There’s finally been some progress around here!
Last week we started to sand some of our floors, we’re painting our bedroom (more on that soon) and if you follow us over on Instagram (well, of course, you totally should be!) you might have already seen that we uncovered the most amazing stained glass panels in the sliding door between the dining and living room.
We’re so used to trying to replace missing period details that it almost came as a shock to find something still (more or less) complete.
I’ve never quite understood why people hide or, even worse, remove period features so as much as I find it really weird that someone would try to cover the stained glass, we also know that we’re ridiculously lucky to still have it – not only because they’re original panels but also because we’re the only apartment in the building that has sliding doors!
As always, there’s a bit of an issue though.
As spectacular as the stained glass is, it’s also quite badly damaged. The whole glass shakes so much when we move the door that we barely touch it (which is why I taped them up before sanding the floors). The central painted glass panel is just about ready to fall out of the lead holding it and on the other door the central diamond shaped panel is already completely missing (we assume it fell out and broke just like this one is about to).
I’m not sure if that’s why the stained glass had been covered in fabric (it may have just been a weird design choice) but it needs repairing quick time!
The second panel is in an even worse condition than the first which is why we’ve left the fabric covering on this panel up for now. It’s not pretty but we don’t want to do anything that could jeopardise the condition of it even more!
I love the design of the stained glass. Berlin is a city with a quite alternative feel so I can’t help feel that the punky parrot is rather appropriate!
We’ll definitely try to have a replica made to replace the one that’s missing. Repairing broken stained glass pieces is surprisingly straight forward (we had some of the stained glass in our front door repaired in our last house) but I’m sure that replacing a whole missing piece like this is going to be a lot more involved and probably annoyingly expensive, too!
Either way, we’re finally making some progress around here and it feels sooo good!
We’ll be spending this weekend putting our home back together again after sanding our floors. We’re so happy with how they turned out and I can’t wait to share a full tour of them next week!
Do you have original features in your home? Have you been lucky to uncover something you’d not expected to find? What’s the favourite thing about your home? For me, the newly sanded parquet floor is pretty high up on the list!
Jessica@CapeofDreams says
Exciting find! I would love to have stained glass in our house.
Christine says
Super lucky, I still can’t quite believe it! You could always add some in your house, Jessica!
Cx
HouseTreeBeast says
Wow, you are so lucky to have found this! Who wouldn’t love a find like this?! Amazing they covered it up at one point.
We have found something similar (not nearly as nice) in our house as well (I plan to do a post on this when I get around to it :) ). We had a weird ‘wall’ in our house. Turned out it held the original sliding door. In the Netherlands usually when you find these en suite doors they come in pairs. But for some odd reason we don’t have two to fit the frame, we just have one HUGE door. We have plain glass in lead, but ours is damaged slightly as well. I will follow your progress on this, Can’t wait for the two of them to be finished, must be a stunning view!
Christine says
I know! I can’t wait to add the other side and see it finished either!
I love Dutch architecture (we had even considered moving to the Netherlands instead of Berlin) and your door sounds amazing – what a find! It sounds really special and I can’t wait to see it.
Cx
susan says
Those floors! OMG those floors! Y’all have done an outstanding job on the floors. I’m still in awe of those doors. How do you go about repairing stained glass in the door? Do you do it in situ?
Christine says
Aww, that’s so kind of you to say, Susan! There are a few imperfections here and there but overall we couldn’t be more pleased with how they turned out!
When the stained glass in our last house was broken they removed the whole panel and took it to their workshop. I assume that something similar will have to happen here. I’m pretty sure that we’ll also need more strengthening rods (I have no idea what they’re actually called) and I’m not sure if the glass is too bowed to be even able to install them at the moment.
Cx
Lucy Wynne says
What a beautiful find, and although the circumstances that led to your having to leave your previous home and UK
are dreadful, what an incredible jewel you have in your new home.
How incredibly lucky both you and the apartment are to have each other to preserve yet bring in to the present and future
this very special place.
Had you thought about trying to do stained glass yourself? I know it sounds scarily difficult but it really isn’t that hard.
I’m wheelchair bound and have arthritis in both hands and I’m working on my second project, a tribute window to my
late SO. It’s 3′ high and 2′ across and involves leading, copper foiling and painting.
All of this can be done at home, tools are incredibly cheap. Coloured glass is the biggest expense and that depends on
colour and shopping around.
Just a thought for you.
Christine says
Oh, thank you so much, Lucy! Hopefully, we’ll manage to do the apartment justice!
I had very briefly considered having a go at some stained glass work but for the door, I think it’s probably best left to the professionals! I’d just be too worried about doing something wrong! I might still have a go at a crafty stained glass project though!
CX
Lucy Wynne says
I really think you should try a stained glass class. There is something that is hard to describe but incredible nonetheless when you realise that although the tools in your hands are modern they are still based on tools that have been used for centuries.
The leaded glass in your home, cathedrals, palaces, churches were all made in pretty much the same way and you are following in this tradition. When I ‘paint’ my stained glass it is not with modern glass paint but items that must be mixed together exactly as in days of yore and then heated to last.
Sorry C, for going on it is just such an incredible thing to do and from the little I know of you through this site I truly believe you would enjoy it.
Lucy
Christine says
I’m sure I’d enjoy it, too, Lucy! I love your confidence in me – I’ll give it a go!
Cx
Lucy Wynne says
Look forward to seeing how you get on, any probs drop me a line :-)