Glass Blocks with Prism Light Effects

In an old entry as an update to our house construction, I wrote how we incorporated the use of glass blocks as part of the wall adjacent to the stairs.

There are plenty of glass block designs and colors in the market. We chose the "Diamond" design with no color (clear). This design seemed to shimmer in direct light. Other glass block suppliers call this design "Regent", "Checkers" and "Jewel".

After the house construction, I wrote how the glass blocks provided natural light to our living room especially near the stairs.

And the natural light was quite effective. The dark varnished steps of the stairs are brightly illuminated anytime of the day.

Shown below is a photo of the stairs, looking down, as taken from the stair landing. You'll notice how brightly the glass blocks (on the left) are from the sunlight.

Glass Blocks for Natural Light

In a previous entry, I wrote about the use of skylights for overhead lighting. The two things I requested from our architect prior house construction were good ventilation and natural lighting.

Not satisfied with the final plans, I suggested the use of glass blocks to further illuminate the interior. The logical place to have these installed was by the stairwell where there are no casement windows.

In this entry, I chose a specific glass block for this purpose.

Well, here are the glass blocks as installed. DH plays "Rose" in the Titanic movie and presses her palm on one of the blocks from the outside. You can see the amount of distortion afforded by the glass block pattern. DH's face on the next glass block is not recognizable.

House Update: Closets, Bay Windows, Glass Blocks

Some of the closets have been started. The design is fairly simple. Inside the closet is a partition for hanging clothes and another partition for side shelves. There are big drawers at the bottom of the closets.

The table was designed to be like a dresser with a provision for a dresser mirror. Above the table are shelves for books, presumably.

So I don’t think it will be used as a dresser though. A study table is more like it.