New Sales Posted Just Now!

Our Monthly Sales page is now The Unpredictable and Sporadically Always Changing Sales Page and already Mikey has changed and added stuff- see here (you might need to do a page refresh)...

This Tuesday!

Deep Thought From Gary Brown

If I lived back in the wild west days, instead of carrying a six-shooter in my holster, I'd carry a soldering iron. That way, if some smart-alec cowboy said something like "Hey, look. He's carrying a soldering iron!" and started laughing, and everybody else started laughing, I could say, "That's right, it's a soldering iron. The soldering iron of justice." Then everybody would get real quiet and ashamed, because they had made fun of the soldering iron of justice.

This Tuesday!

Is It Art?

Many point to a controversial purchase made by the National Gallery of Canada in 1990 as the biggest art scandal ever seen in this country. It centred around a contemporary painting by Barnett Newman called the Voice of Fire. The painting is 18 feet tall and features a simple red stripe on a blue background.
Although Voice of Fire hung peacefully on loan in the gallery for two years, it was the subject of public outcry when, in the spring of 1990, the gallery decided to purchase the painting for $1.76 million.
The purchase was so controversial that it went all the way to the House of Commons and sparked a fad of T-shirts and ties patterned after the painting.
Felix Holtmann, a Manitoba MP who was then chair of the House of Commons committee on communications and culture, told a Winnipeg-based talk show the painting looked like “two cans of paint and two rollers and about 10 minutes would do the trick.”
An oft-heard criticism of abstract and contemporary art is that it can be created by anyone, as opposed to a distinguished, uniquely-talented artist. Although Morehead recognizes the legitimacy of that argument, she said it doesn’t lead to a very insightful exchange about the art produced.
“There’s a part of me that says that it’s a completely valid response when somebody says, ‘Mikey from Fantasy In Glass, Canada's first and still only officially sanctioned stained glass and fusing emporium, could have done this.’ 

Mikey is accepting bids on his Voice of Figger Sushi Dish. Bids starting at a very reasonable $187,000.00.

Music and Glass

Many worthy pursuits in life such as playing with glass can be  enhanced by the addition of music. 
Here is Mikey's attempt at enhancement today- 

This Tuesday!

Window makes Mikey Speechless

Made by Derrick, using mostly Spectrum solid opals.
Picture is clickable for a closer look.

Yippee! Fusing Seminar Coming Up!

Come on in on Saturday April 25 from 10am to 4pm and bask in the glory of  knowing that you will be enjoying yourself unashamed and unencumbered by the worry of children, pets or spouses as you will be taking our six hour Intro to Fusing class as taught by Louie 'I'm not from Barcelona' Deeaz.
No casuistry or sophism, no stratagem or subterfuge (sorry, I've been reading Conrad Black's book again...Mikey), really- no tricks at all. Just a glorious day learning about the mystery of glass fusing. 
Thinking about utilizing those artistic/technical skills you've developed over the years for the betterment of mankind? 
Or maybe something else if you're Dr. Evil?
Same tools, same skills (or lack of), take the day and learn how to fuse and make a whole bunch of stuff! All firings included in the course fee.
See here for more details...

This Tuesday!

Dear Diary

Dear Diary of a Demented Store Owner,
I recently saw a documentary on cable TV called "The Man Who Thinks He Might Have Maybe Seen Tomorrow," about Mikey Figstradamus. It scared the hell out of me. Figstradamus claims that first the Maple Leafs will go more than 40 years without a Stanley Cup win and then Spectrum Glass will copy Bullseye’s Aventurine Blue glass, only to be followed by the obliteration of Bullseye 90coe glass by the oncoming hoards of System 96 product. Should I begin to say my prayers? How good is Mikey at predicting the future? Or have I been duped by the copywriters and marketing people once again?
Gary Brown

Dear Mr. Brown,
 There are two schools of thought on Mikey Figstradamus.  Either (1) he has supernatural powers which enable him to prophesy the future with uncanny accuracy, or (2) he does for bull#$@ what Stonehenge did for rocks. I lean to the latter view.

Mikey de Figfstredame (Mikey Figgy in Latin) was born in Toronto, Canada just before the time of shag carpets and paisley prints. Supremely intelligent, extremely good looking and well-educated, he worked as a traveling carnival worker for many years picking up the craft of stained glass having learnt it from the Bearded Lady, but late in life his reason failed him and he decided to become a stained glass store owner. Among his works (which includes a collection of fused Frank Zappa busts, charmingly enough) was a scrapbook of prophecy on our industry.

There were so many of these prophecies and they were so vaguely written that they could be made to apply to nearly anything. For example, one quatrain predicted a monopoly supply situation in the mid- 2000's with all competition obliterated in Canada resulting in higher prices and less selection. 
 
Oops, never mind.  Seems Mikey may have been right on that one.

Deliveries Pouring In

Here's the first of several skids now coming in from more than one supplier over the next week.
Vanna Opal is the first thing unpacked. Thinking she might be a return tho'...

Back In Stock

... everything and more including the immediately sold out last time Glastac Fusers Gel given that we've had three truck shipments in the last 10 days with one more due!
And what's Glastac's Fusers Gel?
It's the new go-to holding agent. This thicker version of their regular GlasTac has a “tackier" feel but still burns out cleanly.
Advantages?

• Holds its applied shape well (you can also apply it with a paintbrush)

• Makes calligraphic powder lines easy

• Stays sticky longer (more working time before it dries)

• Tacks sheet to sheet with great holding power so you can move projects sooner

• Great for children’s fused glass projects

• Pretty blue colour that Mikey likes

New Product! Exclusive to Fantasy In Glass!

If you're looking for great cutting glass, we suggest you look on the back side of your glass. 
For holes the size of a dime. Or a 15mm jewel. Lots of them. Because glass that has these holes is a full three decibels louder when being cut. Which may not sound like much. But an increase of three decibels will double the cutability of your glass cutter at its tuning frequency (30 hertz). And reduce what's known as 'cutter wheel excursion'. With resulting added sensitivity your glass cutter requires less pressure to generate force to the glass. 
Of course, with this type of glass, there's one thing you'll miss- frustration. 
Simply, Swiss Cheesed GlassWerks' glass is unmatched in ease of cutability when compared to glass without holes. It cuts with less pressure and therefore less stress on your cutter wheel. 
Now remember, this is a science, so there's more here than just drilling holes. Swiss Cheesed GlassWerks' engineers fine tune each sheet of glass for optimum performance and efficient cutability. 
All of which means that if your glass doesn't have holes you might want to talk to a Swiss Cheesed GlassWerks dealer.
And get the hole truth!
Available exclusively at Fantasy In Glass Glassworks, Canada's first and still only officially sanctioned stained glass emporium!