Paradise Custom Glass in downtown Morganton brings light to multiple forms of glass work. Amy Brooks took a glass class not long after she and her husband moved to New Jersey and had their first child. She took the class looking for a way to meet new people, but she discovered a new career. After a few years of glass as a hobby, she opened Paradise Custom Glass in 2004.
Initially, Amy specialized in creating custom stained-glass windows, but eventually she expanded her work to painting, fusing, and slumping glass. A fascination with the way light changes as it travels through glass inspired her to create metal structures to raise up glass creations to catch light. This led to Amy working with copper inclusions, enameling, and welding to add dimension to her work. In 2021, Amy and her husband relocated to Morganton and found a beautiful building built in 1894. The building previously housed a Western Union, a grocery store, barber shop, hand printing company, photography studio, and more. Renovations exposed the original tin ceilings and brick walls, creating an excellent space for Amy’s glass shop.
Visitors to Paradise Custom Glass can see Amy’s working studio and gallery space. A large portion of Amy’s work focuses on custom creations such as windows, keepsake boxes, jewelry, and sculptures. A wide variety of glass is for sale in the gallery including functional glass dishes, coasters, wall sculptures, gift items, and jewelry. Finished stained glass and fused glass windows are on display as well. Amy is always in the creative mode, so on any given day, visitors may see her drawing, creating samples, testing ideas, or building a window.
Hours: Wednesday-Saturday 10 am-6 pm
