r/StainedGlass • • 13d ago

Challenge Post [October 2026] Tentacle Challenge Topic. Four Wiggly friends ready for playing with!

8 Upvotes

Well here's this months topic!

Tentacles.

We have quite the selection of patterns this month because who could resist having some fun with this kind of topic! Something gross or spooky was also fitting so we opted for making something disturbing and slightly silly.

Hopefully you all enjoy these patterns as much as we have making them! At the bottom of the post you can find links to all the patterns for whatever format or size you wish.

Come up with your own pattern you'd like to share? Upload it to Pattern Archive!

Made by Beest and Claycorp. Pattern Archive seems to have a bug. Oops!
Honorable mention that got made just before the topic vote.

Pattern Archive links for rescaling or other file formats:

All patterns on Pattern Archive with Tentacles https://patternarchive.net/pattern?q=&tags=tentacle


r/StainedGlass • • 14d ago

Mega Q&A Monthly Mega Q&A - [October 2026]

2 Upvotes

Welcome once again to the monthly mega Q&A! You can find all previous Q&A posts here!

Look for faster replies or easier sharing methods to get help? Join our Discord!

Looking for Patterns? Check out Pattern Archive!

Posting guidelines!

  • If you have a question that hasn't been asked yet as a top level comment, don't reply to another comment to ask it! Reply to the post instead!
  • Make sure to include as much information in the top level comment as possible.
  • Anything and everything glass is fine to ask, if you want help with patterns or other physical things make sure to upload images! You can do so by attaching the image to the comment. Please be aware you are posting it for all to see so hide any personal info!
  • No question is stupid, from Basement Workshop Dreamer to Expert, we are all here to share and learn.
  • While opinion based questions like "best way to hold a soldering iron" are fine, please keep in mind that these really have no real true answer. They can however provide you a wide variety of tips to try out on your own!

Common Questions:

  • My solder is wrong!
    • Post a picture of the solder using the image info from the posting guidelines and someone can help you solve whatever issue it is.
  • I want to get started with glass! What do I need?
    • It's best to take a class first to see if you really like the craft as glass has a rather high starting cost. If you insist on starting on your own or just don't have classes here's a small write-up on getting started.
  • Do I need a temperature controlled iron?
    • As much as I want to just say YES.... No, you don't, BUT buying one will greatly improve your ability to work with it. It's well worth the extra money, it's best to just do so from the start.
  • Do I need a Grinder?
    • Technically no, but to do foil (AKA Tiffany style) glass work it's practically required. "Grinder stones" (AKA Carborundum stones) are just a waste of time and effort. They are only really good for removing the sharp edge off the glass. Similar to the iron information above, spend the money, save yourself.

r/StainedGlass • • 4h ago

Ad My new spinner design

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1.1k Upvotes

Hello my name is Kevin and I’ve been experimenting with spirals and making soldering setups to complete pieces like this in stained glass! @kmglasswork on Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook :). Thanks for viewing and have a great day :)


r/StainedGlass • • 13h ago

Original Art | Foil I think this is one of my favorite pieces I've made

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2.2k Upvotes

This was inspired by the poem "The Two Headed Calf" by Laura Gilpin, along with other artistic renditions of it I've seen.

I've never made something this size and I put a lot of love into this project from design to completion, and I was able to practice and experiment with various techniques. I used copper patina for the cow, black for the grass and sky, and left the silver for the moon and border. Im really pleased with my paint job on the eyes and stars- I wanted to ensure they matched up on each side. I also tried trapping some tiny pieces without foil and it worked perfectly (you can definitely tell they look a little different on super close inspection, but the naked eye cant see it)


r/StainedGlass • • 8h ago

Created from: Someones Pattern "Lenore" Wip

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370 Upvotes

I am so eager to get into the light... filled with hidden textures and colors that can only be seen in the light.. The raven is a midnight purple with blue wisps. The Roses, textured, deep cranberry red.. the night sky, a multicolored rippled purple, blue, green .. it's dark and mysterious.. Named "Lenore" from Edgar Allen Poes - Nevermore poem

Pattern can be found on Etsy.. I'm in love and off to copper foil 🐦‍⬛ 💀 🌹


r/StainedGlass • • 16h ago

Original Art | Foil I made a fruits and veggies series of stained glass & wood stools

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977 Upvotes

I'm a woodworker first, just starting to dabble into stained glass, but I wanted to try and integrate the two mediums together! So I created a really simple stool form, made a few stained glass panels, and upholstered the tops. My favorite is the tomato I think, a close second is the Mario Kart banana though!


r/StainedGlass • • 6h ago

Original Art | Mixed Method I made stained glass windows that illuminate when I play piano

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110 Upvotes

[Volume Up]

This was my "do I like working with stained glass?" project, and it turns out: yes. The cutting, foiling, grinding, and puzzling it all together is very meditative.

