Detail and heritage run strong in the heavy, yet fragile works of North Bend craftswoman Carol James.

A Valley resident for 22 years, James is the proud owner of Shifting Sands, a stained glass business. She has been cutting glass, and making and selling works of art for nearly 40 years.

Her latest piece, a Tuscan window scene, measures nearly five feet tall and more than three feet wide. James recently installed it at a Seattle law firm, once owned by the daughter of American craftsman Louis Comfort Tiffany.

The setting is fitting, because, both coincidentally and by design, her work follows in the path of that famed designer.

“I love everything about intricate design,” James said. “I’m not a contemporary person. I’m not a gothic person, I don’t believe.”

Prisms everywhere

James’ story began when her father bought his teenage daughter an enameling kiln.

“It was just a hot plate with a Pyrex dish,” but the kiln turned scrap copper and random bits of glass into art.

James’ epiphany came when, at age 17, she broke a big dresser-mounted mirror.

“There were prisms everywhere,” she said. “I collected all of the scraps, and I’m thinking, ‘What can I do with all of these?’” She fitted the shards into mosaics, and from the shattered mirror, a hobby and a passion grew.

“I live by it,” James said of her art. Building a piece like the Tuscan window takes years, with James fitting in time in her workshop during mid-days and evenings between her regular job, driving a bus for the Snoqualmie Valley School District.

“I’ll do it until I drop,” she said.

James had a stroke several years ago, and the art helps keep her mind and body sharp.

“It just keeps me going,” she said.

Building double layers of glass and painting pieces, James said she’s found herself working in some of the same traditions as Tiffany himself.

She works with copper foil to put pieces in place, and uses two engine hoists to flip the heavy composition and solder it all together.

James works alone to install the piece in the wall, and will trim the window frame herself to make sure it fits. On the exterior of the building, a clear sheet of glass protects the work.

Her latest work was appraised at about $8,500.

James said she would love to teach others about her work.

Her next piece is an interpretation of Monet in stained glass.

“It’ll just be exquisite,” she said.

Contact Shifting Sands at (425) 888-0401.