The Central San Joaquin Valley's premier stained glass artisans since 1976

Restoration

Over time, leaded glass panels suffer from the ravages of time and weather. Oxidation of lead, water spots, vandalism, heat, unfortunate mishaps, and gravity exact their toll. Restoration of damaged stained glass panels, whatever the cause, is a specialty of Scarab Glass. From the most delicate kiln fired portrait work to a simple diamond pattern, we are able to restore your window to its original grandeur. Restoration, repair, or just plain rescue, Scarab has the expertise to save beautiful old windows that would otherwise have met an ignominious demise.

‘The Sea of Galilee’

This brief slideshow tells the story of a more than century old window, The Sea Of Galilee, from an Armenian church that was razed decades ago in Fresno, Ca. Dennis Simonian retrieved the window from a friend’s back yard where it had been stored outside for decades. He had fond memories of the artwork from his childhood days, and decided to have it restored to its original glory.

The window required complete dismantling. Each piece was then cleaned, others were re-cut, and multi-stage kiln fired stained glass painting was required for several areas. The finished window now resides on display at Simonian Farms in their Vintage Fresno History room for all to appreciate.

St. James Cathedral

Due to terminal lead oxidation it was necessary to disassemble and rebuild this beautiful old masterpiece, St. James “Good Shepherd.” All pieces were gently cleaned, and many kiln fired pieces were recreated to match the original color and style as needed.

Easton Presbyterian Church

A total of 10 windows in Easton Presbyterian Church were restored, which entailed correcting the usual problems with aging leaded glass; bowing, broken pieces, disintegrating lead, paint overspray, detached rebars, and general poor previous repair. The most challenging of these was the 7′ circular “Gethsemane.” It was carefully removed from its installation, dismantled, rebuilt, and installed.

Replace and Replicate

An antique door was brought to us with a center section obliterated. We made a complete replacement with colors and textures replicating the original vintage glass.

Craftsmanship

To make way for new church construction, an old church in Los Banos was demolished, antique stained glass windows included. One church member was wise enough to save some painted pieces by finding them in a dumpster. The “before” photo is the first attempt, by another studio, to reassemble these pieces. The unfortunate result is apparent. The “after” photo is Scarab’s version, using period glass and design elements.