Linda Shanahan

Learn Stained Glass from this Lass

We’ve a stained glass queen, her name is Nancy

She’ll get you started, it can’t be real fancy

No need to worry, she’ll teach step by step

The woman’s amazing, she’s so full of pep

You’ll pick out your pattern then number and pin

If you make a mistake, no trouble, you’re in

You go to the store, and the glass you will buy

Like green for the trees and blue for the sky

Cut it then grind it then get it real clean

The foil you’ll apply by hand or machine

Burnish the foil, on the edge it must stay

Assemble the pieces as you pin away

The foil made of copper will solder real nice

It holds glass together, you won’t need a vise

The soldering finished, you’re still not quite done

You’ll clean and patina and polish; what fun.

You look at the solder and see a slight glob

But Nancy will tell you “You did a GREAT JOB”

Back home you will take it, don’t break on the way

You’ll hang in the window to admire each day. “Project in Process”

Artists who “Aspire to Inspire”—Nancy Hibbard

Nancy Hibbard grew up in South Portland, Maine, and still speaks with that delightfully distinctive accent. She enjoyed the snow in winter and the short walk to the ocean in summer. Graduating from South Portland High School, she then attended Westbrook Junior College.

As a young woman, she married and raised two children, spending time volunteering for many different organizations from Little League to Social Service agencies. She had yet to discover her inner artist.

In 1985, Nancy and husband Irv purchased a home in Sun Lakes. They visited a few times a year, exploring the state. When Irv retired in 1998, they became snowbirds.

At a meeting of the Sun Lakes Rock, Gem and Silver Club, Nancy signed up for a beginning stained glass class and became completely hooked on the craft. Over the years, she has created dozens of pieces;she sold a few, but has given most of them away to friends and the occasional stranger. Naturally, her favorites have found a place in her home.

In 2003, Nancy started teaching and continues to do so. The classes are limited to four people and take 10 to 12 sessions to complete. Her favorite part of the process is seeing how happy the students are with their finished piece. Interested in learning to create your own stained glass creations? Visit our website at www.slrgs.com.