How We Created the Stained Glass Windows for the Fort Collins Temple

Approximately four years ago, Scottish Stained Glass was approached by representatives of the LDS Church. Over the last several years, the Church had commenced the construction of many new temples all across the world. The Church came to us because they were interested in finding a company that they could add to their list of approved stained manufacturers.

They needed someone that they knew could produce the highest quality of stained glass. It’s believed that in order for God to visit the Temple, it has to be flawless in every aspect. This meant that the stained glass had to be absolutely perfect.

Our Process for Creating the Stained Glass Windows for the Temple

As with all our stained glass projects, the stained glass for the Fort Collins Temple had to start with a plan. We created CAD designs that were drawn exactly to scale and photoshopped in the colors to show our plan to our clients.

The designs were created based off of the Temple’s unique theme, which is the beautiful outdoor Colorado scenery. Therefore, the windows were designed to feature one of Colorado’s most iconic symbols, bright and colorful wildflowers. The first few months of this project were spent on drafting designs and getting them approved by the Church.

Once all of the designs were approved, it was time to start the construction of the windows. Full sized plans were produced and most of the glass was cut by hand. We decided that it was a good idea to invest in water jet cutting in order to perfectly cut the very small and intricate pieces of the windows.

After the glass was cut, the lead was introduced between the pieces of glass in the windows and the sodder joints were completed. After this, the glass was cemented and polished. Fine black cement was poured on to the windows to fill in the gaps and blacken the joints. Half of the windows were sent to Wisconsin for factory glazing.

There were many aspects of this project that required a high level of customization. For example, the designs involved several multifaceted jeweled pieces. These pieces were required to have a bronze appearance. In order to accomplish this look, we took clear circles and put bronze glass behind them. We also created a custom lime green color for the windows that did not previously exist.

In addition, each window was installed with low-E safety glass to provide the temple with a high level of security. This makes the windows twelve times stronger than average glass.

The size of this project was also something that made it unique. We cut over 50,000 individual pieces of glass for the church. This included a 16 foot window that had over 200 sq feet of stained glass. In one celestial room window, over 1,200 individual pieces of glass were used. It took a total of two years to completely manufacture and install all of the stained glass.

But what truly set this project apart from anything we had previously done was the relationships we created along the way. It was truly a pleasure to meet the many passionate and interesting people that were working on the construction of the Temple. The members of the Church were incredibly kind and we thoroughly enjoyed getting to work with them. We also met many skilled contractors from Utah who had extensive experience with working on other LDS Temples.

In addition, two of our own artisans that worked on the project are members of the LDS Church. Therefore, the construction of the stained glass windows was important to us in a personal manner as well.

The amazing camaraderie that was built between everyone working on the Temple was an endearing thing to experience. We all worked together as a team to overcome obstacles and create something beautiful for the Church. When reflecting on this project, our owner, Martin Faith, said, “You felt like you were doing something that was truly important.”