Fused Glass Tabletop Curve
“Meadow with Rusty Patched Bumblebee”
11″ x 4″ x 2″
The “Summer Meadow” pieces take a lot of meticulous work to create. Cutting the long, thin strips of glass is a challenge, and the tiny flowers are carefully placed with a tac glue and tweezers. I cut specific shapes from sheets of glass. I also use bits of crushed glass, called frit, and long, spaghetti-thin strands of glass, called stringer. I carefully bend the stringer over a candle flame to create curved elements.
Each “Meadow” is unique; no two alike. Each comes with a Rusty Patched Bumblebee (Bombus affinis), an endangered species that can be spotted here.
I take requests – would you like a “Meadow” custom made for you? What is your favorite prairie flower?
I often walk through restored prairie in Northern Illinois, and there I find tranquility as well as inspiration.
The flowers have been inspired by Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa), Blazing Star (Liatris spicata), Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata), Eastern Daisy Fleabane (Erigeron annuus), Hedge Bindweed (Calystegia sepium), Queen Anne’s Lace (Daucus carota), Prairie Rose (Rosa setigera), Cup Plant (Silphium perfoliatum) . . . and more to come
Dew-spangled Meadow (left and below) has a different dimension to it; each blade of grass has been coated with bits of crushed glass (frit), which provides more texture and gives the piece a very different look.
