# Stained glass craft



## Patches (Aug 9, 2006)

I just moved my mil into a low income apartment close by and she gave me a suitcase full of sheets of stained glass. She used to make pictures and had all the tools for it but she says all her tools got stolen so all she has is the glass. It is beautiful, all colors and very heavy. Does anyone have tools and or instructions, patterns for doing stained glass? I'm thinking that might be a fun thing to learn. If so, would you want to sell them or can you tell me where to find these things. My son is thinking of trying his hand at it, he says if grandma could do it, he could too. Thanks for your help, Marilyn


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## moopups (May 12, 2002)

There are two ways of doing this craft, one is purchasing preshaped lead perimeter metal, its shaped like an 'H". Glass shapes enter it from both sides, to be held in shape.

The second method is to apply a metallic edging that encompasses both flat edges of the glass, solder is applied to keep it together.

The tools should be available through any adequate craft shop, or can be ordered by them. The most expensive item you will need is a flat table mounted glass grinder. The glass must be very tight tolerance and grinding is the method to achieve such. Do be aware that glass grinding releases a lot of tiny specks of glass dust, breathing devices and eye protection are a must have item when using the grinder. The grinder could be up to a couple of hundred by now, they were $65.00 back when I explored this craft.

http://images.google.com/images?gbv...t=result&cd=1&q=tiffany+stained+glass&spell=1

Check out the competition.


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## tallpines (Apr 9, 2003)

A couple of years back I took Stained Glass classes.

I loved doing it and bought all the tools and gadgets for it.

I ended up taking a series of classes covering Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced.
Each one of those classes was one night a week for 6 weeks --- 3 hours a night.
So I ended up with 18 class sessions for a total of 54 hours.

I suggest that you contact a hobby or craft shop that sells glass and supplies to inquire if they might offer a class, or know where you can find one.
The classes I took included using the shop's tools.

If you can get started using someone's elses tools, then you can determine if you like it well enough to invest in your own tools.

Ebay is a good source for stained glass tools.
I got a brand new (in the box) glass grinder off Ebay for about $80.oo.


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## WayneR (Mar 26, 2007)

PBS runs a program on the subject. Believe the title is Glass with Vicki Payne .
A google search on the subject should yield results. Interlibrary loans on the TV programs should also be possible.

Just picked up about 15 lbs of useable glass at the flea mkt Sunday. The tooling turns up occasionally. The grozing & breaking pliers can be made by grinding cheap ones to the needed shapes.

The glass grinders should have a wet sponge attachment to minimize dust.
Masking tape is good to remove glass flakes which can slice you. Safety glasses,of course!


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## GrannyG (Mar 26, 2005)

There are many free patterns for stained glass on the wide web. It is a wonderful craft. Start small, suncatchers, simple things. I agree Vicki Payne is a wonderful start, and her videos are a big help for learning. I took stained glass lessons until the teacher moved away. I like to do little items, such as Christmas patterns and jewelry. It can become expensive. I have the glass grinder, the diamond band saw, the glass fuser, you name it and I probably have it, just no time to do what I want to do. There are also pre-cut items that you just have to solder to finish for gifts as well.


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## EasyDay (Aug 28, 2004)

WayneR said:


> The glass grinders should have a wet sponge attachment to minimize dust.
> Masking tape is good to remove glass flakes which can slice you. Safety glasses,of course!


Afford me a minor correction, here. The wet sponge is to minimize friction and keep the stone from wearing out (as with any "wet saw"). Grinder stones are kind of pricey.


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## EasyDay (Aug 28, 2004)

Patches said:


> I just moved my mil into a low income apartment close by and she gave me a suitcase full of sheets of stained glass. She used to make pictures and had all the tools for it but she says all her tools got stolen so all she has is the glass. It is beautiful, all colors and very heavy. Does anyone have tools and or instructions, patterns for doing stained glass? I'm thinking that might be a fun thing to learn. If so, would you want to sell them or can you tell me where to find these things. My son is thinking of trying his hand at it, he says if grandma could do it, he could too. Thanks for your help, Marilyn


I do stained glass, but my shop here on the farm isn't set up yet. 
There are MANY sources of free stained glass patterns on the web. Just search for them.

Although there are also many stained glass supply stores online, after extensively comparing prices, I found that Delphi Glass is probably the least expensive and most reliable. Their prices are actually better on some tools than can be found on e-bay. Their website is extensive with tips/hints and complete instructions on various glass crafts, etc., too, so you might want to browse around their site. www.delphiglass.com

The two processes that Moopups mentioned, in layman's terms, are the "lead came" and "foil" methods. I always use the foil method for everything except the outside perimeter of the project. Lead came isn't even necessary for smaller projects, as a nice bead of solder can be run around the perimeter. But, for larger projects, lead came provides much more strength. It also gives a smooth "factory-type" edge which is necessary for windows, et al, that need to provide a perfect fit.

If you have any questions, I'll be more than happy to help where I can.


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## WayneR (Mar 26, 2007)

Hi Easy Day,

The sponge does reduce dust. Use glass etching (hydroflouric) acid to "clean" your cutting wheel. Won't hurt the diamond surface, but will prolong usefull life.


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## EasyDay (Aug 28, 2004)

WayneR,

Anything wet will reduce dust, and that's important. But, the MAIN purpose of the sponge on a glass grinder is to provide a coolant (in this case, water) to the grinder bit. To ignore this fact is to fail to give full information to the one asking the questions.

As I said before, it's the same theory as a wet saw we use for cutting tile.


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