What is “live edge”?

The production process of the glass sheets used in stained glass art is fascinating to watch and understand. After the molten glass is mixed for each sheet, a huge glob is put onto a roller machine. This molten glass goes through the roller and the resulting shape is a very large distorted rectangle. The edges of this semi-rectangle are uneven and vary in thickness, texture and shape.

Once the glass has cooled and solidified, the sheets are trimmed and cut into large rectangles. To make uniform sheets the raw edges are cut off from all sides. These raw edges are called "heads and tails", and are considered scrap to many. These amazing scraps inspire my live edge creations. Each live edge piece is framed on three sides, with the raw edge left unframed.