Your Guide to Quick Glass Crafts
A quick and easy glass craft is made by using a 5″x7″ or smaller piece to decorate. Decorate it by using paints made especially for glass or use watercolors. Fabric paints also work well and the great thing about them is that if you mess up you can just wait until it’s dry, peel it off, and start again.
If you’re no artist try laying a coloring page under the glass and tracing the image with paints. Purchase paints that squirt right from the tube and are used for writing. These are the easiest when making words, numbers or small designs.
Paint a wood piece the desired color or leave natural. Set a votive candle, in glass container, onto the wood piece and glue into place. Now set the dried glass piece in front of the candle and glue into place. The glass should be glued at the area where it touches the candle.
Even a small piece of glass can be used to make a collage. Use a piece of plywood or poster board to make the collage. First lay a picture of your child, grandchild, or another loved one onto the board. Lay glass on top and glue at the four corners. If it’s shape is not a rectangle choose four areas to place a dot of glue and put in place over the picture. Choose things like ribbons, awards, newspaper clippings and other cherished items to attach to the board along with the picture. Broken glass pieces can be used to house the photo. Make sure you handle these pieces with gloves. Cut the photo in the shape of the broken glass. Place a few dots of glue to hold the glass in place. Outline the glass in dimension paint, which is very thick. The broken glass gives a unique shape to the picture.
Use contact cement to glue a chain around the sides and bottom of the glass. Instead of going across the top with the chain leave extra length to make a hanger for the glass. Paint a picture on the glass or print a picture and laminate it before attaching it to the back of the glass.
A large piece of glass, like from a window, can be used as part of a table top arrangement. Place silk flower petals on an end table or night stand, along with silk leaves. Lay the cleaned glass over the flowers. A smaller version can be made for coasters. Print a picture of flowers, or something else, onto paper. Cut to the size of the glass and laminate it. Glue the perimeter of the laminated picture to the perimeter, on the backside, of the glass.
No matter what shape the glass you can make a quick centerpiece. Glue a bead on the bottom of all four corners of the glass. If the glass is shaped other than a rectangle choose four places to glue the beads, evenly spaced. Set a candle in the center of the glass. It can be a votive, pillar or another shape. Arrange pine boughs around the perimeter of the glass and glue into place. Decorate with red craft berries and small pine cones. Or, surround the candle with craft apples or other fruits.
An old glass vase can be quickly turned into a beautiful flower garden. Squirt glue into the bottom of the vase and put in Spanish moss or raffia. Use a long wooden craft stick, or wooden spoon, to tap the moss into the glue. Squirt more glue on top of the moss and drop in wood pieces or small rocks. Drop in the tops off of some silk flowers, letting them land here and there. Now use silk flowers with stems to glue around the rocks and wood. Continue to use taller and taller pieces, like reeds or vines, until they “grow” out of the top. This arrangement is best done with short vases that have large openings.
If you have a vase that’s been broken across the top use fabric paint to decorate it. The paint comes in a tube and you can squirt it directly onto the edges. Even though the paints are made specifically for fabric they also work well on many different surfaces. Don’t be skimpy with the paint. Lay it on thick and allow it to drip down the sides. When dry the paint has a plastic feel and will protect you from sharp edges while giving a unique look to the vase.
A hurricane lamp replacement globe makes a beautiful glass craft. Get a wooden base and drill a hole in the center. Glue a wooden bead on each corner of the base, on the underside. Glue the bottom of the globe to the wooden base, with hole centered. Feed a small strand of miniature white Christmas lights through the hole in the bottom of the base, allowing the cord to hang out and under the base. Now fill the remainder of the globe with marbles. Craft stores have marbles that are clear and flat – perfect for this craft. Plug the light in and you’ll be surprised at how much light it emits. This makes a quick, inexpensive and impressive gift.
Use two glass panes, of equal size, to make a unique photo arrangement. Lay one piece of glass down on a table. Arrange photos, dried flowers, ribbons, sayings, or even glitter, on the glass. Make sure photos, ribbons and flowers are placed upside-down on the glass. Place a large dot of glue on to each of the corners of the glass then align the second piece of glass on top of it. Purchase a piece of wood that has a slit (normally used for plate display), and glue the glass pieces into the slit. Craft stores have a type of “lead” that is usually used for stained glass windows. The lead is placed around the glass perimeter then allowed to dry. It will look and feel like metallic lead when dry. There’s lots you can do with glass pieces. Look around the craft store near you to find even more ideas.
