Custom Fused Glass Pet Portrait Nightlight - Blue Heelers
Custom nightlights are one of the items available my "Pet Memorial" line; since I work from a photograph, the animal can be living or "in spirit". If the pet has passed, I can include a small bit (1/2 tsp) of their cremains within the glasswork for an extra special momento. Featured here is my first nightlight featuring TWO pets - Maui & Kuzco. Maui is a "yellow frisbee addict", so I incorporated this important aspect as the background of the light. Check out the photos of the two dogs and note how similar they are to the light itself. This piece was quite challenging to make, as the details involved were very fine; combine that with the small scale and precision of technique was paramount - it took me over six hours to cut and assemble this class in preparation for firing. The night light is 4.5"h x 4"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. While a nightlight is featured here, I can use the same techniques on a larger scale to make panels, free-standing pieces, light shades… the sky is the limit!
Material
- glass
Size
- small
Meet the Maker
Karla Ely
Karla Ely Glass
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.
Customer Reviews
Rich Hoftiezer
Jan 31, 2014I 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
Maureen Greer
Aug 28, 2014I 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.
Barbara Austin
Nov 14, 2014Karla is a gifted artist- she was able to take an idea and create a stunning piece of art. Karla dedication and focus to detail ensured this piece was done perfect! Highly recommend Karla's beautiful work!
Pamela Buckhave
Oct 4, 2021Karla 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??
KEN REINHARDT
Oct 29, 2020What a fantastic person to work with! I'm really impressed with her and her work. Thank you