The best stained glass class for you will depend on what you’re looking for, what you want to learn, and your level of experience. We’ve rounded up our top picks for the best online instruction of the art form, covering a range of levels as well as various methods to create stunning art from glass.
Our 16 favorite stained glass classes for all levels
These classes cover a range of techniques and mediums, from the copper foil method to lead and fused glass approaches. Whatever their specialty, all of these comprehensive courses will equip you with the necessary skills and knowledge to make beautiful pieces and explore your own designs.
1. Contemporary stained glass design
- Platform: Domestika
- Suitable for: Beginners
- Teacher: Jarod Crews
- Duration: 2 hours 19 minutes
In this course, contemporary glass artist and founder of Cellar Door Trades, Jarod Crews, shows you how to create your own decorative stained glass using the copper foil technique. You can follow Jarod as he makes a Tiffany-style stained glass piece featuring a colorful landscape from start to finish.
Aimed at beginners, the course introduces the topic with a detailed look at the materials you’ll need, as well as important safety measures and how to set up your workspace properly. Instructor Jarod then moves on to the design process before showing you how to cut glass properly and achieve structural integrity.
Throughout the course, you’ll learn specific techniques such as tracing, grinding, framing, and soldering. You’ll also discover how to complete your piece by scrubbing, waxing, and adding the finishing overlays.
2. Learn to make a basic stained glass window
- Platform: Udemy
- Suitable for: Beginners
- Teacher: KT Caselli
- Duration: 2 hours, 18 minutes
This course will introduce you to stained glass basics by showing you how to make a simple yet stunning decorative window. Instructor KT Caselli walks you through how to create a design, cut the glass, and construct the window using lead and solder.
Topics covered include choosing the right tools and using them safely to grind and cut glass accurately.
You’ll not only be left with a stunning window, but you’ll have the tools you need to move on to more complex stained glass projects. The course was recently updated with two extra lessons to allow you to expand your skillset to include working with copper foil.
3. Learn to be a skilled artisan: Make a stained glass window with lead
- Platform: Skillshare
- Suitable for: Beginners
- Teacher: Brian Etheridge
- Duration: 1 hour, 39 minutes
This is another excellent, beginner-level course that introduces you to the art of stained glass by creating a lead ‘light’ window. Stained glass window expert Brian Etheridge will equip you with the skills you need to make a new stained glass window from the ground up.
You’ll also be able to apply these skills to repair or restore an existing stained glass window. You don’t need any prior knowledge or experience, as the course covers everything you need to know, including essential tools and materials, how to safely handle, cut, and assemble glass and lead, as well as design tips.
You’ll also gain insight into important topics such as choosing a suitable panel, size calculation, design alteration, and how to strengthen the panel.
4. Stained glass on stone
- Platform: Udemy
- Suitable for: Beginners to intermediate
- Teacher: Cindy Murphy
- Duration: 52 minutes
Innovative stained glass artist Cindy Murphy demonstrates how you can make stained glass on stone, taking the art form to another level.
We love the uniqueness of this method, as well as the added advantage that the final product is completely waterproof. This means you can use these pieces to decorate your home or outdoor spaces without losing their luster.
This course is more geared toward artists with some experience working with stained glass, but ambitious beginners will find it a fun challenge! You’ll learn how to execute this technique and create your own stained glass and stone piece.
You will need a glass cutter and grinder in order to make the project. However, if you don’t have this equipment, you may be able to hire it from a local glass or crafts store.
5. Soldering basics
- Platform: Mountain Woman Products
- Suitable for: Beginners to intermediate
- Teacher: Mountain Woman Products
- Duration: N/A
Soldering is an essential skill for most stained glass projects, and this course from stained glass specialists Mountain Woman Products will give you a solid grounding in the topic. You’ll learn critical approaches for achieving perfect, neat lead borders for your glass pieces, including how to lay even solder beads and edge beads to perfection.
The course is fully online and self-paced, so you can follow along in your own time and go at the best speed for your experience level. This makes it ideal for stain glass artists of all levels.
6. Stained-Glass Art: Explore the Leaded Technique
- Platform: Domestika
- Suitable for: Beginners
- Teacher: Flora Jamieson
- Duration: 3 hours, 29 minutes
In this course, full-time stained glass artist Flora Jamieson shares the fundamentals of creating a stained glass design using traditional leaded techniques. We love her style, which combines traditional stained glass elements and contemporary aesthetics.
