This “work in progress” photo shows one of two sidelights I am creating for clients who recently moved into a 55 & over community. They have two long, skinny sidelight windows alongside their front door and had temporarily put up curtains for privacy. They didn’t love the curtains and kept thinking about how much nicer it would be to have stained glass windows. However, they had mullions (horizontal wood bars) that divided the windows and they didn’t like the way they broke up the space. From previous dealings with their Homeowners’ Association, they knew if they were to remove these existing windows, they would have to go through a lengthy approval process so they reached out to me to see what I recommended. I suggested I could create a design that allowed for the majority of the glass to be a heavily textured clear glass which would let in a lot of light but still obstruct the view from the outside. And in the horizontal areas where the mullions are, I could use opaque glass so the mullions wouldn’t be visible. I showed them how, by being deliberate with the design, placement of the elements, and selection of glass, we could create something that would give them what they wanted and they didn’t need to replace the existing windows. The clear glass in the photo above appears white because of the white paper behind it. But when it is installed, I think it’s going to do the trick and my clients will have light, privacy, and no Homeowners’ Association headache.