This window was created last year for the transom over the entrance doors to Stella Maris Catholic Chapel in Ocracoke, North Carolina. Stella Maris translates to Star of the Sea.

In the beginning, we and our patron explored many possibilities. Drawings, glass samples, and quick mock-ups became routine for several months.

Reflecting on my younger days, I realize that I might have found the process of ‘jumping through all these hoops’ frustrating. However, experiences like this have taught me that such challenges often lead to our best work.

There are five stages in beveling. Rough grind with coarse grit, smooth grind with fine grit, smoothing over a stone with water, polishing with cork and pumice, and finishing up with felt and cerum oxide.

When we finished with the large stone, the glass still had many small facets, mostly from being handheld. By skipping the cork and polishing the facets with felt and cerum oxide, we could give the star a little extra sparkle.