The Ultimate Beginner's Guide to Stained Glass Making!

This lesson is for absolute beginners. You will learn the fundamentals of stained glass making, including: all required materials and safety equipment, as well as optional materials, how to create and print your own designs, how to cut glass, and more!
(Everything in this article is from my own opinion and expertise, no sponsors were involved in the creation of this tutorial.)

Materials and Safety Equipment

Everything listed below is something you'll need, unless indicated as optional. All links are available and I have tried to provide the most cost-effective sources that I can find. 

• glass cutter
• glass cutting oil
• grozing pliers
• running pliers
• opaque or translucent stained glass sheets, your choice of color (beginner glass sheets are available at most Hobby Lobby stores for under $20)
• glass grinder or a diamond coated glass file
• grinder coolant
• cold water
• sponges (i use dollar store kitchen sponges cut into 1" strips)
• soldering iron MADE FOR STAINED GLASS (make sure you don't get one that's meant for circuitry, it won't get hot enough.
• paint brush
• gel flux
• 60/40 solder or lead-free solder (i use lead-free)
• (optional) tip tinner
• #00000 steel wool ultra fine
• normal steel wool for your soldering iron
• dish soap or Kwik-Klean
• a printer
• sharpie/paint markers (need a white paint marker if using dark colored glass)

Let's get started!

Step 1: Create your design/stencil.*  insert video tutorial here

Materials utilized in this step:

• Computer/Laptop
• Silhouette Studio Design Software
• Source Image

When I create my designs, I use a free program called Silhouette Studio. The link is provided below. It is a program meant to be used alongside the Silhouette Cameo vinyl cutter, which is what I will be using, but you do not need to have a Cameo cutter to use the software. However, if you do have a Cameo, it is extra helpful to print your designs onto vinyl as stickers, so that when you place them onto your glass you don't have to worry about them moving. 

*For beginners, this step is OPTIONAL. Learning this step will teach you the fundamentals needed in order to create your own designs from any source image, but if you are excited to get started and would like to skip this step, simply download image.jpg and continue to step 2.4

1. Open Silhouette Studio.
2. Select: File>Merge> select the photo that you want to work with. For this project we are using- star.jpg
3. Hover over the Line Tools icon (white column on the left side of the screen, third option from the top) and then select the "Draw a polygon" option.
4. To use this feature, place a point by left-clicking. Right-click to end the line when you want to finish the shape.
5. Starting at the top point of the star, left-click to place the first point, drag the line down to the next vertex of the star, left-click, and continue the process all the way around until you meet back at the first point that you placed. Right-click to finish the shape.

Step 2: Print and cut out your stencil. insert video tutorial here

1. In the white column on the right side of the screen, select the first option, "Page Setup". On the first tab, make sure Width and Height are set to 12x12in. Now select the second tab at the top of the "Page Setup" box. Make sure Spacing is 'Square' and set to 1in.
2. Each square on the grid now represents 1x1 inches. Use this as a guide to scale your stencil before printing. Make sure to select all lines that make up your object, right-click, and select "Group" before resizing an object. 
3. If you own a Cameo cutter, send and cut your project as normal. If you DO NOT own a Cameo cutter, select the "Printer" icon at the top of the screen to print your design. It may need to be resized to fit onto copy paper. 
4. Print out your design and carefully cut out each piece with scissors. You now have a stencil for your stained glass project!

Step 3: Trace your stencil onto glass. (If you cut your stencil out with a Cameo, you can skip this step, all you need to do is place the vinyl stickers directly onto your sheet of glass.) insert video tutorial here

1. Optional: you can use double-sided tape to hold down the paper while you are tracing it.
2. Using a sharpie or paint marker (sometimes if using darker colored glass, you must use a white paint marker), trace out your stencils onto your sheet of glass. Be careful of your placement! See the short clip below for more info. 

Step 4: Make your first cuts. (Video only) 

1. In this step, you will need your glass oil, glass cutter, running pliers,  grozing pliers (nippers), and the stenciled glass from step 3. 

Step 5: Even out the edges. 

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