Recycled glass ideas for glass artists

We didn't write this information below although we wish we did!  We can't say enough about how much we LOVE this page.  It is packed with ideas for glass artists that want to create more unique and one of a kind glass art.  To view more from the author follow the link to the Inspiration Green web page.  ENJOY!

Recycled Glass Inspiration
Much of the glass we throw out is not recycled, because different glass has different melting points and recyclers only melt the most common containers.



recycled glass bottles
Hanging window composed of serving plates, wine bottle bottoms, stemware bottoms and faceted stained glass jewels. The background is a variety of textured handblown glass and the border is composed of several different patterns of pale lavender Depression glass serving plates. Daniel Maher Stained Glass, Somerville, MA. Restoration and custom work. www.dmstainedglass.com



recycled glass bottles
The window is comprised of highly textured bottle, vase, serving plate and stemware bottoms along with a variety of antique pressed glass jewels and objects. The background is a variety of clear textured glasses and the border is composed of pale lavender "Depressions Glass" plates. 26" x 25", $3,000. Daniel Maher Stained Glass, Somerville, MA. Restoration and custom work. www.dmstainedglass.com



recycled glass bottles
This "Green Bottoms" window is installed in a home on Simmons Island, GA. To personalize the window, the client requested the inclusion of "sea glass" they found at the local beach. The addition of greenish blue plate fragments and jewels in the border give the window's color range an ocean feel. Daniel Maher Stained Glass, Somerville, MA. Restoration and custom work. www.dmstainedglass.com



recycled glass bottles
Several medicine bottle remnants are blended into more typical food themes in the Wellesley, Massachusetts kitchen window. The medicine bottles refer to this couples' careers in the health provider industry. The window is installed in a door that blocks the view of a brightly lit mud room. Daniel Maher Stained Glass. Restoration and custom work. Somerville, MA. www.dmstainedglass.com



recycled glass bottles
Luscious Lids is the second in the Housewares Graveyard series to utilize three dimensional tops of vessels and candy dishes. The prismatic and dimensional effect as the viewer moves is striking. The tips of several of the objects project more than three inches from the surface of the window. The objects include candy jar tops, percolator tops, apothecary lids and Vaseline glass lids from a dresser set. 25" x 28", $3400.www.dmstainedglass.com




recycled glass bottles
Luscious Lids close-up, from the outside.




recycled glass dishes
Prismatic Dishes features remnants of serving dishes that have a square or rectangular shape. The cut glass beveling captures light from extreme angles and distorts any exterior movement into circular patterns. The window is set in a reclaimed wood frame. 19" x 25", $2000. Daniel Maher Stained Glass. Restoration and custom work. Somerville, MA.www.dmstainedglass.com



recycled glass dishes
The Blue window is composed of cobalt blue storage jar parts and stemware bottoms. The border is a handblown multiple color streaky glass sprinkled with faceted glass jewels. www.dmstainedglass.com



recycled glassware
Very Red Snapper was inspired by and is composed entirely of kitchen glassware. Wine glass and bottle bottoms, serving plates, food storage containers, percolator tops, glass bowls and a cookie jar were cannibalized for their unique patterns to enhance the design. The window is a fun twist of presenting a "food" window fabricated in food related glass objects. Daniel Maher Stained Glass. Restoration and custom work. Somerville, MA. www.dmstainedglass.com




recycled glass bottles 
The Housewares Graveyard was the second window of the series completely assembled with glass rescued from functional glass objects. 21" x 30", $2400.www.dmstainedglass.com




Recycled glass window by Don Leedy of Oregon.
brokenglass12.com






Recycled glass window by Don Leedy
www.oregonlive.com

recycled glass bottles
Old Bottles #2, 1992

Bottles, brass, 25"h x 20"w

By John Bassett, basglas.com



recycled glass bottles

Old Bottles #1, 1992

Bottles, brass, 24"h x 19"w

By John Bassett, basglas.com

Eyeglass Stained Glass, 'Family Tree' 1988

Glass, wood sash, eyeglasses

33"h x 34"w

By John Bassett, basglas.com




recycled glass bottles 
Three Stalks, 1981

Glass, brass, 15"h x 18"w

By John Bassett basglas.com




recycled glass bottles

Knot Bad, 2011

Bottle glass in old sash, 18"h x 34"w x 2"

John Bassett, basglas.com





Glass dishes attached to a window by Peggy.





