One of the most enjoyable aspects of my job is rising to the challenge of an interesting commission from a customer. You never know what they will ask you to make in stained glass. Here are two pieces I completed recently.

The stained glass shark was commissioned by a lovely couple who had seen one of my wall-mounted fish at an event. They decided they would like a shark to display in their bathroom. They were keen on the mid-blue iridescent glass they had seen used in another piece, so I set about designing and cutting out this new design, adding the shark’s belly in a complementary white, iridescent glass.

The fin on the front was fixed at a slight angle to give a 3D feel – it’s all in the details!

On the back I added a strong, wire hanger so they can hang it easily in a swimming position.

Another commission was for a red, sculptural goblet based on my original Neptune’s Goblet design. The lady who ordered it simply loves red and I was happy to make her her own version in this stunning colour. My trusty ring saw was used to cut out the complicated design, which would be hard and time-consuming to manage with a hand glass cutter.

Each piece was carefully wrapped in copper foil, before soldering around all sides and adding extra thick and thin solder to create further interest. Once the pieces were assembled, long wire strands were added to bring more texture to the surfaces and more decorative soldering was used around the base.

I am pleased to say that the new owners were all delighted with the results.