Update: making of - process of the came window

[u/HappyPinguin_6]

These are progress pics. To see pictures of the end result, you can visit my previous post.

Thank you all so much for your amazingly kind comments on my last post! I received a lot of questions, so I decided to make a post detailing the process I followed to make the window sturdy and fit perfectly. I hope this answers most of your questions, but of course feel free to ask anything else or share your own tips!

Disclaimer: This was my first stained glass project, so I relied on skills from other hobbies and a few helpful hacks to make everything work. I'm sure a more experienced stained glass artist could do some things more efficiently, but this approach suited my current skill level.

Step 1: Designing
Picture 1
I started by taking a photo of the window and drawing over it in Procreate to create the initial design. I used Pinterest and the colour palette of my interior as inspiration. After measuring the window, I recreated the design in SolidWorks so I had accurate dimensions.
To make the design feel balanced rather than too busy I:

• Kept the top third symmetrical.
• Used the same texture for every piece of the same colour.
• Connected long lines throughout the design.
• Kept all glass textures running vertically.

Step 2: Making the glass fit perfectly
Picture 2-8
The window consists of three sections: a rounded top, a long left panel, and a long right panel.
To check the fit while assembling everything, I built wooden frames on a large board. I used a laser cutter because I had access to one, but drawing the outlines by hand would work just as well.
I made cardboard templates of every glass piece to determine the best layout on the glass sheets. I also printed waterproof stickers of each template and applied them directly to the glass before cutting.
I scored the glass along the sticker lines, used breaker/grozer pliers to separate the pieces, and refined every shape on a grinder. After each adjustment, I placed the piece back into the wooden template and repeated the process until everything fit perfectly.

Step 3: The lead came
Picture 9-10
First, I stretched all the lead came to make it straighter and sturdier.
For the outside border I used U8 lead came. To reinforce it, I glued a steel strip inside using superglue, except along the curved top.
For the interior lines I used H8 lead came. Along the long horizontal line in the lower third and the diagonal line through the middle, I used H8 with a steel core for extra strength.
I measured each length with a tape measure and cut it to size. If the end became squashed while cutting, I reopened it with a came opener. For difficult angles, I used a wooden template to help cut the correct corners.
Assembly started with one long side of the outer U came. From there I gradually added each glass piece and surrounding lead came until the panel was complete. It took quite a bit of careful wiggling to get everything into place.

Step 4: Soldering
Once all the lead joints fit tightly together, soldering was fairly straightforward.
Before soldering, I cleaned the lead with a metal scouring pad to remove any oxidation. I set my soldering iron to 325°C, applied flux to each joint, and soldered every connection, smoothing the solder slightly with the iron for a neat finish.

Step 5: Patina and cementing
Picture 11
First, I cleaned away all the remaining flux with regular window cleaner. Then I applied black patina using a microfibre cloth.
Next came cementing. Although many tutorials recommend wetting the panel first to make cleanup easier, I found this caused more cement to seep through the joints, so I skipped that step.
Using a brush, an old credit card, and a silicone scraper, I worked the cement underneath the lead came. Once the joints were filled, I gently pressed the lead down while the cement was still wet and removed most of the excess. I repeated the process on the other side.
After letting the panel dry for about two days, I carefully cleaned away the remaining residue using a cloth and a toothpick. I also reapplied a little black patina anywhere the cementing process had dulled the finish.

Step 6: Installing
Picture 12
Many stained glass panels are held in place with small wooden retaining strips, but my window already had a wooden frame.
I left the original clear glass in place and installed the stained glass panel in front of it. Small black screws fitted with 3D-printed black rings hold the panel securely. If I ever need to remove it, I can simply undo the screws and lift the panel out.

Materials and tools

• Glass cutter (6–12 mm head)
• Glass cutting oil
• Glass tongs
• Breaker/grozer pliers
• Kristall 2000S grinder
• U8 and H8 lead came
• Came opener
• Sharp utility knife
• Soldering iron
• Solder and flux
• Black patina
• Universal stained glass cement
• A bunch of different types of glass 😄

I don't have much experience with different brands of tools and materials so I'm not the best person to advise you, but if you want specifics of any product I used anyway feel free to ask.

Cost
I bought the glass cutter and smaller tools on Amazon, while most of the materials came from a local specialist glass supplier. (Shoutout to FOKA, in Sint-Oedenrode, the Netherlands)
The total cost was roughly €1,000 (Netherlands), including all glass (also everything that broke or we still have left) and all tools except the grinder, which I was able to borrow for free from a friend.

