Hearts Aflame

    After several days of a debilitating cold, I finally got some time in on the project today. The borders for the center "Dove" panel are in, the Holy Spirit flame, and some of the background. I won't be able to start on the dove until Thursday.














    I love the red glass for the Holy Spirit flames. Maybe it's because most of the other colors are more subtle, but I can see that the leftover red, which is Wissmach glass, will be calling to me for another project. I'll have to think of something, because the glass is delicious.
 

The Glass Rack

   Taking a hint from construction techniques, I took two long strings of Strong Line and put them one on top of the other, gave it a good coat of flux, then soldered them inside the exposed portion of the perimeter zinc H came (think glulam beam). It added enough rigidity that Ed could safely move it into the garage.
     But not before I had him stand it up in the light.





     Ed built a rack today for the panels to be stored on until moving day. I am still just amazed at how he can see a project like this in his head and just BUILD it.


     And as soon as we got the first panel on the storage rack, I started doing layout for the second panel. Time's a wasting!

P.S.

   In spite of all the Strong Line, there is too much flex in the panel for comfort. Even though I would love to take a photo against daylight,  I'll not hold it up more than I have to for fear of a terrible accident. I will have to figure out how do to the rest of the panels differently, with more reinforcement. I'm not quite sure how to make this one more secure, now that it's all soldered.

Like Lemon Juice On A Paper Cut

     The first of three panels all done and flipped over to the right side. In spite of working like a mad woman I didn't get it done in time to hold up to daylight.  I spent an hour placing Strong Line reinforcement in every conceivable place, especially reinforcing the borders.  And just in case you didn't know, when you shove a piece of copper under your fingernail by accident, it hurts like crazy and bleeds all over.  Then, when you get flux in it, it's like lemon juice on a paper cut.  I soldered for about five hours, and in spite of the fume trap, inhaled waaaay too much flux smoke. I'll try to get a picture tomorrow of the light shining through.  I'm pretty happy with the softness of the colors.

It's A Wrap

    All the foil is wrapped on the first panel. Often I especially like the glass panel before any foil or solder goes on. This time, I like the look of it with the foil better. Tomorrow I will add Strong Line to reinforce the panel, particularly along the borders where the long lines create potential hinge points. I ordered some non-acid flux, but it may be too hard to wait for it. I may use regular flux on this panel and start soldering tomorrow.

The First Of A Dozen

     Yesterday was Go-To-Town Day, so I wasn't able to work on the project until today. I finished cutting out the first of the three panels for the first window. It's a milestone, and I'm excited. Tomorrow after church, I can start foiling. I'm hoping to get it foiled in two days. I doubt that I can keep the pace of a panel every two weeks, but that will be the goal.

The First Ray of Sun

    The dove portion is complete and I started in on the background and the first sun ray. I can't say enough how different the glass looks down flat than it does up in the light. If I can dedicate a whole day to it tomorrow I should be able to start foiling on Friday.