Flora accompanies you through the whole process step-by-step, from making a concept board and sketching your design through turning it into a cutline, and finally cutting the glass, stretching and cutting the lead, and soldering, puttying, and polishing to finish the piece.
For the final touches, you’ll also see how to add painted details, attach loops for hanging, and package the panels in order to ship them safely.
7. Introduction to stained glass
- Platform: The Glass Bar Boston
- Suitable for: Beginners
- Teacher: The Glass Bar
- Duration: 3 hours
This introductory, three-hour class covers the history of stained glass, basic techniques, and how to make your own project. During the class, you’ll learn how to make the store’s bestselling floating geode panel, which features a slice of real gemstone hanging within a stained glass frame.
Included in the class fee is a kit of pre-cut glass, which makes this ideal for beginners, as you can focus on assembling, soldering, and constructing your piece without needing to cut or grind the materials. You can choose your preferred color for the kit.
This class is an excellent option if you prefer the engagement and instant feed of a live, online class to a self-paced one. The virtual class is like being in the same room as your instructor, allowing you to learn alongside them in real time and ask questions for instant feedback.
8. Introduction to stained glass
- Platform: Skillshare
- Suitable for: Beginners
- Teacher: Frannie Shaw
- Duration: 1 hour, 20 minutes
This is another introductory course designed for anyone who’s interested in stained glass but has zero experience with the art form. In this 11-lesson class, instructor Frannie Shaw will walk you through the basics of making a Tiffany-style stained glass piece, including the tools, materials, and techniques you’ll need to know.
You’ll learn how to create a decorative butterfly in stained glass using the copper foiled stained glass technique and have the necessary skills and knowledge to create your own projects in a similar style. Your finished piece will look stunning hanging in a window or from your balcony or deck and make an awesome gift.
This is designed as a foundational course, and you can build on your skills by taking Frannie’s other, most advanced courses.
9. Abstract painting: Stained glass method
- Platform: Udemy
- Suitable for: Beginner to intermediate
- Teacher: Andy Morris
- Duration: 2 hours, 32 minutes
This course isn’t strictly about stained glass crafting but rather teaches how to make paintings that look like stained glass panels. To get the most out of this course, having a basic knowledge of painting would be helpful. However, even complete beginners can dive in and benefit from the lessons!
Instructor Andy Morris goes over the stained glass method of painting in detail, starting with loose painting before moving on to tightening up your strokes for fine details. You’ll learn the difference between these two approaches and how to balance them to develop your own unique style.
10. Stunning stained glass in Procreate
- Platform: Skillshare
- Suitable for: All levels
- Teacher: Lisa Bardot
- Duration: 2 hours, 42 minutes
This course shows you how to make digital stained glass in Procreate. The advantage of this is that you don’t have all the mess and fuss of creating physical pieces, and you don’t need any special equipment other than a computer.
The course starts by discussing the fundamentals of stained glass design and how to simplify complex subjects before moving on to how to achieve realistic effects in Procreate, including life-like soldering, depth, lighting, and glare.
Whether you’re looking for an alternative to making physical stained glass art, want to explore designs before putting them into practice, or would like to tip your toe in the waters of the craft before investing in materials and tools, this course is for you!
11. Unique mosaics for fun, decorating, and profit
- Platform: Udemy
- Suitable for: Beginners
- Teacher: KT Caselli
- Duration: 1 hour, 34 minutes
Instructor KT has taught literally thousands of students online through the Udemy platform, with overwhelmingly positive reviews. In this course, she’ll show you how to make a complete mosaic project, even if you have zero experience.
The course covers the techniques you’ll need to execute this and similar projects, including cutting stained glass and tile, mixing and applying grout, preparing your tesserae (the small pieces that form your mosaic), and using glue or mastic to secure them. Or, if you prefer, skip the cutting glass lessons and buy pre-cut materials instead.
You’ll also learn the difference between direct and indirect construction, as well as how to decide which method to use.
