1. Sometimes, a piece of stained glass will lose its original brightness and color that the lead lines once had. Also, mold or oxidation will form on the lead lines occassionally. The blackness or copper of the patina will dull and you find that there is a buildup of pale corrosion around the edges of the lead lines. Now I dont know if these steps apply to leaded windows, but they work well on a copper foiled (Tiffany-Style) panel. 2. Get your favorite cleanser (the kind you're never supposed to use except when revitalizing a window) and a stiff brush. (An old tooth brush will work fine or you can use a household scrub brush.) 3. Apply a light coating of cleanser. 4. Add a small amount of water and scrub the lead lines. Make sure to scrub each direction to remove any corrosion that has formed around the lead lines. 5. After both sides of the panel have been cleaned, rinse the cleanser off and dry the panel well. It's easy to rinse off in the sink or with a garden hose. If water is not easily available, get a bucket or pan of water and use rags to rinse off the window. 6. Next you'll need your blacl or copper patina and a rag that you don't care about. You need it to be cloth, paper towels disintegrate and even rags get eaten away by the chemicals in patina. We always discard a rag that has been used with patina because it will decompose after a day of patina exposeure. 7. Apply the patina liberally. If you only put a little on, the chemical reaction doesn't work right. Black patina will try to go copper and copper patina will try to go black. Sometimes crystals form on the edge of the bottle of patina. They form after the chemical has been sitting, so always shake the bottle before applying patina. Take your rag and apply a liberal coat of patina. Don't be afraid to use a lot. You'll have better success with more of the chemical. Wash and dry the window thoroughly. Leaving patina on the glass can cause it to discolor. Finally, the panel is the completed. For additional steps, Review our article on "Studio Chemicals at www.betterstainedglass.com You can view the pictures that go with this article if you go to http://www.betterstainedglass.com/Newsletter
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