My next step in this project, is to paint in the branches. These are to add depth to the cut glass (larger branches), and to "hide" the cut lines (solder lines), and cause them to appear as smaller branches. This painting occurs on the back side of the glass, again in an attempt to add depth to the finished panel. Each piece must be cleaned, painted and dried with a hair dryer before it can be placed in the kiln, and fired at 1250F. This causes the vitreous paint (which is nothing more than finely ground glass) to become one with the surround glass, at the molecular level. This is a bit of a difficult process, as the glass may well fail (break) during the ramp up to the desired temperature, during the hold time, or during the annealing process. We keep our fingers crossed during the entire firing process.