Stained Glass Vase

Teresa
by Teresa
8 Materials
$2
4 Hours
Easy
I bought this vase on sale at Walmart for $2.29 but although I loved it shape , it really did not show when it was put into my room. It is not great for holding flowers but I wanted it. So I decided it should be stained glassed... And it was planned to all be done with Elmer's glue, a float medium and acrylic paint plus three artist paint brushes and a couple of felt pens. .. alas I needed my acrylic paint markers too!
The plain vase. Yes, that is a puppy piddle pad under my vase, they are great to use as work mats since spills are container and they can be used as a brush cleaner and dryer as you work.
I used a waterproof sharpie fine point to draw my design on the glass - if you make a mistake it can be cleaned off with rubbing alcohol.
The design all on!
Now I used a wider sharper brush tip and went over my design... but I was not happy with it - the end result looked sort of purple..
So, I went over everything with an acrylic paint marker. I got them off amazon. I love these things!! https://www.amazon.ca/Daler-Rowney-Simply-Acrylic-Markers/dp/B01N8XC1GT/ref=sr_1_13?ie=UTF8&qid=1486868958&sr=8-13&keywords=daler+rowney+acrylic+paint+markers
Once my design was on, I mixed my "glass" 3 parts Elmer's glue, 1 part red acrylic paint and 1 part float medium. The float medium dilutes the paint without reducing its vibrancy - you can use water but the colours become less crisp. Plus floating medium will allow the paint to move further. This allows you to be able to make longer strokes without running out of colour. Best of all Float medium makes your paint self leveling!!
And I started painting stained glass!
I used a small brush to get into the smaller parts. You can see the purple-ish lines left from the marker. Those will be covered or cleaned up when I tidy the lines at the end.
Red is done, working on the green. You can see my mess right through the glass since I keep wiping my brushes on the "puppy pad" I use as a mess catcher.
Fine brush for details
And I use a bamboo skewer or a toothpick to remove the uneven paint lines made with my acrylic pain marker.
Mix more colours and wait for the previous ones to dry..... tap fingers, tap finger.. go make tea, come back ....
added some blue highlights on top of the purple on the butterfly and... done!
Other side,
and the other side. Since I had everything but the vase already, this project cost me $2.29 Canadian or $1.75US! ADDED THE DAY AFTER I POSTED THIS! I woke up at 4am and though - I have to seal it - if it gets washed - even wet wiped- the black lines will come off! so I sealed it with Krylon crystal clear waterproof acrylic spray. I taped the top of the vase and filled it with a rag so that the spray would not reach the top inch f the vase and it could be used for liquids and be "food safe" if need be.
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Frequently asked questions
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3 of 12 questions
  • Nanette Ward Nanette Ward on Feb 27, 2018

    Where do you find float Medium?

  • Maude  LaFountain Maude LaFountain on Aug 10, 2021

    WOW !! That is just gorgeous...I love it ..you did a great job on that vase ....I'm not much of a free hand drawer but I would give something like that a shot ...I have a really tall vase similar to yours that I may just need to try this out on ....going to order the Acrylic Paint Pens first .........Also I have FLOTROL will that works as the Float Medium ?...If not I will look for the Float Medium ....Thanks for sharing your idea for a PLAIN JANE VASE to a GORGEOUS VASE to be very proud to Display ....

  • Dl.5660408 Dl.5660408 on Aug 10, 2021

    It’s gorgeous! I was wondering if you sealed it, because I have found most “glass” paint to stay a bit tacky or peeled off. Nice to know what sealant you used too. Thanks for sharing your beautiful vase

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  • "D" "D" on Aug 10, 2021

    "Vase", Ships Decanter...no matter, it's beautiful !!!!

  • Nancy Nancy on Aug 10, 2021

    Beautiful, and your design choice is perfect. I could also see this being done with any design: nautical, child’s cartoon character, geometric, etc. Colors and shape of vase could be changed for any decor. Heck, recycled jars or wine bottles could be used - especially if you want a practice piece.

    Thank you for sharing.

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