Editor’s note, February 2021: In our Featured Shop series, we shine a light on a standout shop from Etsy’s talented seller community, offering readers a behind-the-scenes look at their process and story. And as we spend more time at home these days, getting cozy and catching up on our reading lists, we’re taking a moment to revisit some of our favorites—like the story of this talented stained-glass artist from January 2019.
A stained-glass parrot with swirly pastel feathers perches on a geometric brass frame. A softly streaked humpback whale swims across the bottom of a circular mirror. Natural cotton tassels dangle from a rainbow-shaped looking glass. It only takes one glance to see that Lauren Earl’s handcrafted home accessories, sold under the name Szklo Glass, are in a class of their own.
Explore the Szklo Glass collection
And that’s precisely what’s won her work a devoted following across the US and beyond—including on Broadway (read on to learn which headlining actress has become a repeat shopper). “The thing I hear most from my customers is that they’re drawn to my work because it’s something they haven’t seen before,” Lauren says. “I think that comes from me trying to make pieces that are a bit more modern and sophisticated than some stained glass work, and also a little bit more functional.” Whether it’s her practical and pretty jewelry organizers or her wholly whimsical wildlife designs that catch your eye, this is one dazzling talent to watch.
Next up: Get a peek inside Lauren’s newly converted mobile studio, and shop the Szklo Glass collection.

How did you get started working with stained glass?
My first job out of high school was in a stained-glass shop in San Diego, where I grew up; I worked there for about a year and loved it—working with my hands and with art. When I moved away for college in Utah, I got a job in another stained-glass shop, and that’s where I got the bulk of my education with stained-glass making. (It’s also where I met my now-husband—his uncle owned the business and he worked there while he was in school, too.) I loved the environment, and being able to stand and physically work with something all day long. I’ve done a computer job before too, and it’s okay—but I definitely like being on my feet more.
When did you decide to start making the kind of work that you’re creating now?
When I was working at that second stained glass shop, I realized I wanted to make some little things of my own—I just didn’t know what. The first things I tried making were these super plain rectangle-shaped glass pieces that I turned into necklaces. I remember my sister really loved them, but I’ve never worn that much jewelry myself, so when they didn’t quite take off I just dropped it.
It wasn’t until years later, after my husband and I had moved to Las Vegas and had a couple kids, that I started really thinking about what I wanted to do. I kind of got in a rut; I love being a mom, but I felt like, as a creative person, I still needed to have some kind of creative outlet to thrive. That’s when I sat down to figure out what I could make in just an hour or two a day, to have a moment for myself and do something artistic.
I ran through a lot of different ideas before something clicked: I saw a geometric wall hanging somewhere, and I realized I could use the stained glass skills I already had to make something other than a window or a jewelry piece. The first glass wall hangings I made were really simple: a hanging triangle piece and a circular piece with a couple colors in it.






You have such an interesting approach to your medium: combining mirrors and fiber work, and making pieces that are both functional and decorative. Will you tell us a bit about your design development process, and how it’s evolved over time?
I started out working with really simple geometric shapes because I liked that it felt modern and clean. Then slowly I added in other materials, like chain and brass bars. I used to have a job creating window displays for Anthropologie (and I still sometimes design windows for a bookstore in downtown Salt Lake), and I think my initial impulse to bring in other types of materials came from that installation background. At first I was quite nervous, and wondered if people in the stained glass world wouldn’t take it seriously. But I believe there’s definitely room to push the envelope with stained glass, and I think a lot of newer, younger people in the field are doing that too.
What about design inspiration? Where do you go for that?
My design inspiration comes from all over the place. I’ve done an Art Deco collection with pieces inspired by vintage jewelry, and for my most recent collections I’ve pulled inspiration from a lot of architecture and interior design, particularly in the curved arches and circles you see coming into play. I love that with stained glass, I can take inspiration from all types of design work.
Because I’m a mom and I don’t get out as much as I should, the easiest sources for me to find inspiration are online. Instagram is huge; I follow Design Milk and Architectural Digest to see the up-and-coming design and architecture trends. And then I also love Pinterest but I’m never searching for stained glass as inspiration. I’ll be searching something that has nothing to do with glass—like chairs, for example—and see a color that I love, or a line that draws me in.






What’s your work space like?
I’m currently in the process of moving my work space from the basement of our house in Salt Lake into a vintage Spartan Aircraft trailer that we’re converting into a mobile studio. I’ll have a work table that I can walk all the way around rather than only working from one side like I do now, and I’ll have an area to organize my glass, a station to do my grinding, another space for shipping, and then hopefully a little computer desk, too. I’m really excited about it.
What are some of the most popular items in your shop?
