Modern Stained Glass Home Decor
by Alexandra Berger Clamons
FAQs
Q: Is this stained glass?
A: Yes!
Q: Do you make all of this yourself?
A: I do! I make everything myself, by hand, in my home studio.
Q: Do you teach?
A: I do! I hold classes about once a month out of my home studio. I take a break from classes during summer months.
Q: How do you make the pieces?
A: I do Copper Foil stained glass, also called the Tiffany Method. I start with flat glass, usually in sheets of 12"x12". First, I cut sheets of glass into the shapes I want. Next, I grind each piece on a wet grinder. Then I wrap each piece of glass with copper foil tape. Once each piece is wrapped, I use a soldering iron and solder all of the pieces together into the object I'm making. Then, I clean and polish the glass and either leave it silver (the color of the solder) or patina it copper or black.
Q: Can I ship these?
A: Yes! All flat pieces ship without a problem. Just sandwich them between layers of cardboard, not much larger than the piece you're shipping, and tape together with packing tape. Put it into a bubble envelope (make sure it can't wiggle around too much) and you're good to go!
For the potted cacti, the barrels are quite easy to ship - just wrap in bubble wrap so there are at least 3-4 layers around the piece. Then fill a box with peanuts so that there is at least 2-3" of peanuts between the piece and the walls of the box.
For flat cacti, cut 6 pieces of cardboard that are just larger than the cactus. Sandwich them 3 on each side and tape together using packing tape. Wrap the piece in bubble wrap so that there are at least 3-4 layers around the piece. Fill box with peanuts as described above.
When shipping any item, make sure you label it as FRAGILE in Sharpie several times on the padded envelope or box.
Q: What do I do if my piece wobbles in its cup?
A: Sometimes a cactus comes loose from its cup - this is an easy problem. Go ahead and put a few drops of Loctite at the base of where the cactus meets the sand and voila! It'll set up good as new.
Q: What do I do if my piece breaks?
A: Please contact me if your piece breaks. It does happen on occasion for one reason or another. Send along a photo and I'll let you know if I can repair your piece. Thanks!