New! FigSip Silver Patina

You've surely noticed that the need for a top-quality Silver Patina has increased dramatically in recent years.
It seems that people are no longer merely satisfied with Black, Copper and Antique Brass Patinas.
As our expectations rise so do our demands for better choice and quality.
That's why Fantasy In Glass has developed a Silver Patina for the discriminating connoisseur.
The Fantasy In Glass Silver Patina (or FigSip) is of the highest quality assuring the user of an even, rich shiny silver finish with just one application.
So, when you want that unique, rich look of silver, try FigSip Patina, the choice of professionals.
Available exclusively at your Fantasy In Glass supplier.

(paid advertisement)

Monthly Sale for November

The end of the month is the time when we get to put something on sale but more importantly it's also another opportunity to post an embarrassing picture of Zenia. Ah, but it's Halloween and Anja dressed up so appropriately that Mikey is compelled to post her picture here instead, and to wish everyone a great Happy Halloween! Stay tuned for more Zenia next month.
Oh, yeah, go here for the Monthly Sale.

NASA Denies Stained Glass Store On Moon Claim

NASA administrators have strongly denied that there is a stained glass store on the moon. Recent pictures have been circulating on the internet and purport to show the reflection of a long chocolate brown coloured awning with the words 'Stained Glass' inscribed on, it in the helmet visor of astronaut Buzz Aldrin, lending weight to conspiracy theories which suggest that the U.S. space agency faked the 1969 moon landings in order to divert attention from the Vietnam War.
Sceptics have long claimed that photos of the landing show shadows which face in the wrong direction, suggesting that the event was faked by NASA and was staged in and around Toronto, Canada. Conspiracist Gary Brownie has unearthed proof that Fantasy In Glass Glassworks a stained glass emporium of some note, has been based in Toronto for several decades and while out-of-this world, has never been anywhere but Toronto, on The Queensway in Toronto's west end. He claims that two employees who worked there disappeared shortly after in mysterious circumstances and that they have yet to be found.

Said Brownie, "The problem is that stained glass craftspeople are scared to talk about this - too many of their colleagues have been silenced over the years."

Canadian Space Agency sources scoffed and pointed to the timing of the story. "This is malice put about by opponents of the United States' plan for a Lunar Moonbase and a colony on Mars and the revival of lead came in stained glass"

More Spectrum Fusible but Don't Panic Lani

Lani is one of the owners of Bullseye, and seeing as she is still grieving over Ed her cat (see her comments elsewhere) and might be in a sensitive mood, Mikey needs to reassure her that we are still firmly and undeniably in the Bullseye camp- we actually just use Spectrum in the old bait-and-switch move to hook people to fusing and then get them to move over to Bullseye.
If you've been in this month to take advantage of our great Spectrum Fusible Sale we've reloaded the racks with another 400' from our delivery yesterday. And yes, the new stuff is even cheaper given we bought this stuff in the States and not here.

Wooden Crates for Sick Kids

We've got a dozen or so wooden crates that measure 15" wide by 40" long and 28" deep from our last shipment taking up some valuable shop space. They are great for storage and can even work as the base for a worktable.
First come, first serve with a $15.00 donation to Sick Kids Hospital gets you one.
We also have alot of Spectrum Rack Pack crates that are smaller, at $5.00 to Sick Kids.
That is all...

New Store Hours to Year End

effective November 19, 2007


Monday...........10:00am to 6:00pm
Tuesday......... 10:00am to 6:00pm
Wednesday....... 10:00am to 6:00pm
Thursday........ 10:00am to 6:00pm
Friday.......... 9:30am to 6:00pm
Saturday..........9:30am to 5:30pm
Sundays......Always Closed (Sorry)

Truck Delivery Arrives from The U.S.

Just arrived on this fine, damp and rainy day, our second delivery from the States in as many weeks.
This one contains over 3000 sale pieces of glass, as well as the same chemicals we can get here (or can't as they are always out of stock), but now cheaper due to the strength of the Canadian dollar and the unwillingness of Canadian suppliers to reflect that in lower prices to us. We are pricing all these sale squares at 25% less than if we were to buy them here locally.
For the fuser, we've brought in over a hundred new molds, again at an average cost to you of about 20-25% less, die cut fusing blanks, powder sifters, money clips, tie bars, button backs, etc...

They Wish!

You know, every time a rumour starts and the victim tries to refute the rumour, it tends to flame the fires even more so we address this one with some trepidation;
We are not going to stop selling supplies and just go into custom work. Heck, we've been there already having run a professional church window studio in our past. Especially now- we love the challenge of dealing with out-of-stocks from our current Canadian supplier and trying to find supplies elsewhere (and now cheaper too).
I suspect these rumours might have been started by a wishful thinking competitor or perhaps even a wholesaler, but we are here to continue to kick some butt in this industry that we've invested over 25 years in! They wish!

