Karl and Laurie Reynolds are a husband & wife team who have spent years creating unique, handmade glass art together in their small backyard studio. Married for over 48 years, they have built a life centered on family, creativity, and craftsmanship. They are the proud parents of two daughters and grandparents to four grandchildren, and much of their work today grows out of the quiet rhythm of life they share together. What began as individual interests in art and glass has gradually grown into a creative partnership, where each brings their own skills and perspective to the work they create.

Karl’s journey with glass began many years ago, shortly after his discharge from the United States Navy, where he served in Vietnam aboard the USS Longbeach. Early in his career, he became employee number seven at Wolford Glassblowing, where he helped craft oil lamps from Pyrex tubing. It was there that he first learned the techniques of torchwork. That early experience sparked a deep appreciation for the beauty, precision, and patience required in flame-worked glass. The process of transforming raw materials into something both functional and beautiful left a lasting impression.

In the late 1970s, Karl continued developing his glassworking skills while working at Corning Glass Works in New York State, where he gained additional experience working with glass in a professional setting. Eventually, in 1982, he stepped away from the glass industry to operate his own appliance repair business. For many years he worked successfully as an appliance repairman, developing a reputation for careful work, practical problem solving, and dedication to his craft. Although glassworking remained in the background during those years, the skills and patience required in both trades share a similar mindset—attention to detail, steady hands, and a willingness to keep learning.

After retiring from the appliance repair business, Karl felt drawn back to the torch and flame that had first captured his interest decades earlier. He set up a small shop behind their home and began working with glass again. Rediscovering both the challenge and the satisfaction that come from shaping molten glass by hand. What started with simple beads gradually expanded into more detailed and expressive work. Today, he creates many of the handmade glass beads used in their designs, as well as his distinctive glass sculptures, including delicate glass icicles, miniature snowmen, and intricate, beautiful glass trees.

Laurie, meanwhile, has been an artist for most of her life and recieved both a BFA in painting and MA in art education. She brings a deep love of color, texture, and professional materials to their work. Her artistic training helps shape the jewelry she develops from both the beads created from glass but also includes many of the gems & minerals found in Idaho and the surrounding areas. She designs and crafts necklaces, bracelets, and earrings, combining their handmade glass beads with carefully selected stones and other natural materials. Laurie enjoys exploring how different elements interact—how the smooth brillance of glass contrasts with the texture of gems, or how subtle variations in color create balance and harmony in a finished piece. In addition to jewelry, she also creates designed bead sets that highlight the natural variation and beauty found in handmade glass. Recently adding an element of sculpture, Laurie concentrates also making multi colored evergreen style trees set in burl & applewood.

Together, Karl and Laurie create work that celebrates individuality and craftsmanship. Each bead and sculpture is formed by hand in their backyard studio, where rods of glass are heated in the flame, shaped carefully, and then kiln annealed to ensure strength and durability. The process takes patience and attention at every step, and no two pieces ever turn out exactly the same. Rather than seeing these differences as imperfections, they embrace them as part of what makes handmade glass so special.