Carlyn Ray Designs is Growing

June 11, 2015

Help Carlyn Ray Designs in the Dallas Glass Art Studio grow. Voting for us is one click away!

We are all really excited to be applying for this grant! What does this grant mean? It means we are growing! The community here around us is thirsty for experience, loving the classes and are appreciating our custom designs. We are becoming the studio we set out to be. This could be our next big step, offering us and you a lot of opportunities.

We balance our days with Carlyn Ray Designs’ unique and custom pieces, constantly pushing the limit and requiring a lot of research, trials and experiences. Carlyn has developed a new line called “Fusion Panels” which are panels infused with light and color which hang in/ on the wall, from the ceiling or become table pieces. Our first big piece of this series in a penthouse in Houston along side our next newest series: crystal drops!
These are our photos during the installation, professional photos soon!

Then we have another chandelier going up which we are equally excited about as it involves cast or solid glass lit with LEDs.

We have been buzzing here at the studio recently named “Dallas Glass Art.” With all of these projects and test runs, the team here has grown and our students are now becoming integral parts of our team! Along with all of these exciting custom projects, we also teach glass blowing classes and soon fusing classes on a regular basis. We have Saturday workshops and sometimes have 50 people in here Saturdays making glass flowers and keepsakes!

How would we use this grant?

1. Website:
We would be able to complete all the necessary steps for the studio to have its own website “Dallas Glass Art” to be able to sell classes, items, and communicate clearly the opportunities everyone has here in the studio. We also plan on having an educational page for organizations and schools to reference for educational info before working with us.

2. Classes:
We would also be able to hire administrative staff members to help coordinate the classes through the website, thus being able to book the majority of the classes through the studio.

The benefit of this is we would be able to book our own classes and be able to offer them at a lesser cost!

3. Kiln:
We would purchase a new and larger kiln for the fusings. These fusings have become very popular and are really well received. I love them!

This will open up the designs to accommodate larger sizes and multiple designs. With fusing and slumping classes available, we can have larger groups, a variety of ages, and it opens up a new realm of possibilities. This large kiln also frees the use of the smaller kiln for classes and student groups.

4. Showroom/ Gallery
We would also be able to create a showroom/ gallery space adjacent to our studio. This would allow us to work on a larger scale without projects taking up all the free space in the studio! We are now spreading into Pettigrew (space behind us) because we have outgrown our space. We need space to work on all of our new projects and also showcase the designs. This will be huge for our growth!

5. Lighting:
We would be able to hire professional electricians to wire up the chandeliers and help us with installs. Also, we are in need of specific design computer programs to create the designs in specific spaces to show the clients exactly how it looks from various angles and with different colors.

6. ARO
We would also be able to afford to continue to work with at-risk students, schools and groups in our community through our STEAM program Art Reaching Our (ARO). Funding would allow us to coordinate learning experiences per age group/ grade with hands on activities in the classrooms and also on field trips.

7. Instructors
We would be able to further train/ hire more instructors to have a wider variety of available times for classes as well as providing different types of glass classes.

8. Updates
We will also be able to make some updates to the studio to make it more productive and run more efficiently. We can create a student area for storage, tools, and color. Also, create a more fluid desk/ check out/ administrative area for the greeting team in the front.

9. Façade
Studio renovations will also include redoing the storefront with visible signs, display window area, and updated paint façade.

10. Joint shows
We would be able to continue to promote our studio through active community involvement. Also being able to invite other artists in for demonstrations and joint shows as well.

11. Efficiency, Safety, and Equipment
We would be able to get some air coolers and fans installed into the studio to help with this Texas heat! These would drastically bring down the temperature of the shop and make it a safer environment for working and more conducive to learning as well! Also be able to have new equipment for things like putting corporate logos/ names on specific glass pieces. Being able to develop and pursue our new “community lines.” These include wedding ceremony, creation hand, and celebration series.

We are on the verge of greatness! This time is so exciting and there are so many people, students, and designs that we would be elevating through these improvements.

Please help us by clicking the “VOTE NOW” button below, every vote gets us a step closer to our potential! Thank you!