About one year ago I was given a lead on a job to repair or restore a roundel stained glass window. As sometimes happens time dragged on until about six month later when I was contacted by the client and asked to begin work. The window was a roundel window made from 3" roundels in red, amber, blue, and green. The home was the original Santa Monica home of cosmetics entrepreneur Merle Norman. The window had fallen out of its' window sash on a third level staircase. The window was only 12" x 24" but it was a gem. The red roundels were actually clear roundels with an overlay of clear red antique(hand blown) glass. The rest of the roundels were their true color. The field glass was a pale amber cathedral. The window needed to be totally restored.
After we brought the window back to our studio we soaked it in water to loosen the putty and make disassembly easier, and safer for the glass. We happened to have enough colored roundels to replace the broken pieces, and we used 5/16" round lead to match the original leading. For such a small window it was a time consuming job. The end result was stunning. the vibrancy of the glass was magnificent, as was the combination of colors. With the help of a fabulous carpenter and handy man Don Van Cura,(the entire window frame and sill had to be replaced as it was rotted out) we installed in a new sash and made the window operable as a drop down transom.
The owners loved it so much they decided to go ahead with another project they had been contemplating. The downstairs guest bedroom at one point had had an artificial skylight. The 8" x 72" opening had been covered over and a chandelier hung in its place. We were commissioned to make a roundel skylight duplicating the smaller one we had restored for the staircase. We were able to get the 3" colored roundels from Bendheim in New Jersey, a company we often go to for German art glass, and other supplies. Once again it was a lot of work for a small panel, but as before, it was worth it. After cleaning up the ceiling space for the electrical work we had Nick Mendoza of R and N Electric set up the LED lighting. We installed the roundel panel with 2 1/4" casing stained to match the wood ceiling. We were all very happy with the end result.