Stained glass doors are simply beautiful. There’s no two ways about it! If I could, I’d use them for every door in my house. It’s not just a door when there’s stained glass involved, do you know what I mean? It’s more like a little piece of art, right there in your home.
Picking the right stained glass door can be essential to your happiness. After all, you don’t want a door that you don’t find attractive because you’ll be unhappy with it every single day that you walk through it for the rest of your time in that particular house!
So what are your options when it comes to picking these kinds of doors? Do you have to buy them ready made or can you get them custom designed? Or can you do them yourselves? The answer to each of those questions is a resounding, YES!
Many people buy them ready made. You simply go to a door design company and look through their catalog. Many of these companies have so many options that you may be a bit baffled at first. Take your time and pick out a door that you really love. There’s no rush! If possible, look at actual doors that they may have on location to get a feel for the doors that you can relate to the pictures in the catalog. Many door firms will be able to point you towards houses in the area that they have sold doors for in the past and you can drive past them and see (at least, see the front door!).
Another option is to have your door custom designed. Many door firms can do this for you, creating the exact door that you want in the exact stained glass or leaded glass pattern that you want. Sometimes you will give them an idea that you have yourself, other times you will simply tell them that you want a custom design and their artists will go to work and come up with something on their own.
Another option is to go to a glass works company. These companies don’t build doors, they just do the glass work. Think of them as purely artists. Many times they they will ship their finished glass work to a door company who will them place the glass in a door of your choosing. Sometimes glass work shops will simply deliver the glass to you! Make sure you find out the glass works exact procedures when it comes to this sort of thing before hand because you don’t want to wake up one day to a big slab of delicate glass on your front porch!
When it comes to glass work companies, the same general thing applies as with door companies. They will have catalogs of their work that you can choose from, and they will also probably offer custom designs as well. The better you can communicate with the glass workers, the more happy you are ultimately going to be with their work. Be as specific as you can when describing what you are looking for. They are used to it! You won’t look pushy at all. After all, you are the one that has to live with the final product for years to come, so you had better be happy with it!
Finally, quickly, yes it is possible to make your own stained glass as well. There are a number of do it yourself options, from kits to simple instructions. You will need glass cutters, bits of colored glass, and probably the ability to solder came together. If you are particularly artistic, then this may be the way for you to go. It can be pretty fun if you are so inclined. If you aren’t artistic or do it yourself, then you may just want someone else to do this work for you, or buy ready made.
Whatever you end up choosing, one thing is for sure; and that is stained glass doors are a wonderful investment in beauty that is sure to bring you many years of enjoyment and raise your property value, or at least the curb appeal of your home!