Melted glass bottles by Erwin Timmers. www.ecoglassart.com





Recycled glass rubberband balls and cubes by Erwin Timmers. Glass fusing is a process of layering and then putting the glass into a kiln at temperatures around 1500°F (not enough to completely melt it). www.ecoglassart.com





Recycled glass knot. Erwin Timmers is originally from Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and moved to California to study at the Santa Monica College for Design Arts and Architecture. In 1999 he moved to Washington DC and co-founded the Washington Glass Studio and the Washington Glass School. www.ecoglassart.com




recycled glass bottles 
'Eternity' by Cindy Ann Coldiron
Kiln cast window glass, 2010.
artist-cindyann.tripod.com





Shards of old glass, sardine can openers. Finny Fish by Alexander Calder. www.nga.gov





Recycled glass lamps (note the upside down wine bottles) by Whimsical Wonders: Darla Murray and Bridget Smith via: almosteveryword.blogspot.com





Glass Bottle Border at the Mano Poderosa Jardin.
Image by Dee Kincke. www.flickr.com




Glass Bottle Border in garden! More pictures here: thegreenbacksgal.com





Hanging glass bottle flower vases. Super wedding decoration idea. See:www.eatdrinkchic.com





"Relite" lamp shades made from recycled glass, stained glass and or, fused glass.
The glass is broken up and put in a rock tumbler and/or kiln to get the effect.
Light blubs are CFL or LED. $35 - $90. www.berriecreative.com

'Relite' recycled glass lamp shades on reuse bases.

www.berriecreative.com

Close-up of a Berrie 'Relite' - Love it!
www.facebook.com/berriecreative





Glass Bottle Lamps. brillanteinteriors.blogspot.com
How to: www.instructables.com




recycled glass bottles
Manuel Rapoport has built a house in Bariloche, Patagonia, Argentina with 100% recycled ingredients. Tin cans for roofing and siding and merged whiskey bottles as windows.www.designopatagonia.com.ar





Architectual glass individually cut and placed. Bowl and mold hand built from found objects. $400. Artist: Aaron Tafoya © 2008 ~18 x 18 in. sits on stand.www.recycledglassartdesign.com






Recycled grape lamps. Artiquea collects and separates glass according to color; after being smashed and washed, the fragments are melted down. They blow grapes and vases, mould spiral discs and bulbous glasses... Grapes and plate lamps and more:www.artiquea.co.uk






Recycled hanging glass lamp by Wolf Art Glass & Pottery,
Austin, Texas: www.wolfartglass.com
Etsy: $545.  www.etsy.com





Recycled glass lamp put together with bailing wires, from Indonesia.www.overstock.com





recycled glass bottles
Art with a Conscience. Artecnica. www.artecnicainc.com
See how-to video below.



recycled glass bottles
Art with a Conscience. Artecnica. www.artecnicainc.com





'Recycled Wine Bottle' Appetizer Trays  $25.00  © 2009, Aaron Tafoya will make you any custom glass item. www.recycledglassartdesign.com





Pantone or Paint Chip Door - to mimic all the colors that surround in nature.
By Armin Blasbichler, www.arminblasbichler.com





Beer Bottle Buddha
Wat Lan Kuat (One Million Bottle Temple) in Khn Han, Eastern Thailand.





Angle Cabinet Institute




recycled glass bottles

Earthdance #1, 2011

Bottle glass, red frit, 28"h x 15"

By John Bassett basglas.com

Videos:

Video showing how to make bottle cheese plates:
The bottles are carefully put in a kiln, slowly heated to temperatures around 1400 degrees, cooled, and turned into cheese boards, spoon rests, etc. www.glassbyerica.comSee the process here: www.youtube.com


Video showing how to make a Glass Cup from a bottle:
Although the video maker used a torch and electric grinder, you can do it with just a glass scorer and sandpaper. www.youtube.com


Books:

 "Sculpture and Design With Recycled Glass" by Cindy Ann Coldiron, Schiffer Books, 2011, features 40 artists and 125 sculptures in an exploration of the use of recycled glass as a medium for sculpture and creative design. www.amazon.com



Recycling glass vs making glass from scratch:

Glass recycling turns used glass products back into "new" glass products. By some estimates, recycling glass uses 40% less energy than creating new glass from silica sand, lime and soda ash. Recycled glass also creates about 20% less air pollution and 50% less water pollution.

