MADE HERE Sunset Luna Art Keene, New Hampshire

Moons, spiderwebs, candles, lanterns, hearts and stars of multiple color and texture combinations are just some of the many stained-glass pieces designed and crafted by Megan Jones-Young of Sunset Luna Art in Keene, New Hampshire. &emsp;&emsp;"I love glass; sometimes I think back and say to myself, 'Wow, I've been doing this for 16 years!'" she says. &emsp;&emsp;She first studied stained glass craft at Common Crafts in Troy, New Hampshire, after graduating from Monadnock Regional High School in 2006. Next, she discovered that Franklin Pierce College, where her focus was art education, offered stained glass classes. &emsp;&emsp;After learning different methods and techniques, she returned to classes at Common Crafts. &emsp;&emsp;"It felt like home; there was still so much they had to teach me," she explains. &emsp;&emsp;Jones-Young has built an extensive collection of glass, in part because she discovered a studio that was closing and selling all its glass and supplies. Buying glass requires patience and shopping around, she says; one place might charge twice the price as that charged by another glass seller. &emsp;&emsp;Jones-Young says there are at least 20 different glass types, and that's just the broad categories, not the specific types. Wispy, rough-rolled, textured, and glass with striations are among the styles she describes. Wispy glass is one of the more popular types and one that she often uses. &emsp;&emsp;"I try to let the glass speak for itself," she says, adding that it may have more to say than the original design. &emsp;&emsp;Cutting and breaking glass is complex; different types and brands have their own ways of breaking. For example, she explains that textured glass must be cut on the least textured side, or it will shatter. &emsp;&emsp;Her friend calls the art of stained glass "danger quilting" because of the cuts, burns, and other injuries that can occur, making it important to practice caution when cutting and soldering. And since some solder contains lead blended with tin, respirator masks should be worn to prevent inhaling or ingesting the dangerous fumes. Lead-free solders include anything from tin to a silver blend. &emsp;&emsp;The glass pieces are wrapped with copper foil, then covered with flux, a substance that makes the solder stick and holds the stained-glass pieces together. Patinas are used with the solder on certain designs to give them a brass or black appearance. &emsp;&emsp;Jones-Young says seeing peoples' faces light up when they see the glass artwork, especially the children, is a big reward. &emsp;&emsp;"The kids are so excited to see it and are amazed when they learn that I make it," she adds. &emsp;&emsp;She gives kids free "stained glass look" stickers and safe-to-touch design versions at fairs and artisan shows where she exhibits and sells her work. Her stained glass is also for sale at Hannah Grimes Marketplace on Main Street in Keene, New Hampshire and as far away as a shop within a Harry Potter Airbnb in Salem, Massachusetts, as well as online. &emsp;&emsp;Another offering by Jones-Young is a live-streaming demonstration using the "Twitch" platform of her creating stained glass art in her studio. She has viewers from near and far, including the United States west coast, Canada, Europe and Australia. Viewers who join the group can ask questions in the chat section and have her answer them in "real-time," showing them what she means. &emsp;&emsp;Jones-Young teaches in her other roles as a tutor, teacher of special needs students, and a special education paraprofessional at the Making Community Connections charter school in Keene. &emsp;&emsp;She plans to expand what she does with glass — items like chimes, spinners, and more three-dimensional designs — and increase options for where her work will sell. &emsp;&emsp;"I would like to do more juried events and be able to pick and choose what kind of shops carry my work, considering things like how they run their shop, market themselves and their location," she notes. &emsp;&emsp;Learn more at sunsetlunaart.com