Light dances across the lustrous metallic surfaces of this beautiful one-of-a-kind iridized glass decor platter handcrafted by designer Shannon Shepherd.

The platter is made of two layers of glass that have been fused together in a 1470 degree kiln for 24 hours. Once cooled and out of the kiln, decorative nuggets are arranged on top in the desired pattern and placed in the kiln a second time (Each nugget is actually three layers of glass placed on top of each other and where fused into a single nugget in an earlier kiln firing). These nuggets are not totally fused into the platter, but are tac fused, keeping a raised profile. Interestingly, glass wants to be 1/4" thick. In the kiln glass moves to this thickness as seen with the three glass layers of each nugget.It is then placed in the kiln a third time, this time with a mold so the glass slumps into the final shaping, a process of another 18 hours.

It is always exciting to open the kiln and see the final art piece.