Made in NC: Carolina Stained Glass

Suzie Geyer was staring out the window on a slow afternoon at work in 1984 when a small stained glass store across the street caught her eye. Little did Geyer know what this observation would spark.

She now has more than 35 years of experience in the stained glass industry.

Geyer soon picked up stained glass as a hobby, and after five years of practice, she took a job at the stained glass store she’d first seen, then known as Stained Glass Art Design, located at 3305 Guess Road in Durham.

The artist took over the store in 2001 under the new name Carolina Stained Glass, but she hasn’t changed the tradition of bringing unique stained glass art to the Durham community.

In addition to doing custom stained and fused glass projects, repairs and selling supplies, Geyer and Carolina Stained Glass offer a range of stained glass classes.

Geyer said the most popular class is the fused glass class.

“You can make more functional and not just decorative things, like bowls, platters, jewelry, and other things that don’t just hang in the window,” she said.

Despite its eventual success, Carolina Stained Glass had a rocky start.

“We opened in June 2001, and then in September was 9/11, which was a scary year and the economy really went down after that,” Geyer said.

Despite this initial struggle, the business survived and has thrived to become the Durham institution that it is today.

Geyer’s favorite project of all-time is a window she made for Mount Bethel United Methodist Church in Bahama, N.C. The window, pictured below, features the ascension of Jesus and the symbols for alpha and omega.

“There is symbolism in the piece… The angels, in addition to being messengers of God and protectors of believers, are always directing our worship toward Jesus,” Geyer said.

In addition to the project for Mount Bethel, Geyer said she loves to create nature scenes.

“My favorite is to try to make flowers that look realistic and not cartoony,” Geyer said.

“The most rewarding part of completing a project for someone is when they just love it,” Geyer said. She also said she enjoys working in the store to help people plan projects and choose glass.

Geyer finds inspiration in her work, and life, from the reaction of light reflecting off stained glass.

“It’s not like a painting that sits flat on a wall, but light comes through. Inside the glass are dark and light colors that you can’t see until light passes through,” Geyer said.

“Stained glass art originated in churches years ago to tell biblical stories because people didn’t read much,” she said.

And despite ancient origins, Geyer can speak firsthand to the fact that stained glass still speaks to people in an emotional way. While she doesn’t have many boring days at work anymore, Geyer still has a strong tendency to stare through glass windows.

You can check out Geyer’s work and learn more about Carolina Stained Glass online at carolinastainedglass.com.

Reporting via Anne Claire Foreman, 1893 Brand Studio