Often the first question asked is if this is real glass. Yes, it is.

1. Do I make my own glass? No, there are companies that specialize in producing a wide variety of colors. Colors are usually purchased in square foot pieces, the way a painter puts together a palette. Once the colors are chosen, the artist follows a basic series of steps.
2. After choosing the pattern, the pattern goes on top of a light box and the glass on top of the pattern. With a black marker for light glass, and a silver marker for dark glass, the pattern is transferred onto the glass.
3. The glass is cut with a glass cutter
4. The individual pieces of glass are put on an electric grinder, the edges are smoothed, and each piece is shaped into the exact desired shape and dimensions.
5. Each piece is edged with copper foil, which comes in a roll like tape. The foil is soft and malleable and covers the edge, leaving a ridge of foil on the top and bottom of the piece of glass.
6. All the pieces are put into position and pinned in place on a soft board or acoustical tile. Lead/tin solder is used to solder all the pieces together. The lead/tin solder is soft, as is the copper foil, but when the three metals are soldered together, they become hard and strong. Each piece of glass has basically been given its own metal frame.
7. Often the outside edge of the work is covered with a u-shaped metal frame, called came.
8. The metal can be left silver or treated with a chemical to turn it black.
9. After washing and polishing, the piece is ready to hang.

Copper foil is a very time intensive activity, but because of the nature of glass, each resulting piece is original and unique.