Today's Economic Lesson, or Don't Shoot the Messenger

Canadian dollar this morning- $1.0348- up over 20% in less than a year.
Price of goods to Fantasy In Glass from our Canadian supplier- the same (or even higher in some cases).
Apparently the only one making any money in the Canadian stained glass market is the wholesaler...

Massive Potential Recall Pending

TORONTO - More than a half-million tons of Chinese-made lead came may be recalled next week, including the popuar 1/2" round H profile and the little suncatcher u-channel, because they were found to contain levels of lead. Details to follow.

Anthropology of Stained Glass

The most significant discovery in Mikey's career was entirely serendipitous. Last April, the stained glass store owner was hiking in Germany's Neander Valley when he tripped over something on a trail. Some quick digging exposed the obstacle as the tip of a mastodon tusk. But it wasn't until a few weeks later when the entire tusk was unearthed and dated that Mikey realized the magnitude of his find. The tusk, he believes, is actually a Neanderthal glass cutter. Mikey calls it a Neanderthal "toyofigus." Like the grozing pliers discovered in Slovenia last year, the fact that the 50,000-year-old toyofigus predates the presence of glass makes it even more perplexing.

A carefully aligned hole starts at the top of the cutter and runs its entire length. "I think a Neanderthal master craftsman must have used a stone awl to hollow out the toyofigus," says Mikey. This cutter, he says, proves that while primitive man made and used tools, more importantly it suggests that Neanderthals used a cutter lubricant proving they were concerned with cutter wheel longevity.

While digging out the tool, Mikey uncovered the entrance to a cave and another major find: the first example of Neanderthal cave stained glass cutlines. Fittingly, the cutlines show lamp and suncatcher designs alongside proposed formulas for actually manufacturing glass once fire is discovered. "Maybe what we have here is the birth of a new hobby and artform."

Mikey theorizes that the Neanderthals' fondness for stained glass may explain why they vanished some 30,000 years ago. "Maybe their frustration at not actually having any glass to cut scared away all the game. They would have produced an awful racket all over the place complaining and arguing over whether Bullseye artglass would continue to be as popular as it is yet to be."

Thanks

For making us the most popular website in stained glass on the web. Over a half a million hits a month and Google ranking at # 1 for stained glass supplies, stained glass handsome guys, stained glass nice guys, good looking Mikey's, etc.

I'm Not Normally Quite That Rude

Lani McGregor (partner/owner of Bullseye Glass and also a blog author) is nice enough to read my blog, yet I neglected to give her blog a mention. Go here to read up on the trials and tribulations of this great glass manufacturer.
Oh, the picture attached? It has nothing whatsoever to do with Bullseye, but Lani posts so many pretty pictures to her blog, I felt it incumbent upon me to do likewise.

Mikey Feels a Good Rant Coming On!

Well, well, well. It's been what, about six hours since we last gave Bullseye some sort of mention, hasn't it?! In that case then it's about time to do a little rant on this manufacturer- and a nicer manufacturer we’ve never found.
While the Egyptians might have invented glass fusing (go here to read Mikey's Fusing Paper), it was Bullseye that turned it into an art form that is now accessible to almost anyone. Well at least to any of our customers, as we seem to be the only source of the full line of this great artglass being a dealer for almost ten years.
What about other manufacturers such as Spectrum which we also carry? A cheaper glass you say? True, but your colour selection is so limited you might as well be working with crayon. Of course you could fill out their limited palette with the accompanying glasses from Uroboros but, oops, there goes your savings. Why not just stick with Bullseye's palette of well over 200 colours, in various thicknesses, various textures, various iridescent coating styles and all the accessory glass like stringers, frits, fractures and powders to go along with it.
Heck, they are now also an up and coming supplier of rods for torchwork and were very generous in their support of our involvement in the recent Bead Oasis Show (as well as donations of glass to our Cooking with an Executive Chef seminars, etc).
The trend may be towards using a glass like Spectrum because of its cost (false), but we will continue to fight the fight and carry as much Bullseye as we can and will continue to price it aggressively to ensure it is available to as many people as possible. Besides, Lani McGregor (partner in Bullseye) (and Amy- retired sale rep for us) read our blog and as far as we know Spectrum doesn't.

It's a New Month.

That means two things here at Fantasy In Glass;
1) Mikey's just posted another Monthly Sale Special (for October 2007), and
2) we get to post another embarassing picture of Zenia!
Go here to see the sale. Stay here to gaze at Zenia's picture a little while longer...

