Decorative glass windows for interiors

Le decorative glass windows represent an elegant solution capable of giving a strong personality to interior spaces. Used since ancient times, in sacred architecture and in the most illustrious monuments, over time their use has extended to more and more sectors, bringing a added value to real estate, thanks to their beauty and uniqueness. The most famous examples in the history of architecture are those found in Gothic cathedrals and the most representative Art Nouveau buildings. Unlike in the past, when artistic glass was only used in the most prestigious residences, over the decades it has spread to many homes, thanks to its versatility and the variety of solutions available on the market.

In modern homes, there is a growing demand for interior glass windows that serve functional purposes, such as dividing different environments, but also aesthetic purposes to create bright and unique environments. Below, we will see how to best choose decorative glass windows, approaching the project from a typological, regulatory, functional and aesthetic point of view. The goal is to guide you to a conscious choice of this component, in order to guarantee utility, elegance and safety over time.

Why choose a decorative glass window for your spaces

The decorative glass window for interiors is a unique solution of its kind, of great utility and above all with a high scenic effect. The choice to insert this ornamental element inside one's residence is motivated by numerous reasons. First of all, there is the capacity of the glass window to divide the rooms of the house in a practical and functional way, ensuring visual continuity and high brightness. In fact, unlike solid partitions, internal glass walls give a sense of greater spaciousness to the rooms, while dividing them according to their intended use. Furthermore, since transparent surfaces do not constitute an obstacle to natural light, as traditional dividing elements do, these solutions guarantee an abundant flow of light even to rooms without large openings. An example of this is the entrance to the house, an area without its own windows, onto which the different rooms overlook. In this case, the presence of a glass wall or a door with decorated glass, in the living room or kitchen, will allow light and heat to flow even into the corridor of the apartment, increasing the value and functionality of this too often neglected space. Decorative glass can also be used to delimit two rooms with different functions, without dividing them visually. This is the case of the living area, where the living room and kitchen can coexist in an elegant manner, through sliding glass or flexible panels, thanks to which bad smells and vapours will be contained without compromising the hours of relaxation on the sofa.

In fact, the dividing elements ensure fluidity in the passage between the individual spaces, maintaining the right distance between the different functional areas. Artistic glass windows are also used in small apartments, to divide the living area from the sleeping area. The glass, thanks to its lightness and versatility, gives elegance and personality to the environment, ensuring spatial continuity and enlarging even the smallest studio flats. Sometimes, this solution is also used to delimit a make-up area inside the bedroom or a reading corner in the living room. In the latter case, in addition to giving personality to the environment, it will be possible to increase the level of acoustic comfort, ensuring greater concentration.

Finally, decorated glass can be used as walk-in closet panels: these are modern solutions that can personalize the space and give an original touch to the sleeping area. After deciding where to place the decorative glass, you need to decide which type best suits your needs. One option is a door with glass panels, a functional choice that divides two rooms but lets in a greater amount of light than that normally blocked by solid frames.

A valid alternative is the glass wall, a larger component and a solution that, in addition to being functional, serves aesthetic purposes. Widely used in open spaces, glass walls can be full-height, or can constitute inserts and elements that can be opened only when necessary. Furthermore, it will be possible to choose between an interior glass wall fixed to the wall, sliding, with an external guide to the wall and even with a frame anchored to the wall.
Each of the above typologies will have benefits and disadvantages and for this reason it should be chosen carefully, based on one's habits and personal tastes. 

Decorative glass for interiors: which type to choose

In order to choose the decorative glass that best suits your environment, you need to evaluate some elements. Most solutions consist of a frame that can be made of aluminum, wood or plastic material and a glass panel. The largest surface is represented by the panel and the glass that composes it must comply with current regulations in terms of resistance and safety for the user.

In this regard, depending on the characteristics of the material, it is classified on a scale that goes from a minimum value to a maximum value: the higher the value, the safer and more robust it will be. The two types of glass most used for the production of doors and panels are laminated and tempered glass. The first is made up of two layers of glass separated by a transparent film of variable thickness, capable of making the glass safe. In this case, if an accidental fracture of the glass occurs, the splinters are held by the film and will not constitute a danger for the inhabitants of the house. As regards tempered glass, a specific process makes it resistant to impacts and if breakages occur, the fragments of very small dimensions do not compromise the safety of the users.

