A Makers' Collaboration

A few months ago, a professional woodworker reached out with a vision for a stained glass window commission to build into a custom door he was making for his home. He sent me a rough sketch — dragonflies, reeds, and cattails — and asked me to help make it into something special.

One of my favorite parts of the process, the design phase, is where a simple sketch can grow into a real vision. I developed a new drawing, adding water and a sun, and we both agreed the composition felt whole. When he visited the studio to choose the glass together, I had an idea for the dragonfly bodies — dichroic glass. It's a special glass I reach for often in my jewelry work; its light-shifting coating is unlike anything else, and it's truly transformed when light passes through it.

When he came to pick up the finished window, seeing his reaction — a fellow craftsman encountering that glass for the first time — was one of the best parts. He was thrilled! He promised to send photos once the window is set into the door, and I cannot wait to see the whole work of art together. I'll share them on Instagram so you can see it too.