On another note, today also marks the last day of the three day Bead Oasis Show that Fantasy In Glass was a participant in (at the Metro T.O. Convention Centre). We had a booth to showcase our ever-expanding beadmaking department which consists of Bullseye Rodz, torches, and handtools (see our seminars page for several newly added classes on this increasingly popular glass craft). Our involvement was single handedly organized and run by the Bead Girl Herself- Zenia (with great assistance from Pat) and for that we are forever grateful (of course not that grateful that we won't continue to run a continuing series of embarassing pictures tho'). Job well done ladies.

Why Did the Turkey Cross the Road?

It was the chicken's day off of course! And it will be partially for the FIG Staff too.
Saturday October 6 we'll be opening a litle earlier, and closing a little earlier-
hours on Sat. Oct. 6 are- 9:00a.m.to 2:pm. And we remind you, yes, we'll be closed on Monday October 8.
May your turkey be a festive one. Happy Thanksgiving from all the staff at Fantasy In Glass!

Weird?

A rendition of the Necker Cube in stained glass
Is the box of band aides inside or out?

Tripped across this today-Glass Geometry © 2005
Crazy Crate

Coming In Next Week

Just got confirmation of a pending delivery from the States (got to love our free market system!). A Canadian dollar at par means we can now land and sell you a sale square of glass at 25% less than buying it in Canada. This delivery (by way of our friends at Traffic Tech) has over 3500 sale squares from Spectrum, Armstrong, Youghiogheny, Wissmach and others, as well as chemicals, vase caps, books, jewelry findings, brass sundries, various handtools and more.
Of special note, for the fuser, we also have over 200 molds on their way with an average price of around twenty five bucks or 25-40% less than buying it locally.

Pricing Status Report

Canadian Dollar- January 24, 2007- .84630 U.S.... today $1.001 (up 15%)
Porsche Boxter- January 24, 2007- $63,600.00 Cdn... today $58,100.00 (down 8%)
Glastar Superstar Grinder at FIG- January 24, 2007- $148.99... today $148.99 (no change)
Glastar Superstar Grinder in U.S.- January 24, 2007- $104.99... today $89.99 (down 15%)
Dollar in U.S. today $1.00. Dollar in Canada today- $1.00 (equal)
Glastar Superstar Grinder in U.S. today $89.99. In Canada today- $148.99 (66% higher)

Jen-Ken Kilns

We've just ordered a truckload of kilns from Jen-Ken (the best manufacturer in the business). Included in this shipment is their popular 15" x 6" hex (with or without a quartz window), their slightly smaller 11" x 6" hex, and of course the infamous Chillipepper- the kiln made out of a toolbox (for real).We are also adding a new kiln to this shipment- the JK which can accomodate a 24" x 24" square shelf! All Jen-Ken kilns we order come totally complete and include a shelf, posts and kilnwash and all have the Bartlett 3-button computer controller included.
Special Deal!
If you leave us a deposit of 25% before October 13, we'll knock a hundred bucks off any kiln you order. Prices can be found on our website, but of course they'll be wrong- like Porsche Cars Canada, we anticipate a significant price reduction given that the dollar has gone up about 12% since our last order!

Another Mikey Truism or Life as a Canadian Retailer

Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up.
It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed.
Every morning a lion wakes up.
It knows it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death.
It doesn't matter whether you are a lion or a gazelle.
When the sun comes up, you better start running.

Tired of Reading? Then Try This

We know that, there are times where Mikey's wit and wisdom is just too much to absorb, so here's a welcome distraction-
Blogger Play will show you a never-ending stream of images that were just uploaded to public Blogger blogs. You can click the image to be taken directly to the blog post it was uploaded to, or click “show info” to see an overlay with the post title, a snippet of the body, and some profile information about the blogger who uploaded it. A great desktop distraction as you ruminate about Mikey and another opportunity for Mikey to post an embarassing pic of Zenia... again.

New Product!

Mikey takes delivery of a new flux for copper foil. It's called Armageddon Flux, and it's so new it has an expiry date of 'Best Before End'.

Mikey Feels a Rant Coming On!

