Fiona tells us that there’s no time like the present for taking a class in something that has always interested you, in her case a stained glass workshop…

Name:  Fiona Mayes
Institution: Central Saint Martins, University of the Arts London

‘I have always wanted to learn about stained glass but I had always put it off. However, a friend of mine died suddenly and it made me decide to do all the things I wanted to but hadn’t got round to doing. No time like the present!

At the beginning of the course I decided to design my stained glass piece based on drawings I did in Cornwall. Before we started our pieces, everyone on the course visited a shop to choose the glass we wanted and learnt about how to draw a design for stained glass, so that we knew how to cut each piece.
I’ve learnt how to assemble and cement stained glass, how to cut glass, sandblast, acid etch and paint on glass. Our tutor allowed us to be creative and original with our work and gave us the opportunity to use a variety of techniques, made possible by the equipment in the glass studio.’