How do you add windows or doors to a small stained glass building?
September 1, 2010 by refl
Filed under Stained glass
I am making a stained glass panel with a lighthouse in it and I want to put windows and doors in the lighthouse. Do I cut them out somehow or put something over the glass
you need to cut them out
Traditionally,you’re supposed to pick or create a design that won’t have you trying to have pieces floating in the middle of another piece because it is difficult to cut a hole in the middle of a piece of glass, as you may have discovered. I have cut round holes in glass but it was regular window glass, not stained glass which can be a little trickier to cut. If you want to try cutting a round hole and then grind or chip it into a square shape, go ahead and try but be prepared for lots of spoiled pieces.
Something else you could try, though, is a fairly new thing–glass paint which can be found at many craft stores or art supply shops. Pebeo is a popular brand. It can be painted on and left, which should work if the piece will always be indoors and you don’t scrub it to clean it. There is a version of the same paint which can be painted on and then baked in a regular oven, and it’s supposed to be dishwasher proof so should stay on very well. I have used some of this paint and it seems to do what they say it will, I’m still testing it for wear and don’t have a dishwasher so can’t really road test it. Painting on glass, such as you see in church windows, used to be quite impractical for the average glass artist since it needed a kiln in which to fire it on to the glass.