I work in the copper foil method of stained glass. This allows for far more intricacy in a design than the lead came method. This is Leo.

Leo began as a photo I took at the National Zoo in Washington DC (© 2001)

If you sew or knit, or do any sort of craft where there is a universe of options for materials, then you are very familiar with the sense of overwhelming inspiration one has while picking out supplies. Below is a mere corner of the warehouse at Warner-Crivellaro.

After pattern prep and glass selection, I didn't follow any strict coloring for his mane, randomly picking pieces to fit, because Leo's mane lent itself well to sheer randomness.

Each piece is hand scored with a glass cutter and broken - hopefully along the score lines! Then the sharp edges are smoothed with a glass grinder, until all of the pieces fit like a puzzle.

Once all the pieces have been fitted, the edges of the glass are wrapped with copper foil tape, and then soldered.

Leo was "born" in June 2003. He is 23" x 16" and contains 116 pieces, with 75 in the mane alone.