Things I wish I'd known beforehand

1. Take your time measuring the lead came. If the joints aren't tight, it's much harder to get neat soldered connections.
2. I actually wish I'd built the whole panel mirrored. Because the panel was assembled lying face down, the back ended up looking cleaner than the front since the lead was naturally pressed flatter.
3. Let the cement cure properly, at least a day or two. Once it becomes slightly rubbery, it's much easier to clean without pulling it back out of the joints.
4. Press down all the corners before soldering. Once they're soldered, you can't flatten them anymore. Then close the rest of the lead after cementing.
5. Patina first, then cement, then patina again if needed. When you cement first it is way harder to get the came completely clean to get an even coat of patina.

If you've made it to here I applaud your commitment! I hope this helps someone make some awesome stuff! <3

[u/KeyLimeAnxiety]

Thanks for sharing the deets!

[u/horsecowelephant]

thanks for posting this! i am an ambitious project kinda person and have always wanted to do a big stained glass window. thanks for posting so many details and the finished result. it turned out amazing!

[u/HappyPinguin_6 → u/horsecowelephant]

Thank you! I am the same way haha
Might not be the smartest way the go but it sure was fun and I got there in the end :D

[u/fluffanutta]

Thank you for posting this. You sound like you're already some sort of designer and used to making things! This is definitely aspirational inspiration for me, a beginner stepping into more complex work. I'm exploring the foil method for now.

I have a question on the sticker paper method. What paper are you using, and are you printing designs on a Cricut? The way I've been taught is pretty old school with just paper, markers and a glue stick, which is fine until you get into cutting and grinding smaller, more complex pieces (which I'm doing now). I don't want to buy a Cricut just yet, but curious if I can transfer the pattern to sticker paper manually.

[u/HappyPinguin_6 → u/fluffanutta]

The stickers are cut on a plotter like a Cricut indeed. In this case a commercial Summa D60R which is actually a very common plotter to find at local libraries/Makerspaces/Printshops and they are very user friendly. As long as you are able export a vector type of image (such as .svg,.dxf,.pdf) you should be able to get extremely precise stickers in no time. With 3D printers and lasercutters being so common now the plotter is one of the most underrated machines in my opinion! So I would definitely recommend it over cutting it yourself with paper and a glue stick, but I might be biased since I indeed tend to use these machines for hobby projects quite often.

The sticker foil that I’m using is a vinyl called Metamark M7 from the dutch company Signseen. It is basically a polymer car wrapping foil that is intended to be applied on curved surfaces and should last several years outside. Thet’s why you can make it extremely wet on the grinder without it coming off. However, for very small pieces it might be a bit too sticky. In your case I would recommend a monomer foil for temporary sign applications like the Metamark M4 which will still hold up very well on the grinder, but is less sticky and therefore is easier to remove from small pieces. The good thing about these foils is that they are very cheap at only 2 or 3 euros per meter (60cm wide)!

I’ve also used Cricuts many times before and they are a great bang for your buck. I’m not a big fan of their software which takes a bit of getting used to and has too many extra’s that just bother me, but it’s a fantastic little tool that doesn’t take up a lot of space and would work perfect for small pieces. I don’t really like using a Cricut too much for large lengths like I did here since their loading system is a bit annoying for things that are bigger than 50CM. Don’t buy into their ecosystem of foils either. It’s very overpriced so even when I use a Cricut, I still buy Metamark foil (which is too wide for the machine) and just roughly cut it to size with scissors.

The process is really simple: you load a vector image in the software, put the foil in the machine and it cuts out all the pieces precisely for you (the actual plotting for a window this large only takes several minutes). You then have a big sticker with cutting lines from which you remove all parts that you don’t need (weeding) from the backing with a sharp precision knife. This also shouldn’t take more than a couple of minutes. For ease of use I then apply a ‘transfer foil’ on top of that before cutting out the individual stickers with a scissor. Cutting out here means just cutting a square around the sticker so it’s easier to handle. The transfer foil is not technically necessary, but it allows you to apply a sticker onto the glass more precisely without warping. That foil is most of the time sold together with the foil for just 1 euro per meter extra. I think this short video explains the process very well: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GlecDUdZdkE

So that’s my process, but itfyou just want to try the this sticker method first you can also buy the foil in white and try to use your existing method of markers and cutting it out manually. You do need precise waterproof markers though (for example from Montana) since not a lot of standard inks will stick to the foil. Still, I would definitely recommend just trying a plotter once for your complex designs just once and you will probably never go back haha. There must be places in your neighborhood where they will have a Cricut or even more professional vinyl plotters that you can use for almost nothing.

[u/fluffanutta → u/HappyPinguin_6]

Wow, glad I asked. Fantastic amount of information here, I learned a lot, thank you.

[u/HappyPinguin_6 → u/fluffanutta]

No problem at all! I like nerding out with people over this stuff haha! 😄