Life in the Fast Lane

Welcome back!

Most of my good friends that have known me for a long time were very surprised when I got into the trucking industry, and drove a 1 Ton Flat Deck truck. They know that I’m more of a creative person. It was an unusual side step for me, but it came to me quite naturally with my business background, and I’ve never looked back. Those that have only known me recently are rather astonished when they find out I have a creative side!

After owning my hair salon Tangles in downtown Edmonton Alberta for a number of years, I went on to work for a major chain of stores in management level for Food Service, for which I will leave nameless. No, I’m not bitter, wink. From there I moved on to create Ornamental Concrete with Stained Glass, and sold my creations on consignment to local garden centers, including Holes Garden Center. Now my husband and I own our own trucking company; go figure!

The process to make Ornamental Concrete with Stained Glass was not an easy one to learn. I had to discover most of what I know through trial and error, but developed my own tricks of the trade to design quality workmanship, which I am going to share with you. There is very little available information to teach any of the processes.

One of the gift stores that I consigned my art at brought in local news team Global TV for a morning segment. I performed a demonstration on making Garden Stepstones with Stained Glass. Surprisingly, it wasn’t nerve wracking at all; only the news team, camera man, store owner and staff were present, as we worked on camera behind locked doors. I was more nervous doing my first seminar as a public speaker to my peers and trainees! In fact, I was sweating from nervous tension in the beginning; not a pretty thing for a lady.

If I can track the video for the demonstration I’ll post it here at another date. For now, I will provide you with the process in step form on procedures for making Ornamental Concrete with Stained Glass with a couple of pictures.

First you will need a good quality mold. I found it difficult to locate places that sell molds on the net, but I will post some information for you with some links to places that specialize in quality molds in the near future.

You will need to take a simple course for cutting Stained Glass, and practice it. Don’t let it intimidate you; it’s not as difficult as you might think.

Create a pattern or purchase a pattern book for Stained Glass for your design. Try to use a very simple pattern with few pieces for your first attempt. You will need a copy of this pattern for cutting up, so save your good copy for your original. If you plan to reuse the pattern numerous times, I recommend covering your original pattern with clear Mac Tac on both sides or it will warp, as well as your second copy that you will cut up, before cutting it out. Store your patterns flat.

Number the individual pieces on both your original and copy patterns.

You will need to leave a space between the glass pieces between 1/8 inches and 1/4 inches for the cement to settle between to keep them in place without popping out in the future. I suggest using a felt marker to trace around the lines of each piece that will be cut out for glass before covering the design with Mac Tac, to accommodate for the space you’ll need between the glass pieces.

Leave a space on the outside border of your pattern of at least 1/3 of an inch smaller than the inside edge of your mold. Otherwise the edges of the concrete will eventually deteriorate, and glass pieces will pop out along the outside edges.

Now cut your paper pieces out from the pattern.

Lay the pattern pieces out on your Stained Glass. Use a black medium tipped Sharpie Marker to trace around the pattern onto your lighter colored glass. You can find water proof white markers for darker glass at your local stationary store; dark markers are difficult to see on dark glass. Number the glass pieces respetive to the pattern pieces, and cut them out.

Next grind your glass pieces with a Glass Grinder, which you can purchase at any Stained Art Glass store.

Lay your glass pieces out on top of your original design. It’s helpful if you use a light box to lay your pattern on top of, to see the gaps between the glass pieces more clearly. Procede cutting out all glass pieces and placing them onto the original pattern.

Cut a piece of clear Mac Tac larger than the size of your pattern but smaller than the inside edge of your mold and peel the paper side off to reveal the tacky side. Fold the Mac Tac in half with tacky edges to the outside; hold it by the top outside edges. Carefully lay down one side of the Mac Tac at a time onto your glass pieces starting at the middle.

Tip: Grease your fingertips with anything such as margarine or vegetable spray before laying the Mac Tac onto your glass. This will prevent accidental movement of the glass pieces because the Mac Tac was sticking to your fingers upon placement.

Firmly brush over the Mac Tac to ensure a good bond with the glass, being careful to not apply too much pressure to cut through the glass and cut yourself.

Grease your mold. I recommend a vegetable spray, or even cheaper, use vegetable oil and wipe the mold down with a paper towel saturated in it. Be sure to cover all crevices well. A good friend of mine that creates Ornamental Concrete and cement molds, former owner of Terrestrial Productions in Salem Oregon uses motor oil.

Carefully lift and transfer your pattern pieces with the Mac Tac glass side up, Mac Tac down, into your mold. Ensure that there is a gap of at least 1/3 of an inch between your glass and the mold along all edges.

Go over the glass pieces again to make sure you still have complete contact with the Mac Tac.