The patterns are my own designs. Once I had finished the central window, I decided it needed a frame. Then I decided the window should illuminate cohesively while I play piano. Then I decided my gothic wheels should join the ensemble; they received glass too.

And so on and so on and so on until deciding it all needed installed on a freestanding 8' x 8' wall, stained antique white, and documented.

The illumination of the windows is driven by which keys I play and how hard I strike them. The harder I strike the keys, the brighter the lights; meanwhile, which note I play controls exactly which lights will illuminate.

I hope you enjoy!


r/StainedGlass • • 10h ago

Tips&Tricks Forgot to flip the pattern for the glass!

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132 Upvotes

We live and we learn! I tried to make myself a new logo for my stained glass instagram and wanted to use this really cool bubble black glass. Forgot I needed to flip the pattern :( so sad!

The line in the middle of the black glass in the center of the g is just a regular mark on the glass, but it looks cracked.

Also, the curve at the top of the g cracked when I tried to fit the tiny circle piece in the center.

Lots of learning moments with this piece!


r/StainedGlass • • 3h ago

Help Me! Star Wars / LOTR Patterns

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30 Upvotes

Hi! I’m planning on making my boyfriend something Star Wars / LOTR themed for Christmas this year. Does anyone know of patterns? I’m open to purchasing. I added some photos as references and I asked if she sells her patterns but she doesn’t unfortunately


r/StainedGlass • • 7h ago

Original Art | Foil I made a cute hummingbird

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48 Upvotes

Fremont glass makes for the perfect bird wings.


r/StainedGlass • • 2h ago

Original Art | Came 3 month’s of progress

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16 Upvotes

i took a class in June & this was my first project versus my most recently completed! i always loved cathedrals and gothic architecture so i wanted to emulate that in my work, thanks for looking :)


r/StainedGlass • • 11h ago

Created from: Someones Pattern Turquoise 😍

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70 Upvotes

Just finished this turquoise colored design . Now to hook it to the yellow one and hang it up……..that’s the next post


r/StainedGlass • • 4h ago

Original Art | Foil Fourth Project ever, I still suck at soldering

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10 Upvotes

I went ahead and tried making my own pattern for the first time. I took one class a couple months ago and have made three projects total before this! It looks decent with light behind it , but with the light in front it exposes how bad my soldering still is. I know I still need to practice but I also think the textured glass is making things more difficult than necessary. I also made way too many points meet at one location in the upper left and right quadrants.


r/StainedGlass • • 7h ago

Help Me! Working on my first piece. Any advice on scoring closer to the pattern? Finding the scoring process really awkward.

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15 Upvotes

Stumbling thru this! Does better scores just come with more practice? I got a Toyo glass cutter from advice on the stub. Just feel like I have a lot of grinding to do or is this normal? I put the pieces really close to each other on my sheets of glass to try to conserve glass and I think that made some of the cuts difficult. Any advice appreciated!


r/StainedGlass • • 16h ago

Help Me! How to hang without a visible chain?

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67 Upvotes

Not my work, just an example. How to go about hanging pieces without a chain? I’ve only ever used a chain and jump rings but I want to make a mirror like the photos. what is the best way to go about it?


r/StainedGlass • • 16h ago

Created from: Someones Pattern A bigger version!

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39 Upvotes

I really love this pattern ! This is the biggest one so far I think it’s 14” across . When textures in the glass catch the light it makes me happy. Hope yall like it as much as I liked making it😁


r/StainedGlass • • 11h ago

Created from: Someones Pattern All hooked together and hung!

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13 Upvotes

I think these turned out nice . Wasn’t sure how the would look hung together but I think it turned out well. Something colorful in the room I like to read in🤗

What do you think, besides the obvious that I need to clean my window ?😵‍💫🤣🤯🤪


r/StainedGlass • • 11h ago

Ad My second attempt at a lampshade

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13 Upvotes

I’ve just recently gotten started doing stained glass, made a decent number of pieces, check them out here lol I don’t wanna put them all in this post this piece was 6 sided and used 24 pieces per panel, totaling 144 pieces, I’m pretty happy with how it turned out


r/StainedGlass • • 8h ago

Challenge Post It's the 14th! You know what that means, It's Challenge Topic time! What are we doing for November?