My jewelry organizers and my mirrors have been consistently popular pieces, especially my Geo mirrors—they’re an asymmetrical shape with brass bars on top. My parrot design also gets a lot of attention, and I’m hoping in 2019 to do a mini bird collection, and make a wall full of glass birds. I have a raven ready to go, and some really cool black glass that has a green iridescent sheen to it that I want to do something with. And my daughter’s been requesting a flamingo, so I have to do a flamingo too.






Have you had any memorable custom requests?
One of the coolest requests I got so far was from Betsy Wolfe, who was in the musical Waitress. She saw my moon stained glass wall hanging on Instagram and ordered a couple as thank-you gifts for people at the end of her Waitress run—including one for Sara Bareilles, who was taking her spot onstage. We worked together to pick out the glass colors, and then Betsy reached out to me again later to make another custom piece for her sister. I thought that was so fun.
What have been some of the most exciting moments or proudest achievements of your creative career thus far?
One of the big ones was when Design*Sponge did a little piece on 30 stained glass artists you should follow on Instagram, and I was so excited to find one of my pieces in the post. Another cool one was when Dayna Isom Johnson did a segment for Real Simple and used one of my mirrors in it. Recently, The New York Times had me send them a piece to photograph for their magazine—I’m hoping that one works out. It’s a very weird thing to see that you’re noticed by people, because I’m not a big company, I’m just a small artist-maker in my basement (or my trailer). I’m still not used to it, but it’s very cool.
What do you love most about running Szklo Glass?
Being able to create whatever comes into my head. I’ve always loved coming up with my own ideas and having full design control rather than trying to follow instructions. And if I think of something that I feel inspired by, I have to do it, because if I don’t I can’t drop it; I have to at least try it in order to get it out of my system. That’s what gets me excited.
Follow Szklo Glass on Instagram and Facebook.
Photographs by Haley Nord.
67 comments
Stekia Pantou from StekiapantouStore said 2 years ago
special moments in unique mirrors
ClassicMemories from ClassicMemories said 2 years ago
Very nice shop. Congrats on the feature.
accentonvintage from accentonvintage said 2 years ago
Beautiful work!
Karen from KnitPeddler said 2 years ago
Congrats on your feature!
branda Moreno from branda said 2 years ago
Congratulations!!! :-) :-)
ciaffi from ciaffi said 2 years ago
Great work!! Compliments!! :-) :-)
Nicole from KarmaCodeOne said 2 years ago
Beautiful inside and out ~ Stained glass is magical ! Cheers to circulating your lovely art !
Oriaku Onuoha-Bean from JewelryByOri said 2 years ago
Lovely and meticulous work! Congrats on the feature, dear <3
Zsuzsa from BogaBag said 2 years ago
shes so inspirational!
Anna from FairyToysWorld said 2 years ago
Geo mirrors are my dream now) Like this design and want something like this for my house. Thanks for the article. Nice story. Wish you good luck!
Olga Kaplina from KnitteditemsbyOlga said 2 years ago
Beautiful work. Congrats on the feature.
Pao Michelle from 787PrintingCo said 2 years ago
Wow this is beautiful, my mom used to make stained glass too, she still has all the equipment, I'm gonna send her this blog post, she's gonna love it! Keep it up! Would love to see some more of your work!
Rosita from linentextile said 2 years ago
Really amazing works and story. Love your shop and all glass tales in every piece!
Leo Nuvunga from AfricanCraftsCenter said 2 years ago
Good imagination! Congrats!
Gabriel from TuxedoCatCurations said 2 years ago
Crazy cool mirror work!
Lauren Earl from SzkloGlass said 2 years ago
Thank you so much Etsy for the interview and Valerie for making me sound so put together ;) Also thank you for all your kind words in the comments!
maggie from BlossomBouquetStudio said 2 years ago
Beautiful work! Congratulations on the story!
shiftingsand from EverydayYeahShop said 2 years ago
Super cute! Congrats!!!
Jennifer Tyson from LadyInPurpleBoutique said 2 years ago
Congrats on the feature Lauren! I love your crescent moons and use of geometric shapes!
Snazzy Living from Snazzyliving said 2 years ago
Congrats on your feature! Love your work.
Cathy from msbijouxbeads said 2 years ago
Thanks for sharing your design process, beautiful art. Great feature!
BlueCaterpillar from GreetingCardsBlue said 2 years ago
What a beautiful shop ! Congratulations on the feature !
Natalia from HatsAndOtherStories said 2 years ago
The monstera leaf is absolutely beautiful!
