Custom Fused Glass Pet Portrait Nightlight -
This is a custom night light for "Buddha", a very intelligent and well-trained animal companion. He truly is a companion, as he goes everywhere with his mom. While Buddha is very much alive (he's only 3), his mom chose to include some of his hair in this night light, to immortalize him. I created this light from a photo of the dog; one of the more prominent aspects of this photo was the "penetrating gaze"… which is why I employed "artistic license" as regards his eyes. There are TWO eyes, but one is black on black… which makes the other one more prominent. Buddha's "stare" is a hallmark of his persona… he is very eager to please his mom, and is always awaiting her next command. The bulk of the piece is created from white and black opaque glass; each piece has been carefully cut and ground so that it meshes exactly with the adjacent pieces. By carefully controlling the heat within the kiln during firing, I was able to make the piece slightly dimensional, which adds visual interest. The night light is 5"h x 5"w x .25" thick; I make all of my lights two layers thick, so that they are very strong. A 4 watt lamp is included; the night light is shipped in a gift box. For night lights intended as pet memorials, I can include a small bit of ashes/hair of the animal - I fire them directly into the glass, between layers so they are not visible. If you would like your pet portrait in another size or format (sun catcher/wall art/sculpture), I can do that as well. The price listed here is for the nightlight size.
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The mainstay of my shop is fused glass creations…. this can be a stand alone piece of glass, a mixed media composition (sculptural or wall-hung), or a functional piece of work (light fixtures, plates/trays/bowls,inserts for doors or cabinets, etc).
I most enjoy making custom pieces for folks… Because I am intuitive, after a short conversation I am able to "get that person" and design a piece that is "theirs".
While many glass artists began with stained glass and later transitioned to fused work, I have 20 years experience working in fused glass. I prefer fused glass for the following reasons:
- it is STRONGER than stained glass. Art glass is 1/8" thick; a stained glass pieces consists of a lot of 1/8" pieces of glass soldered together… which means that it is thin and with all of those joints, it has the potential to come apart.
Fused glass, on the other hand, is a SINGLE piece of glass; while an individual composition is comprised of as many (or more) pieces than a stained glass piece, everything is assembled in the kiln and fired into a single, final piece. Additionally, fused glass can be made as thick as you want…so, depending on the application, multiple layers of glass can be fused together (think "glass sink"). Really thick pieces are more expensive to produce because the firing process (bringing the heat up, ramping it down, and annealing) takes far longer - it is not uncommon for a firing process to take 20+ hours with a thick/large piece of glass.
Stained glass pieces have distracting solder lines which can detract from the overall design composition - fused glass has none of these distractions!
With fused glass, you have a larger "palette" to work from. You can "make your own glass" by pre-firing different glass together (to make polka dot glass, for example) and then cut it up for your design.. glass can be fired over and over in most instances.
All of my designs are from my own original drawings; if you have something specific in mind, I would be happy to work with you to create a working drawing for a project.
Technical excellence is evident throughout my pieces; I am a perfectionist when it comes to my work, and am willing to do "whatever it takes" to have a design materialize into the physical.
- RH
Rich Hoftiezer
For Rich Hoftiezer's 2 dimensional stained glass piece5.0I started with an idea; Karla turned it into a work of art. I cannot adequately express how pleased I am with the end result. The quality is unsurpassed, and the workmanship is flawless. Her professionalism, imagination and skills made this a thoroughly enjoyable and learning experience. From concept to completion, Karla kept me apprised of every facet of the project, providing frequent communication, explanations of the processes and pictures of the piece.
If you would like to see an idea come to life, ask to see her Creation Story of what became affectionately known as "Mr Penguin".
With my deepest thanks and admiration,
Rich H
- BB
Bradley Barrios
For Bradley's Outdoor Installation5.0I enjoyed the whole process of working with Karla Ely. She kept me up to date on progress and consulted with me on decisions. I am thrilled with
the final outcome and look forward to working with Karla again. - B
Brittney
For Christmas Ornament5.0Our ornament is beautiful, we've gotten lots of compliments on it already. It's very well made, looks sturdy, and we love the design. We highly recommend Karla.
- PB
Pamela Buckhave
For Custom Fused Glass Pet Portrait Nightlight -5.0Karla was so personable and caring. We had lost our dog after 15 wonderful years, to have this beautiful piece of art of him is beyond meaningful. Karla even used some fur of our beloved baby making this art piece so meaningful to us. I can’t thank Karla enough??
- MG
Maureen Greer
For Daisies for a gravestone Project5.0I had so much fun working with Karla on this project. She was great at communicating with me, she offered suggestions and made up small pieces in a few colors so I could see what I preferred (even though I didn't ask her to). She sent lots of pictures and always let me know where she was on the project. The work itself was stunning and her expertise is apparent. I actually thought I didn't pay enough for the work she put in. I can't wait to work on another project with her.
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