8 Upvotes

Time to start collecting ideas for our next Challenge topic, What would you like to see?

As per usual, how this works is simple. You read over the suggestions and then vote up the ones you like. If there's nothing you like Suggest one!

The winner will be picked on October 21st. Then on November 1st a new pattern will be posted with the new challenge topic!

Let's get creative!


r/StainedGlass • • 1d ago

Original Art | Foil This piece is done!🌸

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869 Upvotes

r/StainedGlass • • 1d ago

Help Me! Suggestions for how to do eyes

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230 Upvotes

I'm going to give this pattern a try, but last time I did something with similar eyes, I didn't have any luck. I tried doing foil overlay eyes, but they just kept sliding right off.

Zooming in on the photo, it looks like they used small rings for the eyes, but I don't know how they would stay put.

Any suggestions? Thanks!


r/StainedGlass • • 6h ago

Help Me! How do I make a lamp shade?

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4 Upvotes

Hi all!

I recently found this nice lamp base at a thrift store and I want to tackle my first lamp shade.

Up until this point I have only made flat pieces and I am fairly confident with my skills so I don’t need an explanation for the basics… BUT I do not know how to make a shade and I can’t seem to find a good tutorial.

My main question is: are there any things I have to do differently or keep in mind that I wouldn’t normally think of while making a smaller flat piece? For example, I know you have to add a braided loop around the top under the heat cap but I’m not exactly sure how… because I’ve never done this for a window piece!

If you all have any tips for things that I should be looking out for please let me know! I would also appreciate any helpful YouTube videos yall may have.

Lastly, where do yall get the heat caps? I don’t want to accidentally get the wrong thing and my lamp falls apart!!

Thank you all in advance!


r/StainedGlass • • 12h ago

Help Me! Advice for edging a copper foil piece with came.

4 Upvotes

I have done several copper foil pieces but I am doing a larger piece that I think needs a stronger edge to it. I have seen some people combine these methods and I wanted to see if you had advice on how to best do it. I'm hoping it doesn't require cementing.... :) Any help is appreciated!


r/StainedGlass • • 6h ago

Help Me! Gryphon Omni-2 wire saw vs Zephyr ring saw? Which is better for the delicate tough curve cuts where you only have one shot at some expensive a** glass you don't want to waste. (Yall can save the insufferable "you don't need a saw just get better at cutting" comments :)

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0 Upvotes

Have an opportunity to be gifted a saw, and am torn between the gryphon omni-2 wire saw and the gryphon zephyr ring saw. Don't need one bad enough for the Taurus's high price point, but both of the former are comparable in price I just cant decide which is better for my use case. I do difficult cuts all the time, but ill be honest that its still a damn heartbreak to waste some expensive ass fremont glass where you only had one shot, or even a moderately difficult cut is tough because of the uneven thickness/texture that fremont can have naturally. OR i just get tired of wasting glass thats naturally unruly and finicky (looking at you Youghiogheny stipple when I want to cut you in thin strips or curves, you hurtful temptress). Yes cutting and and grinding is the OG standard and this isnt going to replace that, but yall glass is EXPENSIVE now. And sometimes having a tool to deal with the naturally difficult glass for a moderate-high difficulty cut or for for some $$$$$ glass i just cant afford to fuck up, would JUST BE NICE. So given that. Id love to hear your pros and cons for both tools! Noise levels, mess factor, maintenance costs and frequency considerations, is one better for small delicate cuts or better for tight cuts? I know neither is fast, but again, i am not intending to use this for basic ass regular cuts that are quick to do the normal way. I do like the appeal of the wire saw because im super familiar with bandsaws and scroll saws in woodworking, but perhaps a ring saw is a better device.


r/StainedGlass • • 1d ago

Help Me! Advice on soldering

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47 Upvotes

This is my most recent piece. I do stained glass as a hobby and only give out my pieces as spontaneous gifts lol. I’m only able to do a couple of projects a year.

My soldering is the one consistent that’s bothering me. I’ve watched videos and read articles on how to make it more neat but I feel like I’m always falling short.

Is there any advice anyone can give just by looking at a picture of the pieces? I feel my soldering makes my projects look sloppy and I usually get embarrassed to give them away when I’m finished lol

(P.s. I tried to used lead came to make the edges neater but it had never used it before and that was a no go haha. From start to finish the project took ~30hrs)