Making stained glass is one of my newest hobbies. The process of making it is quite involved, but I will break it down in another post, because I do find it really interesting. In the meantime, I would like to share all the projects I created so far, while still learning the technique. Apart from the glass cutting and soldering, I also used this opportunity to learn vector graphics, which was handy when drawing patterns for these creations.

My first project was made with scraps of glass that I got for a cheap price. The colors and amounts of glass were very limited, but with the choice of yellow, blue, green, white, red and transparent, I decided to make a house. I really wanted it to resemble pictures I made in kindergarten: blocky house in the center, a flat patch of grass at the bottom, the sun shining from the corner and a fluffy cloud somewhere in the sky.

I can’t help but smile looking back at it. It’s super wonky and the glass is cut roughly, but I’d learned a lot in the process. I love that it really looks like a kid’s drawing, plus there was a lot of room for me to progress with the craft.

Then I got inspired by tealight holders I saw on Pinterest and decided to make something similar for myself Again, I used some cheap glass and pieces of mirror I already owned. It’s a simple project, but it works: it holds a tealight and it looks great.

Then I came up with more involved design. I wanted to make a propagator for my plants, that would also look pretty on the window. The idea was to make a flat piece of stained glass as a back plate, and use scraps of wood as a stand. I’m no great woodworker, but I managed to chisel a groove that would hold the stained glass. One of the glass pieces broke in this one, but at this point I was too scared to fix it, and decided to ignore it, since it’s staying in my house.

The next two pieces are small gifts. One is for a person who loves elephants, and the other for a person who loves roses. I found patterns for these online and slightly modified them. I already felt much more comfortable with cutting and grinding glass for these, so the pieces fit together better than with the previous projects.

After these two I felt quite unstoppable, so I approached the next project with a great deal of self-confidence. I really like a motif of a moth or a butterfly in stained glass, so I created my own. It’s my largest glass piece so far, consisting of 70+ elements. I want to turn it into a light fixture, once I figure out how to make a wooden case for it.

The last project I made so far is another gift for a friend. I really wanted to make something abstract with bold colors and different textures, that would look good in a modern interior. Also the combination of big and tiny pieces of glass is something I came to appreciate and will probably utilize in future projects.

This is all I made so far. I fell in love with the craft and I’m looking forward to making more pieces. Ultimately I would like to (and I will) make a Tiffany stained glass lamp, which has been my goal from the very beginning. In the meantime I’ll be making more smaller decorative pieces.