Small Framed Stained Glass Panels

Every holiday season I look for ways to make gifts for all my coworkers. I look for ideas that are handmade, cost efficient, somewhat easy to mass produce, and, especially, generically personalized (Is that such a thing?). One year I made personalized pint glasses. This year I resurrected that idea for a whole new group of coworkers.

This year, out of necessity, I applied the same thought to all my gift giving. Due to the lack of gainful employment, I declared it a handmade holiday.

I ended up with three tiers of gifts:

Tier 3: Homemade tomato pepper jam

In the past few months I began working at a local deli to gain experience in the food industry. (I have dreams of one day opening a tearoom but that’s a topic for another post). During the first week I was tasked with slicing tomatoes. With the way the slicer works, the tops and bottoms of the tomatoes are declared not sandwich worthy and discarded. This didn’t jive with my pet peeves of wasted food. (Did you know that the 40% of United States food supply is considered waste? 40%!!!) I bucketed up the tops and butts and brought them home. I made two jars of fermented salsa and the rest turned into tomato pepper jam.

Sweet with a little bit of kick. It is wonderful with cheese and crackers. My favorite is when it’s added to a turkey and Cooper cheese hoagie. The deli added to a weekly special of grilled ham and cheese. It became the perfect thing to give to teachers and family.

Tier 2: Etched pint glasses

A new job and a new group of coworkers. It was convenient that I had half a box of pint glasses in storage along with plenty of vinyl and a die cutting machine. I enjoy making these because they offer such impressive results in such a short period of time. In one evening I was able to knock out 10 pint glasses with a fancy initial. Everyone was impressed.

Tier 1: Framed stained glass panels

I started these gifts seven years ago. I planned out 12 6-inch patterns in Adobe Illustrator, some inspired by stained glass patterns, some by quilting blocks. I also cut some leftover wood stock (from the book shelves I build) during the woodworking night school at the local high school.

Back then, life only allowed me to get as far as cutting pieces for three panels. But maybe it was for good reason. This year I had the free time, supplies and additional resources. My lack of employment gave me the time, the extra supplies from the latest lamp shade gave me the resources and my relationship with the local furniture company supplied me with scrap wood for frames. In addition, I had extra experience with the table saw after completing the attic shelving project.

This year was the year, and they turned out great. I produced eight panels total, giving them out to those I was truly grateful for, those who offered much needed support in 2023.

Keep an eye out for more. I may even start tying cut curves!