Tips & Techniques

@ Thanks for your question - it's a tricky one. I consulted with one of our knowledgeable instructors that has years of experience creating and repairing stained glass. Any time you add reinforcement to a panel, you goal is to help redistribute the weight in a way that prevents bowing due to the combined influence of weight, time and gravity. This is most frequently achieved by running reinforcement horizontally, but there's no absolute one-size-fits all answer. The size ratio of height to width, the exact pattern design and the overall dimensions are all factors that could result in a decision to reinforce vertically instead. In some instances, artists may decide to build sections of the pattern as separate panels to allow for better distribution of the weight. Whatever way you determine to install the reinforcement, it is important to ensure all solder or came lines that the reinforcement crosses are soldered to the reinforcement, and that the reinforcement is run continuously edge-to-edge and securely soldered to your border. While not providing a definite answer, I hope this helps you take a step back to look at where and how you can add strength to your design.

@dmz2241 There are several approaches you could take for adding a border to the mirror. Probably the most common approach would be to add a came or foil border to the mirror, then solder the border to it directly. This approach will work with most single or double strength mirror, but may not be as sturdy and effective if you're using a thicker mirror. To hang your mirror, you can solder jump rings, custom wire loops or Handy Hangers to the project at the top corners, or near the top on the back (where the mirror joins the border). While you could directly solder a length of wire to support the mirror, many people find using rings that can be directly placed on a hook, or used to attach a hanging wire give them more flexibility to ensure they're able to hang the project at the intended height.