Published on 10/13/2026 · by Leandro Caldas, glazier, founder of Routeck and creator of the Arena
Janael Hipolito: the fast glazier who won Arena do Vidro
When I invited the two best glaziers I know to Arena do Vidro, one of them was Janael Hipólito. Eight years working with mirrors, quick hands, and a way of working that showed from the first minute of the first episode. By the end of the season, he was the one who took home the R$ 10,000.
This post is about Janael: where he came from, what he does well, where he struggled in the Arena, and what a glazier just starting out can learn from his path.
From vanity tables to decorative mirrors
In EP3 Janael told how he got into the trade. His wife had a beauty salon and needed vanity tables. He built her a new one, and the old one sold fast. That's when he saw there was money in it and started making lots of vanities.
At first he built only the cabinet and bought the mirror ready-made from a glass shop. He soon realized the mirror was expensive and one of the items driving up the cost of his product. So he taught himself to handle and edge glass, the hard way, back when there weren't as many courses as today. Over time he dropped the cabinets and focused on mirrors only. Today he says what he likes most is making organic-shaped, decorative mirrors with frames and LEDs. "I do it because I need to support my family, but I truly love what I do."
Where Janael was strong
- Break-out and edging. In EP1 he broke out the mirror first and went straight to edging. He said he knew the machine's tricks and that edging was easy for him.
- Nerve to take risks. In EP2, with 10 minutes, he went for a leather edge over EVA, two processes. The judges preferred his mirror.
- Speed in selling. Also in EP2, he sold his mirror on the street in 35 seconds, asking for help with no fear of approaching people.
- Planning. In the final, never having used that welder before, he planned the project to make the most of the welder's 10 minutes of help. Peterson said Janael "had everything ready" and left only the welding to him.
Where Janael struggled
His weak spot showed up in fine handwork. In EP1, the hand-cut vinyl stage got him stuck, and one judge put it bluntly: he got stuck, and stuck bad. The Hello Kitty bow didn't come out, the touch button was judged too big, and he scored 6 against Rômulo's 7.5. Natan explained it: he started well, but the pressure worked against him.
In EP3, cutting a shape by hand without being allowed to touch the template, his mirror didn't crack, but it ended up far from the drawing. The judges called it a tie. Asked if he thought his work came out well, he was honest and direct, in his own way, and said it came out badly.
The season scoreboard
| Episode | Challenge | Janael's result |
|---|---|---|
| EP1 | Hello Kitty mirror in 1h30 | Score 6; lost to Rômulo (7.5) |
| EP2 | Mirror in 10 minutes and street sale | Score 9 plus 5 points for the sale; 21 x 19.5 |
| EP3 | Hand cut following a template, no touching | Tie |
| EP4 | Free-standing mirror with a metal frame | Score 9; champion, 29.37 x 27.12 |
In the final, once his name was announced, came the line everyone was waiting for: time for revenge. In EP1 he had watched his own mirror get smashed with the hammer and said he'd grown attached to it. In the final, the hammer was in his hand.
What a new glazier can take from Janael's story
The math that pushed Janael to learn cutting is the same one many cabinet makers, decorators and shop owners face: buying the mirror ready-made eats your margin. Learning the process gave him control over cost and product. And the Arena showed something else: nobody is good at everything. He was fast at break-out and edging, struggled with hand cutting, and won because he planned around his weak spots, as he did with welding in the final.
- Who is Janael Hipólito?
- A glazier with about eight years of experience in mirrors, focused on decorative, organic-shaped mirrors with frames and LEDs. He is the season 1 champion of Arena do Vidro. On Instagram: @espelhos_janael.
- How did Janael get started with mirrors?
- Making vanity tables, starting with one he built for his wife's beauty salon. Since buying the mirror ready-made drove up his cost, he learned to cut and edge it himself.
- What did Janael score in the final?
- A 9 in EP4 and 29.37 points for the season, against Rômulo's 27.12. He won the R$ 10,000 prize.
EP3, where Janael tells his own story, is at the top of this post (audio in Portuguese). And if you think you can beat the champion at the bench, applications for the next season are open here on the site.
Full episode 3 · Season 1 contestants · Leather edge or flexible frame mirror · How to cut a mirror into shapes