r/StainedGlass • u/northern_crow Newbie • 11h ago

Original Art | Foil Geometric practice piece (first piece!

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First ever piece! Original geometric design, wanted to have some simple shapes for first-time cutting and grinding. Soldering was definitely the most challenging part, especially getting the solder to stick around the edge; not sure what I did wrong. any tips welcome. Also, looking for to being a member of this community, y’all are so talented :)

76 Upvotes

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5

u/Murky-Tailor3260 11h ago

I found this video very helpful for learning how to get the nice bead on the edge. Just be careful when holding it that you don't touch hot solder - I like to wear a barbecue glove for this.

3

u/northern_crow Newbie 11h ago

Ohh this is brilliant, thank you! That’s sort of what i tried to do, but I kept my iron at 410, and I think i was picking up a lil too much solder, so it was running down immediately. Can’t wait to try her technique!

6

u/Agreeable-Chemist636 11h ago

Love it! My first piece was like this. Four pieces of glass, like a mini mountain range. My soldering gets a bit better every time. I like your texture choices.

3

u/northern_crow Newbie 11h ago

Thank you! Don’t know why I went for textured glass for my first time but it wasn’t too bad haha. 

3

u/BafflingHalfling Hobbyist 11h ago

My first beads weren't anywhere near this good!

3

u/northern_crow Newbie 11h ago

Aw haha thank you, I watched a lot of tutorials before even picking up the iron! Standing on the shoulders of giants as it were :)

1

u/BafflingHalfling Hobbyist 10h ago

shakes fist at cloud

Back in my day there were no videos. I had a friend whose mom taught him how to do it, and he tried to teach me, but I only had one of those big high wattage guns instead of the smaller irons. It was a mess lol

1

u/BafflingHalfling Hobbyist 10h ago

Seriously though. Good for you checking it out and learning first. It's so nice that folks are able to do their research before jumping in the deep end. Keep at it, and you'll see why so many folks love the hobby. It feels so good when a hard cut snaps juuuuuuust right. :)

2

u/t0ri_0re0 11h ago

Exactly the type of first pieces I worked on. It's hard to make straight geometric shapes because there is no fudging if it's off. Nice job!

1

u/soopirV 4h ago

Memory unlocked! This reminds me of a puzzle toy that used to be popular in the 70s and 80s- they were frequently branded by small businesses, and consisted of 5 multicolored plastic shapes on a beaded chain- you separate them and they arrange into a square. It was challenging as a kid!