Crafting Stained Glass with Quality Resins
Nothing spells awe-inspiring visuals quite like a stained glass. Stained glass windows and doors have been used all around the world to enhance the visual appeal of religious edifices, palaces and other such places for centuries. You can find remnants of stained glass architecture dating all the way back to the 7th century.
Needless to say making Stained Glass was a job done by very experienced craftsmen that were highly skilled in the art of glass making. The process was very labour intense. There are very few places now that offer these medieval skills and the demand for traditional made stained art glass has dwindled over the decades due to the requirement for modern glazing with thermal efficiency, speed of production as well as being economic to produce. However, replicating the look of stained glass isn’t impossible if you have the right solutions and paint products at your disposal. In this article, we would like to walk you through all the steps that will help you create stained glass while recommending a few products from Creative Resins that can assist you in the process.
- Designing the Panel
Gone are the days where you first need to hand draw an outline of what you want your stained glass panel is to look like. Now days, Computer Aided Design (CAD) software packages are common place throughout all sectors of industry and can be used to design and rescale your stained glass panel with ease. Creative Resins purpose made software package, Creative Studio, is readily available to do exactly this and will also convert your CAD drawing into a plot file that can then be used to put an outline bead of resin onto the glass surface using the Wizard Illustrator machine. Fast and efficient and endlessly repeatable this combination of software and machine are the perfect combination for companies looking for fast repeatable production offering the highest standards of finish at a very affordable cost.
- Traditional Colours and Texture of Stained Glass
Making coloured glass in the old traditional methods was a labour of love and highly skilled. Ruby Red was one of the most expensive colours to manufacture created by adding gold and copper together when the glass was molten. If you find a stained glass that has a high composition of red you know someone’s spent a lot of money on it. Conjuring different colours within the glass structure wasn’t just a matter of combining different metals like cobalt to create the colour blue. The old traditional stained glass craftsmen often aimed for deliberate imperfection when manufacturing glass because that’s what gave the glass its distinct texture, colour and value which in the bye gone ages was essential in creating attractive stained glass panels. Today a range of coloured paints and textures supplied by Creative Resins allow for exactly the same results to be created onto modern processed glass providing endless design opportunities at a fraction of the cost.
- Glass Production
The production of glass has moved on leaps and bounds over the past decades and is now an immense part of the modern construction industry. Safety glass such as tempered and laminated have transformed the way glass can be used by designers and architects providing the opportunity for structural glazing. It has also revolutionized the window and door industry where safety glass is a paramount requirement. This has also led to a surge in demand for decorative glass. This demand has been met by the development of the Creative Studio design software, the Wizard Illustrator resin dispensing machine as well as the wide range of decorative outline simulated lead contours and endless glass colour and textured paints all available from Creative Resins.
- Outline the design and Painting the Glass
Now that your design has been created using the specialized Creative Studio design software it is ready to be transposed onto the chosen glass sheet. This is an exciting part as the design you have prepared is turned into reality in front of your eyes. The mesmerizing Wizard Illustrator dispenses a resin bead onto the surface of the glass exactly as you have designed it. Allow the resin outline to dry and then complete your work of art by infilling the sections with the vast range of colours and textures available. Creative Resins have you covered in this department. We offer a line of decorative resins that are perfect for designing stained glass panels.
Allow us to introduce you to some of these solutions that you can try today to achieve the ideal stained glass effect.
I) Supreme Outline Resin
Supreme Outline Resin base is the original formula designed to replicate the mesmerizing look of traditionally leaded and stained glass windows designed and formulated by Creative Resins over 40 years ago. The product is still going strong today and 1000’s of stained glass panels have been made using this system in more than 50 countries worldwide. Supreme Outline is an equal ratio two-component system comprising of Supreme Outline Base and Supreme Outline Hardener. It is a solvent-based system formulated using Epoxy and Acrylic resins which chemically cure and is a non-isocyanate product.
The Supreme Resin Outline is applied as a glossy contour line on the surface of glass or any other substrate replicating the look of visually arresting traditional leaded and stained glass windows.
Purchase Link: Supreme Resin Outline
II) H2O Outline Resin
Creative Resins’ remarkable H20 Outline Solution allows you to replicate the mesmerizing look of traditionally leaded and stained glass windows. H20 Outline resin is a two-component system of equal parts used to apply a resin bead on the surface of glass or any other substrate in to simulate the look and feel of traditional authentic leaded and stained glass windows.
The H2O Outline Resin system is mixed together in equal parts and applied to the surface of the glass using the Wizard Illustrator resin dispensing system. The two components mix immediately prior to being dispensed onto the surface creating a very high-profile contour that looks and feels like real lead. It is a blend of Acrylic and Epoxy resins that quickly harden to replicate a traditional stained glass look.
The Resin Outline exhibits excellent mechanical properties which include high UV stability, weather-resistance, and the ability to form a permanent bond with the surface of glass. H2O Outline Resin can be used to decorate glass in composite doors, windows, shower and wet rooms, bars, and hotels. It has a low VOC content and is virtually odorless. It also has a fast cure time.
Purchase Link: H2O Outline Resin
III) Decorative Infill Resins
To further enhance the look of stained glass panels, we offer a wide range of quality infill resin solutions that are guaranteed to give a distinct but stunning look to your glass panels. Our decorative resins are available in wide range of colours to serve a range of creative purposes which include, simulating the look of lead or stained glass for windows, creating an outline on glass for decorative purposes and giving a transparent, opaque, and translucent or texture finish to the stained glass. These resins will give your glass panel the texture, colour and effect you wish them to imbibe.
Purchase Link: Decorative Infill Resins
IV) Wizard Illustrator
Applying the above resins or paint solutions on your glass panel to create stained glass effect can get tricky. Creative Resins’ Wizard Illustrator simplifies the process considerably.
The Wizard Illustrator kit is a unique decorative glass technology that uses a computer-controlled resin dispensing system to create designs onto glass. It can very well be called a wizard dispensing system, thanks to its ability to dispense resin onto glass. Constructed from industrial strength aluminum with heavy-duty stainless steel guide rails and self-adjusting sealed bearings, these industrial wizard illustrator tools are robust, fast and quiet, and above all exceptionally reliable.
An innovative twin component compact ‘Resiflo’ pump system controls the precise delivery and mixing of the Outline Base and Hardener creating a resin bead/contour that simulates traditional lead giving perfect results time and time again. A limitless range of infill colours and textures are available to create the perfect decorative art / stained glass panels.
The Bottom Line
If you wish to create a stained glass panel to augment the interior or exterior of your residential or commercial building, we suggest you take note of the above tips and buy products from us at Creative Resins. We offer the best paint solutions and resins to create stained glass panels in the UK. You can purchase the products listed above today by clicking on the links provided below each listing.
