Leaded stained glass for a beautiful stained glass view.

When people think of stained glass, they often think of old church windows with multiple panes of richly colored glass. Although these windows have great beauty and their popularity has withstood the test of time, it’s certainly not everyone’s dream to have this style installed in their home. A bit too dramatic, wouldn’t you agree?

However, leaded stained glass makes a great option for someone who loves the stained glass style, but would like to let in more light in their home. Leaded stained glass is usually done in clear, frosted, or textured types of glass as opposed to the vibrant and sometimes dark colors of church glass.

This makes leaded stained glass perfect for any home, any décor, and any type or style of architecture. And it’s also perfect because it will continue to let a lot of light flow through the windows into your home, which most Houstonites agree is important.

Let’s talk about the lead aspect of leaded stained glass for a moment. In the past, a lot of glass did contain lead, and was known, appropriately enough, as lead glass. Here’s what Wikipedia has to say on the subject: “Originally discovered by Englishman George Ravenscroft in 1674, the technique of adding lead oxide (in quantities of between 10 and 30%) improved the appearance of the glass and made it easier to melt using sea-coal as a furnace fuel. This technique also increased “working period” making the glass easier to manipulate.”

When discussing stained glass, the term leaded stained glass can also refer to the fact that the small individual pieces of glass are held together by strips of lead caming. (Or sometimes copper caming, as in the case of the famed Tiffany lamps.)

However, these days most people use stained glass and leaded glass interchangeably. So, for our purposes, when we say stained glass we would be referring to the brightly colored product, and when we say leaded stained glass, we are referring to the clear or frosted type of windows, regardless of what type of glass they are made from.

Got it? If not, no worries. The main thing you need to know about leaded stained glass is that it is gorgeous, it is hand crafted and custom made, and it will take your home’s décor to a whole new level of beauty and sophistication. So if you are in the market to add gorgeous custom art work to your home in the form of leaded stained glass windows, we hope you will contact Houston Stained Glass today!

Martin Faith

Martin Faith is the founder and owner of Houston Stained Glass. Martin has been cultivating his skills as a stained glass artisan for over 30 years, passing on his knowledge and expertise to his team so that, together, they can create the most beautiful stained glass windows the world has ever seen. Martin's initial education in the trade took place in Glasgow, Scotland, the stained glass capitol of the world. He is an expert in the history of stained glass, its evolution, methods for conservation, and its many different styles and forms, including art deco, prairie, Greene & Greene, art nouveau, Mackintosh, floral, mission, beveled, and contemporary. Over the years, Martin's company has produced thousands of stained glass windows, which includes custom creations made for homes, churches, and commercial buildings located all throughout the Houston metro area.