So, the Canadian dollar is now at par or almost, and we still have pricing that doesn't reflect that fact. I know, we've heard all the stories, you know, old inventory, lag in the supply chain, smaller market, Aquarius in descent, yadda yadda, yadda...
Well, what can a poor Canadian stained glass retailer do when there's only one Canadian distributor and we have to contend with pricing that makes us now totally uncompetitive when we compare to the American market?
How about we suggest that you consider making all your grinder and bandsaw purchases in the States! That's right folks. We can't sell them to make a living and it seems that only the distributor is making any money on them, so why continue?
Here's some facts-
a Glastar Superstar II- on sale at Yglass for $89.99- our cost is 30% higher and we sell it at $148.99. Anything in Stained glass is selling a Wizling for $67.95- a lot less than what we're charged from the Canadian distributor.
Considering buying a saw? Yglass has them on for $338.78, Anything in Stained Glass for $329.95. Our cost is again more than 30% higher (I'd love to tell you exactly how much we pay, but I think we've already ruffled enough feathers for today). We had them on sale this month at a couple of bucks over our cost at $488.88. Want a blade for that saw- $81.95- about what it costs us here in Canada).
I know, you still have to pay shipping (no duty as they're U.S. made and are exempt) and there is the warranty issue, but to save 33% or more, I would consider doing it.
But now what about stuff that has no need for warranty coverage? Glass cutters ($21.99 for a Toyo vs $40.99 at FIG with our cost again greater than the American retail),Edco copper foil- $3.99/roll retail in the States versus our cost again which is higher than $3.99.
You know what? We'd be better off with paying retail and buying our supplies from the American retailer it seems!
Any comments from our fellow retailers?

Bead Oasis Show

The Bead Oasis Show is a 3 day show being held at the Metro Convention Centre on Friday Sept. 28 to Sunday Sept. 30. This is a Canadian consumer show featuring beads, beadmaking supplies, and all things related to melting glass. It is also a show that Fantasy In Glass is now participating in. Drop by and say hello!

Canadian Dollar Hits Par- Circle Cutter Prices Plummet!

Well, sort of. Found a source for some really reasonably priced tools, How about a brass circle cutter that can cut circles up to almost 16", with a six-wheel head and suction cup base! Due in on Sept. 26.
Oh, yeah, how much? Sale priced at $23.88!

Brass construction with 2" vacuum base
• Score and cut circles up to 15-3/4" dia. and 1-16" to 5/16" thick
• Includes 6 cutting wheels

Human Genome Project Finds Mutated Gene That May Explain Baffling Fondness For Stained Glass

ETOBICOKE, ON- As the first phase of the mapping of human DNA comes to a completion, a preliminary draft reveals the discovery of a mutated gene that may explain the baffling popularity of stained glass.
“The loud, repetitive pattern of sound that a Toyo Tap cutter imparts as it glides across a sheet of Spectrum opal seems to trigger a favourable response in the brain that goes counter to our understanding of what we normally consider pleasurable stimulus. We believe it’s caused by a gene mutation we sequenced,” said Zenja Chaboosky, a lowly research assistant at McMuster University involved with the project. The gene theory was met with relief by noted stained glass store owner Mikey in Toronto. “I’ve been puzzled for years. This may finally be the answer,” he said.

Shelves Or Staff Naked- Which Do You Prefer?

Back after a lull with vacation, we are now starting to refill our shelves back to our normal levels. Due in tomorrow is a sizeable delivery from our one and only Canadian supplier- Spectrum, Youghiogheny and Uroboros sheet glass, and over 1200 pieces of glass destined exclusively for our sales racks- including gluchip at 99 cents a foot!
Coming next week, another two truck shipment from a couple of suppliers in the States (hey, what are we going to do? The dollar is at 99 cents and our Canadian suppliers don't seem to want to pass on the savings so we'll continue to look for the best deals for you).

IT'S NOT JUST SAND, SODA ASH, LIME AND SOME OTHER STUFF Part 7 Or Damn It, Finally the End

Last Part (7) of Mike's history of the origins of Swiss Cheesed Glasswerks;

INSTRUCTIONS FOR PURGING YOURSELF OF ORDINARY GLASS IN PREPARATION OF USING SWISS CHEESED It is well known that Swiss Cheesed Glass has powers few can understand and even fewer will ever realize. It is therefore essential that the proper ritual be followed to respectfully exploit the magic of this glass making you more effective in your true crusade. Step 1: Bathe in a cold mountain stream by moonlight to both purify yourself and to feel your connection to the flowing of the Single Harmonic Which Can Be Found In The Glass. Step 2: Anoint your body with Classique Neutra Flux and Patina Cleaner. This powerful cleanser will help you liberate the dynamic power of your repressed artistic craftsperson's soul. Step 3: Pick up your Glass Super cutter and dance on fire coals. This is a swell process for purging the spiritual weenies from your soul and will put you in touch with the demons and saints found on the path to stained glass happiness. There should now be no doubt that your spirit has been uplifted and is now affecting every aspect of your life. That is what Swiss Cheesed GlassWerks is all about.

Poor Al

New Fantasy In Glass Beginner student Al came in second place in a glass-cutting contest at the stained glass emporium today. No one had the heart to tell him he was the only entrant.