Learn to Paint Designs on Glass

Finished Glass Painting

Photos taken by author

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For years I considered ordering a specialized decorated glass with a family crest on it. But, last Christmas a friend made a suggestion that I do the glass painting myself. So, I decided to give it a try and found it to be easier than I anticipated. Here are the steps you can use to paint glass designs for a personalized decorative glass.

To begin painting your own decorative glass, first, you'll need some glass to paint on. You can select a drinking glass of any kind or a flat piece of glass, such as a glass plate. You can buy a new item for this, but I found this old glass mug at a thrift store. You can usually find many glass items at a thrift store that are quite inexpensive to use for glass painting.

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Next, you'll want to decide what kind of paint design you will want on your glass. Consider photos or other images you have on hand; design your own image; or find something off of the internet to use as your glass design template.

Create a copy of, or print your image and cut it to a size that fits on the surface area of the glass that you'd like to have the design on.

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Place your design on the back side of the glass that you'll be painting on. For instance, if you're painting on a drinking glass, you would place the design on the inside of the glass with the design facing out. Tape the glass design template in place so it doesn't slide around.

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Using the color of paint(s) you would like to have for the glass painting, use a small brush and trace/paint the glass design on the outer side; or the side you would like the design to be seen on.

You may have to go over the lines a few times so the paint becomes a more solid color.

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Let the paint dry and remove the glass design template. You can further add personal touches to your decorative glass painting by gluing on gems, ribbon, lace, etc.

I used some fabric I had on hand and made a bag that this decorative glass can be stored in. The fabric is a dark color, so by placing the bag inside of the glass, it brings out the glass painting for a nice display of the glass design