Stained Glass Wreath

Note: You must know the art of creating stained glass projects and possess the needed materials and equipment to complete this project.

In addition to normal materials and equipment required to create stained glass works, the following is needed:

Antique glass: dark green two sheets, each 8" x 10"; deep red-orange, two sheets, each 8" x 10"; emerald green about 12 small pieces, orange, about four small pieces. Opalescent glass: green-blue, about six small pieces; apple green, about four small pieces. Cathedral glass: tortoise (dark amber) 1 sheet 8" x 1". Semi-opalescent: amber, about four small pieces. Eight small amber nuggets. Adhesive backed copper foil sheet 5" x 12". Muriatic acid antique solution. Two pieces of stiff wire for hanging loops, each 1 1 /2" long. Picture wire 22" long.

Directions: Enlarge pattern below by copying on paper ruled in 1" squares. Trace half-pattern on tracing paper; complete wreath by turning half-pattern upside down and reversing it. Use carbon to transfer wreath pattern to cardboard; cut out pattern pieces.

For each side of wreath, cut out pieces as follows: From dark green antique glass, cut pattern pieces 5, 6, 7, 9, 11, 13, 14, 15; from deep red-orange antique glass, cut pattern pieces 19, 20, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28; from emerald green antique glass, cut pattern pieces 1, 4, 21, 22, 30, 32, 34, 36; from orange antique glass, cut pattern pieces 3, 33; from green-blue opalescent glass, cut pattern pieces 2, 31, 35; from apple green opalescent glass, cut pattern pieces 16, 18; from tortoise (dark amber) cathedral glass, cut pattern pieces 8, 10, 12, 17; from amber semi-opalescent glass, cut pattern pieces 29, 37.

Cut copper foil sheet into six pieces, each 2" x 5". For each side of wreath, place one 2" x 5" piece of foil, adhesive side down, on top of tortoise (dark amber) pieces 8, 10, 2. Trace pattern for pinecone design onto tracing paper. Place pattern on foil; trace design lines with ball-point pen to imprint on foil covered piece. Remove pattern. Use stencil knife to carefully cut out small oval areas. Leaving a 1/4" border beyond glass edges, trim foil around each piece; fold this 1/4" around sides; burnish foil to glass.

For each red-orange poinsettia center (#38), wrap a narrow strip of foil around four small amber nuggets; solder nuggets over center ends of poinsettia leaves and to each other. To give a three-dimensional effect, build up and fill in spaces between nuggets with additional solder.

Using cotton swab, apply muriatic acid solution to solder and stenciled foil sheet; rub with cloth until solder and foil sheet become a dull, mottled silver. Let dry; wash with soapy water; rinse; dry again.

For hanging wreath, shape two pieces of stiff wire into small U-shaped loops. Solder ends of loops to top back of wreath at each side, about 2" in from inside edges. Attach each end of picture wire to one loop at each side of wreath.