Mariana from diasyflores said 2 years ago
Nice work!! Congrats!!!! :-) :-)
Ana Paula from macraMe said 2 years ago
Wonderful!!! Compliments!! :-) :-)
Tomoko from GekkeiGeisha said 2 years ago
The crescent moon is my favorite. Very lovely.
Christina from TheWildPlum said 2 years ago
Sooooooo lovely! Congratulations!
Rhonda Stubbs from RhondaCorner said 2 years ago
What a nice shop. I love your birds. Congratulations on your feature and I wish you the very best on your future endeavors.
Kelly from CedarMillStudio said 2 years ago
Amazing work with stained glass! So glad you got a feature here! Love the cart too (I have the same one and it's awesome--I am in great company! :) )
Kasia Simura Lussier from SimuraDesign said 2 years ago
Wow beautiful work! And I love the Polish twist on some of the item names
Sally from SallysVintageKitchen said 2 years ago
Beautiful shop! Congratulations on the feature!
Oonah from unatuna said 2 years ago
Points for coolest workshop ever! And I love her work!
Nathan Yoder from NDYPhotography said 2 years ago
Beautiful work!
Cutie Expressions from CutieExpressions said 2 years ago
Love your work! Congratulations!!
Dan Neto from Festiviteees said 2 years ago
Amazing work! Love it!
SW from HomeDecorLab said 2 years ago
Beautiful shop, congrats on the feature!
Cindy Cain from MakingOver said 1 year ago
So beautiful!
Studio Snowpuppe from nellianna said 1 year ago
Very beautiful designs ! Truly unique. Our favorite is the humpback whale.
Lizaveta from LizavetaRU said 1 year ago
Very good!!!!
Nick Herbert-Jones from CameoGlassPrints said 252 days ago
Inspiring work! Stained glass is so timeless. And i love the converted aircraft trailer1
Gina from GinaBogomolArt said 231 days ago
I love stained glass! Beautiful shop!
Umesh Vigg from TheInspireDecor said 135 days ago
Congrats on your feature!
Eleonora Yusupova from BlackLlamaPaintings said 50 days ago
Wow. Congrats on your feature!
branda Moreno from branda said 50 days ago
Wonderful!!! Congrats again!!!
MOMMAGO from MOMMAGO said 50 days ago
Beautiful work! You have a great eye for design. Congratulations :)
AlexaMamas from BoringThingsShop said 49 days ago
What unusual, interesting decorations and interior items SzkloGlass creates! It's amazing how such beautiful things can be made of fragile glass. They will certainly decorate any interior or the simplest dress! I am always impressed by people who can turn an ordinary trailer into a cozy workshop, and create something unique from the objects that surround us everywhere!
anna from CalmeKidsCo said 48 days ago
These are so unique! I always get excited when I see something completely new. Just stunning ❤
KATERINA AMPRIKIDOU from ThroughTheStitch said 48 days ago
Amazing work and unique workshop!
Get Hired Now - Resume Writing from GetHiredNow said 48 days ago
Inspirational and amazing work! Love your crescent moons!
Shatha Jamil from Fluffsy said 47 days ago
Lovely feature!
Nina from OriginalJewelrByNina said 47 days ago
Какие чудесные вещи! Браво!
Ivory C from IvoryDigitalHub said 47 days ago
Very nice work !! Congrats!!!
Narsha from Narshastudio said 47 days ago
Wonderful!!! Compliments!!
marg h. from GoldenFaunaArt said 46 days ago
Lovely story! Congratulations on the feature. Unique artwork I love!
Flo Bryce from GuayViviane said 46 days ago
wow , it so cute
ECDesign from DesignECShop said 45 days ago
What a beautiful store! Congratulations!
Carolyn Vogel from WoolenBlooms said 44 days ago
Love your workspace!
Kamila Kokoszynska from KokoArtGallery said 44 days ago
Beautiful work! Congratulations!
Marina from MorningBranding said 43 days ago
Elegant works. The whale and the mirror are beautiful! Keep it up!
Sharon from YearsAfter said 43 days ago
Love all your unique designs and your workspace! Congrats!!
Tiana Kotskulich Precious Embroidery from TianaHandmade said 42 days ago
Beautiful creations, so tender and delidghtful!
Sorina from BijuBrill said 41 days ago
This is a different skill to admire. Such beautiful pieces arise from a talented woman ♥ that studio is a dream to work from
Neil said 40 days ago
Classi-glass!!
olga shcheblykina from OlgaShcheblykinaArt said 39 days ago
Lovely decor!
Michelle from ZipPouchCreations said 38 days ago
Beautiful!
Vlada from BeeNovaShop said 37 days ago
Very very beautiful!
Irina SK from EmbroideryDesing said 3 days ago
A so interesting article. I love such works and I like people who know how to see the creative in such a familiar.