These characteristics are an essential condition for the correct use of glass in internal dividing elements, while the customer will be able to decide on the colours, decorations and profiles. In fact, the glass production sector guarantees a constant supply of innovative solutions, which can also guarantee good thermal insulation. Artistic glass windows can be made with transparent, opaque, shiny and satin-finished decorated glass, depending on the way in which the light is diffused. In fact, for very bright environments, transparent and shiny glass will be perfect for capturing and diffusing light, while for those who want to obtain more intimate atmospheres, jagged and coloured solutions will be perfect.

In this regard, starting from the 20s, the Dalles stained glass windows, characterized by the set of thick colored glass tiles, which reproduced mosaic patterns and decorations but allowed a smaller amount of light to filter through. This type of glass guaranteed the possibility of working on large surfaces and the glass tiles were connected by cement and not by lead wire. These panels found widespread use inside churches but also in residences and are still used today to reproduce modern geometric and graphic patterns.

Finally, to gain more privacy, the ideal solution is represented by decorated sandblasted glass. The latter are subjected to a specific process that makes them translucent, so as to be able to filter the light beam, maintaining a good level of privacy. Thanks to the different degree of transparency and the variegated texture of the glass, it will be possible to obtain very different effects for personalize your home environments. Furthermore, today the market offers numerous techniques capable of customizing internal glass and making them more original. An example of this are the dividing walls equipped with a layer of fabric or metal, inserted between the two sheets of glass or even the recycled glass doors that, in addition to being an unusual solution, make sustainability their key value.

Another aspect concerns the color of the panel and the chosen decoration; enamels have a good duration over time and can reproduce designs, mosaics and textures, depending on personal taste. Once the type of decorated glass for interiors has been established, it is necessary to understand which solution is best suited to your residences. For minimal environments, modern decorated glass doors will be optimal, for lofts with neutral colors the winning idea could be to insert colored glass dividers, while for large spaces decorative glass for interiors will give a touch of originality.

The last element to consider, but not least, is the type of opening: hinged, sliding or folding.
This is a choice that must be made depending on the spatial conformation and dimensions available.
The swing model is the traditional and most widespread but requires a lot of space for easy use. If the room is small, it is advisable to opt for sliding or folding glass doors, considered the space-saving solutions par excellence.

The installation of decorative glass and the technical aspects to consider

Decorative glass windows are not only an aesthetic element for the interiors of your home, but also real functional components that must be chosen and installed with care. First of all, you need to contact professionals and technicians in the sector, in order to obtain a high-performance and safe solution for the safety of the inhabitants of the house.
The technical aspect is of fundamental importance and only those who have in-depth knowledge of the properties and characteristics of internal glass can guarantee their correct installation. One of the most important aspects concerns the design and assembly of the anchoring structures since they will have the task of supporting glass sheets of considerable weight and size.
The first step is to check the dimensions of the area of ​​the house where you want to insert the glass wall or door.
Furthermore, it is necessary to examine whether there are out-of-square walls or irregularities on the floors, so as to intervene appropriately using custom-designed solutions. Assembly depends on the type of solution adopted. The structure of the interior artistic stained glass window is usually made up of a frame, the glass sheet and the tracks that allow it to be anchored and sometimes moved. Given the considerable weight of the stained glass window, it is necessary to ensure that it does not tip over and is resistant to impacts and the effects of time.
To this end, anchoring systems designed to ensure safety and usability are provided. In most cases, these elements are welded to beams and floors of the home and if this is not possible, they are placed against intermediate structures designed specifically. Examples of this are half-height glass panels and glass walls inserted in rooms with false ceilings.

