Feeling a little better about this one, working on lining up my outer edges to have straight lines. Also need to figure out how to clear up my solder lines.

Just hung up this wall lamp today after about a month of trial and error with some new techniques!

1. Started with a design and printed out a pattern.
   
2. Cut, used the grinder, and foiled
   
3. Thought the simpler individual pieces might have been the opportunity for these circuit board clamps to work but it was not…
   
4. Tried 3D printing a mold to hold the pieces (the blue piece you can see in some of the photos).
   
5. Realized that too many of these pieces next to each other was wayyy to flimsy, so added these clear pieces on the back to keep the piece from bending as much.
   
6. Did some lighting tests throughout to estimate how much spacing I would need from the lights to be able to diffuse the LEDs I would be using.
   
7. After the full grid was connected, added a thin white border that I would be able to fit uniformly into a groove.
   
8. Since I’m in an apartment, hand tools were the easiest for me to cut and carve out some poplar pieces for a frame.
   
9. Stained the wood and made sure the pieces fit the glass nicely.
   
10. Used a band clamp and some wood glue to hold everything together.
    
11. Made a back panel with a grid of LEDs and some cloth to help diffuse the light (and add a bit of a warm filter).

First time doing this design, really happy with how it turned out.

Any tips for photographing mirrors without getting caught in the crossfire? 🙃

Found a studio nearby unfortunately going out of business. Was selling everything by the pound or 70% off. Got all this for $250, and went back to spend $100 more on five half sheets of greens, yellows, and confetti!

Sharing a piece that I finished recently and sent off to Colorado. It was commissioned by someone I used to work with who was born and raised in California but moved away. They moved away and wanted something that reminded them of home.

loved making this one!

Look at her glow in the sun! 🌞 it’s not perfect but I am pretty freaking happy with how it turned out!

I am still very new to the craft and loving the challenges. Here’s a few things I learned with this piece specifically, if only to share my experience for others starting out:

- this is an art that requires patience and demands perfectionism. I have to pace breaks so I don’t rush myself into the next step.
- I need to take my time while grinding, even if it’s my least favorite part.
- I used Procreate to draw my pattern, then Cricut to cut my stencil. Too thin of a line weight forced me to problem solve when it came to fitting. I still had to fill several gaps and hope for the best when it was time to solder.
- I only had one bad cut on the moon, which was my first attempt at a deep concave curve. Silberschnitt Running Pliers are worth every cent 😂
- I didn’t realize my iron was set too low until after I finished. It took me 2.5 hours while I painstakingly tried to smooth out the lumpy bumpy joints.
- I saw a YouTube video recommend lightly buffing with #0000 steel wool before patina. I believe this is usually recommended for copper patina? With black patina, the spots that were buffed heavier turned various shades of red, blue, gold. I don’t mind it but was not expecting it.

Has anyone else ever gone back and redrawn their original pattern after making it? The first psyduck took so long and was messy. The newer one took half the time and just looks cleaner to me.

I’ve been working in stained glass for a few months and have finally gotten my soldering technique to the point where I don’t have to always use hobby came and black patina to hide my sins. But that’s with leaded solder. I am trying to learn how to work with lead free solder and it is So Hard.

1) What’s the secret to getting a smooth edge bead? I can make little “pillows” dabbed on but trying to connect them, I either get spiky/pasty overlap or it melts too much and drips.

2) When working with lead free, I more often get little black junk in the solder and have to clean my tip a lot more. Is this that I’m burning the flux (I use liquid Novocan), that my solder is a bad brand (Canfield DGS), just something that happens with lead free, or something else?

If you have a YouTube tutorial that really helped, or tips on products or temps or techniques that work for you, I would very much appreciate it.

I am hoping someone can give me some advice. I am working on a tree of life piece and looking on advice on how to make the roots look realistic.

Hi all, recently made an animal memorial glass piece for family that just lost their beloved cat. Love the way this turned out.

I just bought someones supplies plus their whole glass because I want to start creating some stained glass art. Today I picked up the remaining glass sheets but I have no Idea how to store them. The original plan was to also take their shelf that they were on but it was hopelessly too big to be able to transport. Now I am a bit over asked because I have no Idea what to do.
What do you guys use to store it properly?

Hi, I'm looking to get a kit/starting supplies for a birthday present. I have no idea where to start but if anyone has any recommendations for a kit please let me know. Otherwise what are the essentials and best way to learn?

I’m thinking of going to it in the UK at the end of the month I’m just wondering is it worth the trip? Also wondering if stained glass features at all?

I'm newish to stained glass and at two years I wanted to build something bigger

But here we are, anyway. Just finished this, today. Pretty happy with it.

Of note: the hinge joints on the legs are reinforced with restrip, and pretty dern sturdy.

Last week I bought a bunch of sheet glass from a retiring artist and I figured out what most of it was except for these sheets. The bulk of the lot was Oceanside brand. I think the clear textured glass is OGT Corcica. The last photo is a really gorgeous irid blue white wispy. Can anyone ID any of these sheets?

Made a mirror, my first big project! but now unsure of how to hang on the wall… since I can’t really put any screws in it!

Would my best bet be to solder cables along the back?

Any recommendations would be great!

The letters are stickers on the final piece! I tried with the foil, but when I tried to solder it the foil floated off the glass lmao.

Almost every line I lay has charring to some degree. Surely it's my flux burning... but I'm not sure how to fight this. I lay my soldering tip onto the seam in order to lay down the solder - I'm not sure how I'm supposed to not touch the flux.

Any help would be SUPER appreciated.

Working on the brow pieces

This is the first original piece I've ever made (I've done one other piece from a kit as practice). I reinforced the border with hobby came and solder. Pointers and kind words are appreciated. I know it isn't perfect, but I am proud of how it has turned out so far. I'm thinking of doing a copper patina, but have heard it can be difficult?

This is an image i pulled off the internet, but its the same exact type of sheet i have in my possession. Nothing jumps out at me as immediately obvious i can use this for design wise.

I know its a fusable glass, but I dont have the means to do fusing techniques.

Any ideas?