12. Stained glass for beginners and beyond
- Platform: Mountain Woman Products
- Suitable for: Beginners to intermediate
- Teacher: Mountain Woman Products
- Duration: N/A
This course is designed to introduce you to the art of stained glass and take your skills beyond beginners to the next level! Shannie from Mountain Woman Products goes over everything you need to know to create stunning stained glass pieces using the copper foil method.
She also covers common beginner mistakes and how to fix them, and provides free patterns to help you get started. The online, self-paced course can be accessed, rewound, and replayed whenever you want, letting you check back and rewatch sections if you have any doubts.
Even if you have some experience with stained glass, you’ll find this course useful to help improve your techniques and avoid common issues that may detract from your designs.
13. Stained glass with pressed flowers: The Tiffany method
- Platform: Domestika
- Suitable for: Beginners
- Teacher: Molly Jackson
- Duration: 1 hour, 54 minutes
Although we love the simplicity of tinted or painted stained glass, delicate pressed flowers add an interesting element to any design. This is also an excellent way to bring a touch of nature’s beauty into your home.
You’ll be surprised how easy it is to incorporate real botanical cuttings into your glasswork using the Tiffany method. Even complete beginners can follow along with instructor Molly Jackson as she explains how to cut, grind your glass, apply copper foil tape and solder wire to assemble, and finally add the botanical pieces.
She also covers different framing and finishing methods, such as beads or rings, as well as how to stain, clean, and polish the metal components for a professional result.
14. Stained glass card class
- Platform: Skillshare
- Suitable for: Beginners
- Teacher: Artsy Island Girl
- Duration: 1 hour, 13 minutes
This class is all about creating greeting cards with transparent, stained glass-style windows.
Teacher Cheryl is the founder of Artsy Island Girl, a blog and YouTube channel specializing in cardmaking tutorials. She demonstrates several different techniques and approaches to making these windows, modeled on five different cards, each using a distinct method and different materials.
Across 14 lessons, you’ll learn how to make these cards from start to finish, including die cutting, creating the window, coloring, embossing, and adding a stamped sentiment to finish your card with a personal touch. We like this course because although it shows a wide range of techniques, Cheryl keeps things simple enough that it’s still appropriate for beginners.
15. Suncatcher fusing
- Platform: The Glass Bar Boston
- Suitable for: Beginners to intermediate
- Teacher: The Glass Bar
- Duration: 1 hour
In this slightly more advanced course from The Glass Bar in Boston, you’ll learn how to make a sun-catcher using glass fusing techniques. Although the class will fully explain the basics of fusing, some experience with stained glass techniques would be helpful.
You’ll not only create a stunning suncatcher in your own design, but also learn critical art techniques such as color theory, and the differences between opacity and translucency. The course also covers important aspects of working with glass, such as safety and glass-cutting techniques. There aren’t many online courses that cover glass fusing, as most revolve around copper foil and soldering, so this one’s a bit different from the rest!
16. DIY design wine glasses and coffee cups
- Platform: Kellie Chasse Fine Art
- Suitable for: Beginners
- Teacher: Kellie Chasse
- Duration: 55 minutes
Though not technically stained glass, this course will teach you how to paint and create designs on glassware, specifically wine glasses and coffee cups. Veteran instructor Kellie Chasse teaches you how to create a colorful, metallic oil slick effect on glass.
The technique uses alcohol ink which is sealed with resin so that you won’t need any special equipment: no tumbler required! Working with resin may initially seem intimidating, but Kellie will walk you through everything you need to know in this beginner-level course.
Another advantage of this project is that it’s easy to scale up, so you can make a set of glasses for yourself or as a gift without much extra effort.
Final thoughts
The stunning art of stained glass need no longer be a mystery, thanks to the wealth of excellent online courses available on the subject.
Once you’ve completed the class, you’ll be able to enjoy not only the benefit of expert instruction but also the skills you need to come up with your own projects. These courses cover everything from finding inspiration and creating your designs to executing them and adding finishing touches for an extra level of polish.
Whether you want to learn lead lighting or glass fusion techniques, make a window, wine glasses, or cast your stained glass on stone, you’ll find the best stained glass class for you in the list above!
Want more craft inspiration? Take a look at these DIY necklace tutorials, a round-up of the best wood-burning projects, or a selection of the best candle-making kits.
