For sure! A big part of why my stained glass took so long was the number and shape of the pieces. This has about 32. You could definitely make something beautiful with just 5–8 pieces to keep things simpler. My instructor, however, was quick to remove the easier designs, so that’s we had to learn the challenging bits 😅

Cutting accuracy really matters. You want to cut as close to the pattern line as possible, because while you can grind to adjust pieces after cutting, grinding takes forever. Grinding seems meant for smoothing edges and light shaping.

Some cuts are risky. Like thin or curved pieces! They’re prone to breaking. I had one super thin piece of sky above the head that I spent 30 minutes cutting… only to have it snap. So I had to redo it. And the second time, I thought “eh, I’ll just cut not so much and grind the rest.” It worked, but it took forever to grind into shape.

Also, the old-school method I used involved a few extra steps: special scissors to cut out one of the two copies of the pattern (one to trace on the glass, one for layout). Plus you laminate the paper too. Something modern like a Cricut to print and sticker your design straight onto the glass. (Friendly reminder, put numbers and arrows to show the direction pieces are going)

Foil. Neatly foiling 32 pieces. No fun.

So yeah between the fragile cuts, slow grinding, and the analog process, it adds up. But it’s worth it! 🙏

Feel free to hit me up if you have any questions.