Glass recycling is a much more efficient process than plastic recycling, since plastics are usually "downcycled" into a lower-quality form of plastic. Plastic water bottles, for example, cannot be recycled into new plastic bottles, but glass containers can be recycled indefinitely into new glass containers.

When glass is recycled, it is cleaned and separated by color. All other items, including plastic and metal caps, are also removed. Recycled glass is then crushed into a mixture called cullet, which is then sold back to glass manufacturing facilities.

• Recycling glass:
  Saves raw materials - Over a ton of natural resources are conserved for every ton of glass recycled. Cuts CO₂ emissions - For every six tons of recycled container glass used, a ton of carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, is reduced. From: gpi.org

Glass that is not recyclable:

Window glass, mirrors, glass cups or tumblers, ceramic, Pyrex, colored glass (other than green and the amber that beer bottles usually are), light bulbs (hardware stores may take light bulbs), windows and windshields, aren't generally accepted by  local recycling centers. That's because these different glass products have a different melting point from container glass, so that your local recycling center may not recycle them. Yet, some recycling centers send their glass to cement producers, where the glass is crushed and used as filler in cement products. One needs to contact one's local recycling center to find out what kind of glass it recycles.


 
For more see the Glass Bottle Walls Page:  inspirationgreen.com/glassbottlewalls

Time Lapse video of building a leaded glass window.

We watched this YouTube video showing a time lapsed video of making a leaded stained glass window at the Beyer Studio in Philadelphia, work done by Chris Thompson.   It really gives people an idea of how much work it takes to finish a leaded glass window!  The finished window is absolutely beautiful!

 View the video here!

How much should you charge?

Now that you know how to make stained glass windows, suddenly people are asking you to make custom windows, or other glass art, but you are not sure how much to charge for your work.  One of the biggest issues you will come across when making glass art is the art of pricing your artwork!  You will find that the pricing question is a familiar quandary to artists in all mediums.  Basically, you want people to buy your windows and at times you think that means you have to under price your piece to sell it.

While you work on a piece, you will need to keep a record of the cost of supplies that you have used in your window.  That means, the cost of the glass, foil or lead came, and solder used, plus additional materials.  Next you will need to know how much time it took to make the window.  And finally, how many pieces of glass are in the piece?  Other charges such as for sandblasting, bevels, jewels, roundels, fusing and other elements need to be included in your price list.  

Although leaded glass windows typically have less pieces than foiled windows, you will need to use additional steps in creating the window due to the cementing process.  For that reason our studio charges more for leaded glass windows.  

All in all, pricing your work is not always a formula set in stone.  We never advise under pricing art work just to make sales.  A studio that under prices will eventually end up closing and going out of business.  That also goes for a hobbyist working out of their home.  

Lastly, people buying glass art need to look at the quality of the finished product which they are wanting to purchase.  Sloppy work made quickly in a production factory will probably never look as beautiful as work made individually, carefully and correctly by a skilled craftsman.   Although buyers may find cheap stained glass art in department stores, chain stores and other locations, the quality and durability may never compare to glass art made in smaller glass art studios.  Look at the foil around the glass pieces for uniformity, soldering should be slightly rounded, plus the patterns and grain of glass should all go in the same direction.  In the end it all comes down to...  you get what you pay for!

How to repair a broken piece in a leaded glass window.

Occasionally a glass artist will be asked if they can repair a broken leaded glass window but are not sure how to go about repairing the piece.  I think that repairing a leaded glass window is much easier than repairing a copper foiled window.  

To begin with you should tape together what is left of the broken piece of glass.  If necessary make a rubbing of the window.   Tape a piece of white paper on one side of the window,  lightly rub the window with a crayon or charcoal so that you can see the shadow of the lead came lines.

Next, remove the frame.  If you have a zinc came frame, you need to use a temperature controlled iron so that you can turn down the heat.  Then with the temp turned down, heat up and actually carefully move the solder from the soldered areas on the zinc came frame, use paste flux on the joint so that the solder will flow.  This will allow you to "break" or open up the soldered joints.  You'll have to do this on the corners of the zinc frame and the areas where the lead came is soldered to the zinc frame as well, remember to do both sides of your window.  Carefully remove the zinc frame from the closest side to the broken piece of glass, you might have to remove two sides of zinc came.  

