From providing an obstructed view, a stealth architectural element, a timeless design touch or a sophisticated decorative detail to a bold way to add a focal point to a room, glass offers so many possibilities in so many areas of your home thanks to today’s cutting, material and design options.
Complete Home Concepts is one of Kansas City’s largest fabricators, and our custom glass cutting is performed in-house to assure a quality product and final result. We never sub-contract the installation phase because custom cut glass must be installed with knowledge and precision.
Considering using custom cut glass to your home, here are a few ideas to keep in mind…
Partitions and Half Walls
Including custom cut glass in your interior design has a tremendous effect thanks to its translucency and sound muffling. For instance, in a small area, a glass partition or half wall can easily achieve the look of more space. A glass door between areas has the same effect. A finish can be added to the glass to provide privacy.
Wine Cellars
Today’s wine enthusiasts gravitate toward glass enclosures. Wine cellars with a traditional overall design and lots of wood and metal fixtures are being updated with a glass door or walls to showcase the collection or resemble a wine store look. Using custom cut glass in a wine cellar offers the greatest location flexibility, as glass can be used to create a walled enclosure without carving out a dedicated room.
Floating Shelves
Add floating shelves to any room in your home, including the kitchen, living room, baths, libraries, etc. Floating shelves crafted from custom cut glass versus purchased from big box stores let you size the shelves to the space rather than the other way around. It’s a stylish solution for a customized look and functionality.
Specialty Custom Glass Projects
Shower doors, cabinet doors, tabletops, frames, specialty window replacement… the list of uses for custom cut glass is nearly limitless. Not all glass is cut, edged and finished the same, so where you’re installing it and how it will be used dictate the glass’s thickness, edge and finish.
Choosing Custom Cut Glass Options Based on Your Needs and Project Specifications
Whether using custom cut glass as a tabletop, shelves, a wall, door enclosure or elsewhere, there is a thickness, size, edge profile and finish perfect for creating the space, temperature, privacy, aesthetic and safety necessary. Our glass experts review your ideas and use best practices to safely and beautifully make them happen.
You’ll note some applications below are listed twice with a different thickness, the reason being that a specific design, preference or use can call for a different thickness. Having glass custom cut allows for your unique needs.
Custom Cut Glass Thickness: General Rules of Thumb
| Where/How Glass Used | Recommended Thickness |
| Glass doors and custom glass tabletops | 3/4” |
| Frameless shower doors, custom glass patio tables and protective furniture tops | 1/2” |
| Frameless shower doors, custom glass patio tables and custom glass tabletops | 3/8” |
| Protective glass furniture tops and custom glass shelves | 1/4” |
| Insulated glass windows, small shelves and custom glass tabletops | 3/16” |
| Storm windows and custom glass tabletops | 1/8” |
| Picture frames and protective glass tops for furniture | >1/8” |
Custom Cut Glass Edge Profiles
Custom cutting glass gives you artistic freedom in terms of the glass’s edge profile. Some are more noticeable to the eye than others. If you’re unsure which type of edge would work and look best for where your custom cut glass will be used, our experts can explain the pros and cons of each to help you narrow down your choice.
Edge profile options include:
- Bullnose
- Flat
- Mitre
- Pencil
- Single, double or triple bevel in several sizes
- Waterfall
- And more
Custom Cut Glass Finishes
Custom cut glass is available with a variety of finishes. If you’re not sure which one best suits your project, just ask one of our experts. Keep in mind that glass finishes can be layered, so depending on your project, you could choose several to get what you want.
Custom cut glass with a frosted finish:
- Has a cloudy look
- Offers privacy
- Can be frosted in certain areas
- Can be frosted to create a design
Custom cut glass with a satin finish:
- Looks smoother and softer than frosted glass
- Has less shine and a more matte appearance
- Can be achieved with a film finish (thicker films are opaque)
Custom cut glass with a reflective finish:
- Metallic coated on one side
- Creates a mirror effect
- Can be seen through from one side, but reflects on the other
- Minimize heat gain when used for exterior project, like a window, since it reflects the sun
Custom cut tinted glass:
- Comes in a variety of colors
- Darker colors provide privacy
- Tint can be added when manufacturing the glass or with a film
- Can filter sunlight to keep interiors cool
Custom cut glass with film:
- Put in place with adhesive
- Can mimic most other finishes above
- Wide range of colors and textures, or custom printed
- Can sometimes be removed, depending on the film used
Cutting and Installing Glass Requires Expertise
Complete Home Concepts is one of Kansas City’s largest glass fabricators. We perform custom glass cutting at our facility in Riverside for one reason. We want to produce a quality end piece so that your project is perfect. Since custom cut glass has to be installed precisely, we have experts on staff who handle the final phase.
With so many choices to make about the custom cut glass you choose, you want an expert on hand who asks the right questions and will guide you on aspects like edge profile and finish. Both of these are difficult to imagine when buying custom cut glass online, not to mention who’ll handle the intricacies of fabrication and installation.
Ordering Custom Cut Glass Online vs. a Local Source
Until glass is installed professionally, it is fragile. But you already know that. That’s why buying glass from a fabricator near you, like Complete Home Concepts saves a lot of hassle, time and money.
Discuss your project with one of our custom cut glass experts. We can address your goals, privacy needs and location of the glass. For example:
- What’s the purpose of your custom cut glass? Will it create a space? Add an aesthetic touch? Minimize or maximize temperature?
- Is there a need to create privacy? How opaque or translucent do you need the glass to be, especially in the case of windows and shower doors?
- Where will the custom cut glass be used? Interior or exterior? Should it allow in the most or a little light?
Save time by avoiding long delivery times and high shipping fees, plus the time you or your contractor spends installing your custom cut glass. Since glass is fragile, even the most careful shipping isn’t a guarantee your order will arrive intact and undamaged.
Save hassle with knowing your custom cut glass order will be done exactly to the specifications. You can avoid ordering online and waiting for a piece that arrives looking nothing like you wanted or doesn’t fit properly.
Custom cut glass offers so many possibilities in many areas of your home. Thanks to today’s cutting, material and design options, most any home project can be elevated with a touch or a lot of custom glass. Get a free estimate for your project.