Mix your concrete. Make sure you use a dust mask while doing this! I use regular concrete you can buy at any hardware store. Places that mass produce Ornamental Concrete create their own blends of mix. Some people use a Fast Set concrete, but this is not required.

Do not make the mix too dry, as you will need the finer particles to settle between the glass pieces. But don’t make it too soupy or you won’t have strong cement.

What I found for information for making Stepping Stones recommends you use chicken wire or something similar to lay into the concrete for strength. This is sheer hog wash, you don’t need it. Trust me; I’ve made hundreds of Stepstones that I’ve been walking on for years, and survived our coldest winters unscathed.

If you’re making large pieces, such as benches and tables, you’ll need to lay several pieces of rebar lengthwise for strength of the piece, towards the last inch or more of the layer of cement.

Note: When making Ornamental Concrete in colder climates, do not place the pieces outside until they have cured indoors for at least 7 days. Cement cannot freeze during this time; it will surely crumble down the road.

Use a level surface or counter that is sturdy to lay your mold on. Place a perfectly flat board larger than the mold onto your counter. Lay your mold on top of the board.

Table Top Mold With Stained Glass Ready To Fill With Concrete

Very gently scoop your mixed concrete into your mold, taking care to not shift any of the glass pieces. Do not under any circumstances handle the cement with bare hands; use large thick rubber gloves.

Do not fill the mold so full that it starts spilling out of the edges; it will not create a clean edge if you do.

Lift your board that the mold is resting on and gently tap it on the counter, taking care that you are not shifting any of the glass pieces. If the mold is too heavy to lift, gently tap the top of the outside rim with a hammer, as well as hammering the underside of the counter you’re using; don’t hammer so hard that the mold begins to shake out of place. This will remove a lot of air bubbles, and push the finer particles between your glass pieces.

Those that mass produce Ornamental Concrete often use cement vibrators to remove air bubbles. You cannot do this with Stained Glass, as the glass will shift.

Let the mold set for 12 to 24 hours. I recommend 12 hours once you’ve become experienced, as the cement is not set so hard that it’s difficult to work with (unless making a large table top), with a maximum of 18 hours. Anything longer than 24 hours will be extremely difficult to manipulate for the next process.

Place a flat board on top of the mold. With a good grip on both the board and mold, flip the mold upside down onto the board and quickly onto the counter. Carefully lift the mold off. If you have only let the cement set for 12 hours, it will be very fragile.

Peel the Mac Tac off of the glass. Don’t be alarmed by what you see; there will be cement all over the glass, and air bubbles. Use a very damp, heavy duty sponge to gently scrub the cement off of the glass. Doing this on a piece set for 12 hours will also fill in a lot of the air bubbles.

Allow the glass to dry. There will be a thin film of cement on the glass once it has dried. Use a dry rag to gently wipe the glass off.

You will need to make a ‘grout’ to fill in the remaining air bubbles and spaces between the glass. You can make a grout from your cement by using a fine metal kitchen sifter, shaking to separate the pebbles from the cement into a plastic bowl. I use a product from my cement supplier that’s used for patching roads and sets within an hour, available in 50 pound bags. It’s awesome! Be sure to use a dust mask while doing this!

Add enough water to the grout mixture to make it the consistency of smooth peanut butter.

Using thin tight fitting rubber gloves, scoop some of the grout up with your fingers and smear it all over the spaces between the glass and into all air bubbles with gentle pressure until all holes are completely filled. If you haven’t sifted the cement out to remove all the tiny pebbles and rocks, it will scratch your glass; another reason that I like to use the ‘special cement mix’ I do.

With a dry cloth rag, gently wipe off all of the grout. You may have to scrub a little bit with the grout lines between the glass, but be careful not to pull too much of it out. If you use a damp sponge like others recommend, it will pull too much out, as well as create bumpy grout lines. Make sure that all cement residue is removed from the glass, or it will be permanently adhered to the glass. You may have to wipe it down a couple of times.

Let your piece set on the board for at least 24 hours before moving it. Do not subject it to any traffic or excessive pressure for at least 7 days, after which it should have cured for the most part. Most regular concrete will take up to 28 days to fully cure.

To preserve your piece for many years to come, you should seal the concrete with a professional grade cement sealer. Most companies that specialize in cement products will carry a good one. Don’t settle for something like Thompson’s Water Seal; it will only last a couple of months, and less if it’s for a bird bath or water fountain. It is essential to use a sealer for anything that will retain water. Apply a fresh coat annually.

Here is the completed Patio Table Top as displayed in the mold above, after painting and sealing, awaiting its wrought iron table base and umbrella.

Now, what are you waiting for? Get off the duff and start creating!

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