Our Stained Glass Window

We didn't know the house had a stained glass window until we were at the closing. The seller had boarded it from the outside, and had put up black plastic covering it on the inside.

When we removed the boards, we were quite impressed. It was a 2' x 3' window. That is pretty nice for a house our size. It was broken in several spots and had a few panes missing. We thought it was one of the nicest things about the home though, so we made it a priority to fix it.

We had Richard Diens from Goodwood Studios fix the window. We are delighted with the result. We discussed preserving as much of the original glass as possible, even if it meant filling a crack or 2 with silicone and leaving it there. What had to be replaced, he replaced with the most exact matches he could, and we love the result.

I wish we had remembered to take a "before" picture, because the transformation is pretty striking.

Richard explained to us that our window is in the Art Noveau style, and a bit of the history of the MacIntosh Roses in the corners. He is fairly sure this window is original, which is exciting.

A bit of history

Robert and I have been married for 6 years. We just bought this house February 12th, 2008. This is our first house. We also have 2 dogs and 3 cats. The cats are staying with my parents for now, until we buy screens.

We bought this house, in the Chicago Lawn neighborhood of Chicago, because we wanted to be in the city, but we wanted to have a yard for the dogs, and because rent with 5 pets is much more expensive than just buying outright.

We have so far found out that our house was built in 1916. The Architect was Andrew F. Hughes. The construction company is listed as Berglund. There is a Berglund Construction still in Chicago, and I would be willing to bet they are one and the same.

This house has been very neglected, and has fallen into serious disrepair. We hope to restore it to as much of its former glory as we can.

Wish us luck!