Your Work Environment

February 19th, 2021

I know a lot of you may be eager to jump right into working with stained glass, but the fist thing we should talk about before anything else is you’re work environment. It may seem a bit boring at first, but its important since this will be the area in which you create beautiful works of art.

A beginner doesn’t need to set up an elaborate workshop or studio to create stained glass artwork. Here are some important things to note when setting up your work space:

Glass cutting and other work should be done on a firm surface, such as a fiber or self-healing cutting board. The board itself should be placed on top of a sturdy surface, preferably in a low-trafficked area where sharp pieces of glass and chemicals wont pose a risk to others. Keep in mind when picking out a work area that you’ll need to have access to an electrical outlet for equipment, such as a soldering iron or electric glass grinder.

Don’t set up your work space in an entirely enclosed area. Since certain chemicals you’ll be using can be harmful to inhale, make sure your space has adequate ventilation.

Because glass cutting produces large amounts of tiny glass shards, it’s important to always keep your workspace clean by periodically brushing away chunks of glass with a hand brush and dustpan or vacuuming the area with a hand vacuum.

Create a space where you can properly store materials like sheets of glass. All sheets of glass should be stored vertically for ease of access and safety. When storing my glass, I always wrap each sheet in a layer of old newspaper so that it doesn’t get scraped by other sheets.

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5 Responses to “Your Work Environment”

  1. Megan Rakow on February 22, 2021 3:40 pm

    This is very interesting to me. I have wanted to try glassblowing and I wondered if staining was relatively the same thing but it looks like it’s very different from what you have said. It also sounds pretty dangerous with all the chemicals you have to use. Thank you for letting me know the dangers that could come along with glass staining.

  2. Patrick Cesarone on February 24, 2021 1:53 am

    I am actually really interested in this type of work. It’s a very cool way to create something and there is a lot of expression in what you can create. Looking forward to hearing more

  3. Devan Crego on February 24, 2021 4:11 am

    What a very interesting topic to write about! Is it expensive to get into? Or after the start up, is it relatively cheap?

  4. Trey Cummins on February 24, 2021 5:45 am

    Hi,
    This seems like a really good idea for a blog! Espescially with Covid still going on, learning about Stain glass would make for a good, time killing hobby. It would be cool to see some of the work you have done in future blogs!

  5. Makai on February 26, 2021 9:47 pm

    This is certainly an interesting topic. Stained glass is a really fascinating art form that seems to have a pretty high barrier of entry. Although it’s not something I’m particularly interested in trying myself, I’m definitely interested in learning about the craft. Looking forward to seeing more!