Bahill Glass
Stained Glass
Huntly, Aberdeenshire, Scotland.
Stained Glass Restoration and Repairs in North East Scotland
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Stained glass panels can last for hundreds of years in the best of circumstances but weathering and accidental damage mean that repairs and restoration are necessary.
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In-situ repairs are usually quicker, often taking a few hours, whereas a full restoration can take months. Offering a free initial assessment (if not too far away!), I can give expert advice on the work required and costs involved, whether it's one broken piece of glass or a larger restoration project.
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Panels that require more attention are removed from the wooden or stone frames and brought to the workshop. The panel space is boarded up securely until I can install the restored panels. If any major wood work or stone work repairs need to be done, this is the time for a joiner or stone mason to be on-site.
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Where appropriate, I leave undamaged lead and glass alone and where necessary, I choose replacement glass and lead to match as close as possible to the original and use these to restore the panel.
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The restored panel(s) can then be installed when it has had time to dry and harden from the last process of lead-light cementing.
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Advice can be given on how to look after lead and (tinted) glass panels, especially those with painted detail.
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I supply detailed recommendations and estimates for my customers and these can be provided for insurance companies if required.
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This stained glass window was the brunt of some vandalism, with damage to the glass and the lead work disfigured as well. I removed the panel, dismantled it, sourced closest match glass for the missing and broken sections - some of which required painting, silver-staining and firing, re-leaded and installed the finished window. Its not always easy to match the original glass and even harder to match the painting style, but I am pleased with the how this looks.
Some recent repairs finished on two doors. This style of timber door frame is seen quite a lot locally, but due to the design and the extremes of weather, especially by the coast, the woodwork can swell, shrink and move and the leaded glass panels will take the brunt of this over time. It's a straight forward job to take a panel out, board it up and make repairs.
Public buildings and large scale projects
I restore and repair large stained glass panels in public and private buildings, often alongside other skilled tradesmen and with fellow stained glass artisans, in order to bring a project in on time and with the craftmanship required.
Take a look at the difficult access for this job - a laylight above a stairwell. It was one of the smaller pieces of glass that needed replacing and we could access it without going out on to the roof. The replacement piece of glass was cut to size, painted, stained and fired by colleagues in Glasgow.
Lampshades and Cabinet Door Panels.
I carry out repairs to all sizes of glass and lead or copperfoil items. These can be brought to my workshop in Huntly, Aberdeenshire by appointment, or collection can be arranged if local. Small items can often be posted if necessary.
Lampshade Repairs
I remove the damaged sections of glass. If any glass is unbroken, just dislodged, this can be put back. Any replacement glass required is matched to the original as closely as possible. Usually a lampshade will have a 'streaky' colour variation within each glass type which makes it a bit easier to get a good match. I use a copper/tin solder to join the lampshade back together. A patina is then applied to the solder to match the original.
Please note that I do not do repairs to the electrical fittings or cable, just the glass shade.
Cabinet Door Panels
The lead and glass in cabinet doors is often very delicate once it has been damaged. The whole cabinet door should be removed from the cabinet, cardboard taped to each side and then wrapped in a thick old blanket or bubble wrap for transportation. It is best if it can be kept in an almost vertical plain when being moved, or lying completely flat with nothing to fall on it.
Once it's in the workshop, I remove the lead and glass panel from the wooden frame. I take apart the damaged lead and glass sections and replace like-for-like where possible. When repairs are complete, the glass and lead panel is replaced into the wooden frame. Some basic repairs to the wooden frame can be done if necessary.
Glass and copperfoil lampshade repaired and back in use. Luckily, not too many pieces to put back in.
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Simple but beautifully made cabinet door, needing some replacement glass. Very delicate thin lead and glass to work on, no room for bad craftsmanship.
Re-sizing and repurposing
Salvaged stained glass panels can be re-sized to fit new framework, as an in-situ piece or as a movable 'picture' in a frame. Or the individual pieces of tinted glass can be used to make a new panel. They are great to use as small, one-off pieces in doors and windows around the home or in sheds, workshops or garden rooms.