Wellspring

[JestersBaubles]

I rarely post my work here because you guys are all so talented, but in honor of Spectrum, here ya' go.

Wellspring... It reminds me of a spring, bubbling brook, beginnings, origins... Glass is System 96. 16" in diameter. The main ground is Spectrum's amazon green wispy. Blue/green/white Spirit glass nuggets are Spectrum. I think the two solids are URO.

Anyway... someone contacted my glass guild about doing a baptismal bowl, and I responded. I did not have a bowl in the size that I was thinking about so I decided to make this one as a "sample". This may not be deep enough (or large enough for that matter -- my comment was, "How big are the babies?" ), but for the design itself, I wanted it fairly shallow. I meet with them tomorrow night. They were thinking they might want white or blue wispy glass. I sure hope they don't want green because I just used my last large piece of it .

Dana W.

[Joyce Walters]

Oh! Thank you so much for sharing a photo of this marvelous bowl.
I do so hope they like it as their baptismal font.
What a different and good use!
Good work.
Joyce

[Barry Kaiser]

I agree with Joyce that the piece is marvelous.
There is plenty of great glass out there. I am sure that you will combine your creativity with the available glass and satisfy your customer.

Barry

[JestersBaubles]

Thank you both for the kind comments.

I met with the Reverend and her "elder council" last night. They loved the bowl and felt I had captured the essence of their church in my design. I took along samples of other glasses in blues and whites and they chose the blue/white/clear Spirit glass from Spectrum. I did mention to them the upheavals in the industry, but that I was certain we would come up with something that would work.

So, I got the commission for a 20" bowl, and the Reverend knows of another congregation who is wanting to replace their outdated baptismal font. She is going to pass along my info to them.

Dana W.

[JestersBaubles]

The commissioned baptismal bowl is finished. I am meeting with the pastor of the church tomorrow to drop it off.

I really stressed over the initial ramp rate for the final slump. I had several factors to consider, including overall size, proximity to the walls of the kiln (and also, the bottom heating elements), and the thickness plus tack fuse. Oh, and the cry factor -- I did NOT want to have to do this a second time. In the end, I ramped 50 deg F/hour for 38.75 hours in the kiln. I did not want to risk trying to speed it up... if this had been a "spec" piece rather than commission, I might have chanced it (I may very well go back and make a similar design for "fun", and see if I can speed it up some).

Anyway, I am very pleased with how it turned out. I was a little concerned about their choice of glass because I was afraid it would be too dark, but now that it is completed, I think it will work well. Their church has vaulted ceilings with dark wood (though some pretty good light coming in). I think a more subtle piece would be lost in the space.

I have a love/hate relationship with commissions. I love the challenge and the more directed approach that I don't have if I just wander into the studio and decide on my own what to create. However, the potential of the d@mn thing blowing up in the kiln or the customer not liking it is stressful. Well, it didn't blow up and I think they will like it . Until tomorrow evening, it resides on my coffee table.

Dana W.

[Buttercup]

Congratulations Dana, nice piece!

Jen

[Don Burt]

I didn't care for the green one's glass color much. Just personal taste. The blue one appeals to me. Did they like it? I'd guess they did. It's a charming piece.

[JestersBaubles]

I didn't care for the green one's glass color much. Just personal taste. The blue one appeals to me. Did they like it? I'd guess they did. It's a charming piece.

Yes, they loved it. One of the guys was not there for our initial discussions and he did not see the green bowl I took in. He kept saying, "I can't stop looking at it. I knew it was going to be a blue and white bowl, but I didn't know it was going to look like THIS!" The pastor said she knew it was going to be beautiful, but it exceeded her expectations.

It's so gratifying when you see others enjoy your work and love it as much as you do.

Dana

[JestersBaubles]

Bowl installed, and dedicated this weekend

Dana W.

[Tony Smith]

Congratulations, Dana. It is beautiful.

Tony

[JestersBaubles]

Thank you. I was very pleased with how it turned out, and they loved it.

I had a hard time not crying through the entire dedication ceremony

Dana W.

[Vonon]

It is even more beautiful in it's holder. Looks like a jewel against the warm wood colors. Beautiful job!