Stained glass artist now a leading light in niche industry

However, Gail Muir, owner of Lighthouse Glass Company, has cut out one such niche for herself, as a stained glass artist and lead glazier. However, her path to building a profitable business has not been without challenges.

A single mother, Gail has had to juggle family and business commitments and as any working mum knows, time tends to slip through your fingers like sand with a family to provide for and look after.

Support from her own family was not that forthcoming at the outset either, with a Socialist father set against any ideas of enterprise, while her mother was worried she was entering a career with no future.

Gail started her own business at 19, having been forced by family circumstances to quit art college, find a job and start earning.

However, her fascination with stained glass goes back much earlier. She recalls a house she passed on her way to primary school, which had a stained glass panel in the front door: “I remember my obsession with the colours and how it was done, as well as my disappointment if the storm doors were shut.

“Then, whenever we visited Edinburgh, I was more interested in seeing the stained glass in St Giles’ Cathedral than the shops.”

As a medium, Gail enjoys working with light and colour and for her, committing her creative ideas to glass is far more rewarding than paper (although drawing is a necessary part of the early design stages of any project).

Gail served her apprenticeship with a stained glass manufacturer in Ayr, not only drawing up the designs but also learning the technical process of stained glass manufacture. She was there for about two years before going it alone.

“There were no jobs in stained glass manufacture anyway at the time and I had been virtually running the business myself,” adds Gail.

She began work from her bedroom with a stained glass panel and a piece of chipboard, which she kept under her bed: “I used to get out of bed, tuck my jammies in my jeans and get started.”

However, her difficult and humble beginnings certainly helped her to be more determined and single-minded in carving out a career for herself.

Gail has been in her present workshop in an Irvine industrial estate for about eight years. The building was a former ice-cream factory, which she now owns.

It was her mother who came across the factory premises, and she now helps out with the financial side of Gail’s business.

Contrary to popular belief, the stained glass market is not dominated by church work. According to Gail, this accounts for about 10% of her annual turnover. Other clients include several well-known double-glazing firms, as well as joiners, glaziers, glass manufacturers and the general public.

Her turnover has grown steadily over the years: “The more gradual the growth the better. I never started out with lots of money and it makes the business stronger, as I’ve had to struggle to make it work.”

Lighthouse also offers triple glazing of stained glass in new panels to protect it from the elements. Projects over the years have been varied and often curious.

One client wanted a stained glass panel on her stairwell to match a tattoo in a much less public place. “It was a traditional design – a heart and dagger with a banner and it actually worked really well in stained glass with the black outline against the red.

“I’m not sure whether she ever showed off the tattoo that inspired it, however.”

Gail is currently working on a restoration project for a house in Girvan. This is an aspect of her work which she finds particularly challenging and rewarding.

“It’s a night and day panel in a priest’s house. It’s a bit like being an archaeologist as I have to take apart someone’s work from over 100 years ago and then piece it all together again, re-leading the panel and replacing any damaged glass. You need to make sure that when the panel goes back in, it does not look as if it’s been ‘fixed’.

“You’re never quite sure how the colours will work out either after they’ve been fired in the kiln. I like the fact that restoration work is awkward and a challenge.”

Another time she played detective after a burglary when the robbers completely smashed a stained glass window. Gail had to fit it back together like a jigsaw. “I do get a great sense of satisfaction from seeing a panel restored to its former glory.”

At first, Gail found it difficult to price her work properly. However, she learned from experience you can’t afford to “do a Rolls-Royce job for a Mini Metro price.”

Working alone can be difficult, but at the same time being a single-minded perfectionist can make working partnerships challenging, Gail says. She has trained and employed people in the past, but generally works alone. “For me job satisfaction always outweighs being self-employed. It’s been a long and winding road but an enjoyable one.”

For the future Gail hopes to develop her workshop and just keep “guddling away”. She plans to eventually sell the business as a going concern as her daughter is not keen on the self-employed life.

Gail would love to work on an airport installation to give her the opportunity to work with a large space and promote stained glass on a more public platform.

“I intend to keep improving my skills and I’m pretty inspired by the projects I do right now. So I guess I’m more fortunate than most in that respect.”