Once removed, use your lead knife and cut into the closest soldered joints so that you will be able to open up the window to remove the broken piece of glass.  You will have to cut both sides of the window, in the same spots.  You might only have to cut up one area, but if the piece is large and you can't get into the broken piece, you will probably have to cut up into the window in two areas.

When you have cut both sides of lead came (only on the solder joints), front and back, up to the broken piece of glass, carefully remove or open up the window to where the broken piece is located.  Once there carefully remove the broken piece of glass with needle nose pliers.  Since the piece is cemented in place, it might take some work to pull the piece out.  Use your lead knife to clean out the lead came surrounding the once broken piece of glass.  If the lead came is damaged, you will then need to replace it.

Use the old piece of glass as a template to make a new paper pattern to replace the glass.  Place the broken piece of glass on a piece of paper, trace around it with a pencil, and cut it out with regular scissors.  Glue that piece of paper to the new replacement glass, cut, grind and its ready to replace.

If the piece of glass is too broken, or non existent,  to use as a template to make the new piece of glass, use the rubbing you made of the original window to make the new paper pattern piece.  We like to make a copy of that template first before doing anything else, just in case.  Take one copy of the etching and with regular scissors, cut out the piece or pieces that needs to be replaced.  When cutting, cut close to the center of the lead line that was traced in the original rubbing.

Once new pieces are cut and installed, re solder the once cut lead came joints.  By doing it this way, it is impossible to tell that the window has been repaired!  Then if the piece has a zinc frame, solder it back on before cementing.

Cement, clean and polish the window and it is now repaired!

Canterbury Cathedral stained glass

Stained Glass

“I will lay thy stones with fair colours, and lay their foundations with sapphires. And I will make thy windows of agates, and thy gates of carbuncles, and all thy borders of pleasant stones.”

Isaiah 54:11-12

An immense wealth of stained glass can be seen throughout Canterbury Cathedral. Many of its jewel-like medallion windows survive from the late 12th and early 13th centuries. The Miracle Windows depict stories often involving ordinary local people, whose names are still known today.

Canterbury Cathedral also has a number of important Victorian windows, as well as 20th century works including the vivid stained glass crafted by Erwin Bossanyi in 1957.

The Oldest Window
The oldest window at Canterbury shows Adam delving. It dates to about 1176 AD and is the first in a series of ancestors of Christ that used to fill the clerestory of the quire. In the 18th century these early windows were moved to the West Window and to the South-West Window. Adam delving now lives in the centre of the bottom tier of the West Window. The panels that can be seen in the quire clerestory today are 19th century copies of the originals.

Why Stained Glass
Light, as the first act of God’s creation, was seen as the purest manifestation of God’s presence, and stained glass windows come to life only when illuminated by light. To medieval theologians, the vibrant holy images depicted in the windows were therefore brought to life by God’s presence.

Few people were able to read or write in the Middle Ages. Stained glass windows told the stories of the Bible and of the Saints in pictures, and guides, perhaps the monks themselves, would explain their content to the pilgrims. The Latin inscriptions in many panels acted as aides memoires to those literate guides.

Restoration and Conservation
Like most other historic glazing in the country, the famous late 12th and 13th - century windows suffered substantially through iconoclasm, vandalism, neglect and environmental impact.

After a long period of decline, the first stained glass restoration studio of its kind was established here in the early 19th century. The damaged windows were repaired, missing elements reconstructed, and new windows were made in the mosaic style of the late 12th and early 13th centuries.

Today, the cathedral has its own stained glass conservation studio. Established in 1973, it has a team of seven highly trained conservators. The emphasis now is on the consolidation of the fragile glass and its painted decoration, and on preventive conservation by installing protective glazing.

The studio has become a centre of excellence in stained glass conservation and restoration, and also works on the windows of other churches and cathedrals around the country. The team considers ecclesiastical and private commissions and will advise and help in all matters concerning the creation of new and the restoration/conservation of historic stained glass and lead light glazing.

The Conservation Process
Stained Glass Conservation today follows ethical guidelines that are completely different, sometimes directly contradictory to those of the past. Priority is now given to the historical material - glass, lead and ironwork, all of which are respected equally as part of the object and kept as long as possible.

All work has to be reversible and all interventions and materials are recorded for future generations.

1. The glass is carefully cleaned

2. Then glass, paint pigments and leadwork are consolidated and stabilized

3. All work is recorded

4. Protective glazing is designed and made for the historic window

Click here to see the Canterbury Cathedral webpage where we found this fascinating information.