| EDUCATION | NEW LEADLIGHTS | PHOTOS | PHOTOS 2 | HANDYHINTS |
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CLASSES Leadlight as a hobby Many community centres and Tafes offer leadlight courses (also referred to as stained glass ). Not all leadlight teachers are professional leadlighters as there are currently no formal qualifications set in place to govern the teaching of leadlight or stained glass in Tafes and community centres. My recommendation is to learn from a professional wherever possible. Enquire with any leadlight studios in your area, check the local papers for Tafe and community centre course information. Inquire if your teacher is a professional leadlighter, as most teachers are not. These courses generally run in conjunction with the school terms. What's involved ? In your course you would usually be required to make a student project, which will run you through all the exercises of glass cutting, assembly and soldering of a leadlight. You should then have enough time to make another leaded project. It's not advisable to make your front entry feature leadlight as your first project. As your skills will only get improve, delay your front door or sidelight project for your 2nd or 3rd choice, if you feel confident of your new-found abilities. Many people having moved on with their leadlight skills, only want to jump up & down on their old leadlight projects ! Practice on all your friends and relatives first and only keep the "good stuff" when you get better at it ! If you find you are enjoying your new-found hobby and wish to learn more....I would suggest 3 terms to learn most things on an amateur level. That does not mean you will be a professional leadlighter in three terms, BUT you will be able to make lamps and copperfoiled projects at home unsupervised. What tools do I need ? The purchase of your leadlight tools may, at first, be a bit of a shock. However, once purchased they are tools you will use for a lifetime one way or another. The average costs of a set of leadlight tools would be around about $ 180 or so. Most leadlight tools are specialised and are not usually found in hardware stores apart from a few soldering irons. Without specialised knowledge, most hardware salespeople could not advise you with any degree of certainty as to the correct tools or the right kind of soldering iron, for our kind of work. Double check all information in this regard. A professional leadlighter would be happy to set you on the right path or sell you the tools you need. * * * Special note pertaining to soldering irons. Many people believe the soldering iron they have at home will do for leadlight work, and thereby can save the expense of another. In most cases, the soldering irons in the toolbox at home are of the hobby electrical persuasion. These irons are too cool at 25 - 40 watts or so, and have a pointed tip attached. We need a hotter iron at 80 watts minimum, with a chisel tip, or right angled tip. There is no saving in buying a CHEAP soldering iron. We've had power points in class blow up due to "dodgy irons". The cheapie soldering irons that some people have tried to use, ended up being more aggravation than they were worth in the end. By the time you buy a proper tip for your iron, the cost equates to that which you would have paid for a better iron in the first place. The soldering iron you purchase through your leadlight supplier will be a recommended and reliable brand and will have a backup service with regard to warranty. What will a course cost me ? Courses vary in cost and duration. On investigating, the cheapest isn't necessarily the best option. Courses generally charge a course fee, not including tools, ( approx. $ 180 ), or glass & lead supplies. Glass varies from around $ 13 upwards per hobby square ( 1 sq.ft ) and lead from $ 1.50 to $3.00 or so per length ( around 900 mm long ). Courses for Advanced students. For those who've learnt some leadlight skills in a beginners course , you may find it difficult to further your knowledge due to the lack of structured advanced courses. Enquire with professional leadlighters in your area, who may be able to direct you to a teacher best able to suit your needs. In addition to your initial leadlight tuition, you may want to move onto copperfoiling (suncatchers, mirrors and lamps ), glass mosaics, and 3D objects like candleboxes and jewellery boxes
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