If you are new to stained glass, you may be a little confused about copper foil mostly because when it comes to choosing copper foil for your stained glass project you have a lot of options.
The first quality you may want to take into consideration is whether the foil is lined. Generally, most stained glass suppliers offer unlined, silver-lined and black-lined foil. Unlined foil is great to use with any kind of glass, the only drawback you have with it is when you are working with clear, non-opalescent and mirrored glass is that the copper color may be reflected in the glass. If you are working with clear, non-opalescent or mirrored glass and you want to match your foil to the patina or solder color use silver-lined foil or black-lined foil.
The second quality to consider is the thickness of the foil. Thickness ranges from under 1mm to about 1.5mm. The thinner the foil is the easier it will tear and the easier it is to fold down the thicker the foil the harder it is to fold and tear. Beginners should start with a thicker foil – although it is harder to fold down it is much easier than re-foiling the stained glass piece.
The third quality to consider is the width of the foil. This is determined by the thickness and/or texture of the glass or glasses (if you decide to foil two pieces together). Foil generally ranges in widths from 1/8” to 1/2” many widths are available in black and silver lined as well as solid copper. Most of the foil will be wrapping the edge of the glass with just a small amount folded over the edges.
Take a look at the Diamond Tech Creative Corner to find more stained glass tips and projects and find a Diamond Tech supplier in your area through the Diamond Tech store locator.
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