Even in the case of sliding glass doors, since the load must be distributed equally between the upper floor and the floor of the room, it will be necessary to insert an additional structure that performs this task. Depending on the physical shape of the glass wall, metal, iron or wooden profiles will be made that must be custom-made in order to guarantee an original and harmonious final appearance. Furthermore, the glass retaining elements must ensure stability and strength so that the decorative glass will not change its position, remaining blocked inside the load-bearing structure.
Over time, it is a good idea to ensure the correct conservation of decorative glass, in order to keep its colors and brilliance unchanged. In the case of frosted and patterned glass, during cleaning operations it will be advisable to avoid using abrasive products, paying greater attention and care to details. The load-bearing structure of the glass must also be preserved, so as not to compromise its integrity and function. If the profiles are made of steel, they must be protected from any corrosive products, while if the predominant material is wood, it will be appropriate to use non-toxic substances that respect its natural properties.
In addition to installation and maintenance, it is of fundamental importance that the interior glass chosen complies with current regulations.
In this regard, it is important that the necessary safety measures are ensured to preserve the safety of those who live in the house.
For this reason, the glass used for the panels that make up the internal glass must be certified and ensure a good level of quality. In conclusion, the insertion of a glass wall or door inside your home requires particular attention in the choice, installation and maintenance, in order to guarantee its durability and safety over time.

The charm of the Liberty style decorative glass window

Glass is a versatile and elegant material, used since ancient times for the production of decorative stained glass windows used inside churches, monuments and luxurious residences. In the Middle Ages, Gothic cathedrals were a famous example of majesty and the decorated glass of windows and walls was an important element from a symbolic point of view. In fact, thanks to the mosaic technique, sacred scenes were represented and the small fragments of colored glass were able to filter the light creating spectacular plays of color. In the following decades, glass production underwent numerous changes and developed and improved.

During the Renaissance period, leaded glass windows were introduced, characterized by small crystals connected by lead wire. This technique met with good approval until it found its maximum diffusion during the 1900th century, when the glass manufacturing began to become partly automated. It is from this period that we witness a progressive rise of decorated glass windows, until the dawn of XNUMX when, with theArt Nouveau, they found maximum use. These were elements placed to decorate gates, windows and internal doors but also partition walls and wall panels, inside luxury residences.
The glass production was carried out with mastery and artisanal care, in clear contrast to industrialization and standardization.

The decorative motifs of the Liberty stained glass windows took up the themes of nature and the organic world, through the depiction of natural elements such as leaves, vine trellises, flowers and fruits. In this way, the decorative stained glass windows for residential interiors created a continuum between the inside and the outside, giving fluidity and brightness to the rooms. Furthermore, thanks to the possibility of creating glass panels to design that adorned windows and partitions, the rooms could be personalized and equipped with extreme elegance.
The design of frames and doors was also custom-made and the glass that made up the panels could be opalescent or shiny, multicolored or monochromatic. Thanks to the insertion of these artistic glass windows, light filtered into the rooms making them welcoming and unique.

Among the major exponents of the production of decorative stained glass in the Liberty style is the American Louis Comfort Tiffany who introduced some technological innovations. First of all, the replacement of the lead wire with the copper cord, between one piece of glass and another. Thanks to the constant commitment to perfecting the production techniques, Tiffany achieved unexpected results, bringing the use of interior stained glass to splendor. Even in Italy, although with a delay compared to other countries, the Art Nouveau movement represented a flourishing period for the production of glass. Just think of the valuable examples of stained glass that characterize the Art Nouveau buildings in Piedmont, Lombardy and Sicily. In Turin, these decorative elements found maximum diffusion also thanks to the presence in the area of ​​the important glass laboratory Albano and Macario, founded in 1899.

The most valuable decorative glass windows produced by this company were distinguished by the combination of glass mosaics and painted and decorated sections. Among the most famous examples of Liberty-style stained glass windows, the work of the aforementioned Turin laboratory, we can recall those of the Terrazza Solferino, an ancient appurtenance of a residential building from 1900 and today home to offices and rooms for events and conferences. These are windows of particular artistic value, preserved until today as a testimony to the mastery and craftsmanship of times gone by. In this period, decorative glass components did not only concern the interior spaces but also the windows, doors and bow-windows of Art Nouveau buildings. In Turin, examples of this are the bow-window of Casa La Fleur, the windows of the corridor on the ground floor of Villino Raby, both the work of the architect Pietro Fenoglio, and also the door of Palazzo della Vittoria and the large windows of Villa Scott, in this case both the work of the engineer Gottardo Gussoni.

Cover photo: example of an Art Nouveau panel with decorated glass inserts – Anouk Taeymans, Antwerp