Method 1b – Sticking Foil Overlay to Glass With Glue When viewed from the front the tree has texture but when viewed with a backlight it creates a silhouette or shadow. Solder the overlay quickly and don’t hang about on any one area too long.Cut and add the stained glass foil overlay.It also gives you the opportunity to use different colour glasses in your panel, rather than just one colour. This is good practice as it gives the foil overlay far more stability. Notice how Bob has used the foiled seams as part of his tree.Design your piece with the overlay in mind before you start.Reader Bob Miller has kindly shared his progress images of this technique used to make a textured tree. This technique uses foil to create shape and solder to create texture. Method 1a – Copper Foil Overlay With Soldered Texture Create 3D effects by hammering texture into a copper foil sheet before tinning. This is also referred to as shadow soldering or ‘shadowing’! Method 3. Use foil overlays on the backside of the glass to create contours or shadows. Cut a foil shape and add it to the front of the piece to create detail.
![stain glass overlays stain glass overlays](https://i.etsystatic.com/9312473/r/il/1fc00a/731579541/il_fullxfull.731579541_hxhy.jpg)
These are often referred to as shadow soldering.
![stain glass overlays stain glass overlays](https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WQm_XbjLG_g/WqKoc5PionI/AAAAAAAAAj8/alLh-IIHpV0wrTGIVEY6mhN4vZkPoo0_QCLcBGAs/s1600/tree%2Boverlay.jpg)
Method 1. Cut or buy a foil shape and either a) solder directly on the glass or b) solder first and stick on to the glass with glue.
![stain glass overlays stain glass overlays](https://art-of-stained-glass.com/4foiloverlays.jpg)
I’ve outlined 4 different methods so that you can see for yourself some of the different ways you can use foil overlays: There’s a level of confusion about the term ‘ stained glass overlay‘ and ‘ shadow soldering‘. This technique allows you to be creative and add delicate details. Have you ever wanted more detail or depth in your stained glass? A simple way to make an impact is by using stained glass overlay with copper foil.