characters! He added eyes, mouths, and other tiny details to turn them into the adorable little faces you see here. Most became magnets, but he chose one special piece and turned it into a necklace.

Last but certainly not least was Jill, Shana’s mother-in-law. How cool is that? With Jill, Shana, and Jase all creating together, I had three generations of one family in my studio! I absolutely love that fused glass can be something families enjoy together, even though each person creates something completely different. Jill created a beautiful spring aspen scene, adding colorful murrine and millefiori among all those gorgeous greens. Her original plan was for it to become a suncatcher…and then her instructor messed up! 😂 When I was finishing everyone’s pieces, I completely forgot Jill had requested a suncatcher and automatically mounted her aspens as a nightlight, since that’s what I most often make with this particular design. Oops! Since the mistake was mine, I wanted to make it right, so Jill also received a fall aspen suncatcher from me. Now she has spring aspens glowing as a nightlight and fall aspens to hang in a sunny window. Not exactly what we planned—but hopefully Jill forgives me! ❤️ Sometimes even the instructor gets a little too enthusiastic and goes on autopilot!

I also like to give my students the opportunity to try glass decals and create a small additional piece during class. I have quite a collection of decals to choose from—animals, flowers, nature designs, whimsical images, and lots more—so there is usually something for everyone! Shana chose this beautiful seashell design, adding blue glass accents that make it feel like a little ocean scene, while Jill selected the gorgeous decorative moon. Both pieces were fired and finished as magnets. These smaller projects are a fun way for students to experiment with another fused glass technique while taking home one more little piece of art they created themselves. ❤️

What a wonderful day of glass, creativity, family, and plenty of laughter! Glenda created her adorable snowman family, Shana made her gorgeous garden flower, Jase once again showed us just how much imagination can fit into a few little pieces of glass, and Jill completed our very special three generations of artists in the studio. I love looking at the photo of everyone busy creating—and then looking at the table afterward! 😂 That messy table tells the real story of a great class: glass everywhere, tools scattered around, projects completed, and lots of fun along the way. Thank you, Glenda, Shana, Jase, and Jill, for spending the day creating with me. These are the days that remind me why I love teaching fused glass so much. ❤️

If you’d like to see more of my fused glass work, please visit my website: Elegant Fused Glass by Karen. While you’re there, be sure to explore the full site — and don’t forget to check out my Elegant Fused Glass by Karen YouTube for even more inspiration! If you’d like to stay up-to-date with my latest projects, classes, and special offerings, you can also sign up for my monthly newsletter, published on the information on my site. If you have any questions or would like to schedule a private class, feel free to email me at elegantfusedglass@gmail.com. I’d love to help you create something beautiful!

Keeping my kilns warm,

Karen