by Anna Meenaghan
How striking and easy on the eye glass is, once it has been decorated by means of colours. This at the moment seems to have become very widespread, you might say we appear to be surrounded by it. We catch a glimpse of it applied to mirrors, ashtrays, lamps, containers, suncatchers, only to specify a few. Then yes, we all pause and appreciate these articles at some point or another.
Personally, I really like looking at stained glass windows and doors. I find them pretty fascinating, particularly some of the very old ones. The craftsmanship was fantastic. So, with this in mind, I thought why not write an article just about generally decorating glass, merely for pleasure.
I have gone for something simple, a glass plate, so that it should not prove too stressful for anybody. The view being that you should like doing this and you will come up with something tojazz up a table or wall afterwards.
What will I need besides a glass plate? Well, first of all, let’s talk about the plate itself. I was really imagining that you would choose a plate which previously has some sort of design actually imprinted on it. This very detail would make your painting so much easier.
Of course you will need an assortment of glass paints and also make sure that you get a gold metallic paint. Over and above this you will want a mixture of brushes and I would suggest you possess at your side an old glass jar, or tumbler, which can be used for you to practice with. Apart from these items you will need some old bits of rag, some mineral turpentine, a mask and a razor blade.
Now we can begin. The very first thing you should do, is to ensure that the plate is clean. Please rinse it first, using some warm soapy water and do not attempt anything else until it is absolutely dry. Now, why not try out some of the paint on the tumbler, so that you can ascertain what they are going to be like to work with.
You will notice that the paint can be fairly runny, however it seems to get tacky quite quickly. As soon as you commence using the paints, put on the mask. If you can work outside, as you will realise the fumes from the paint are pretty strong. If not, throw open all where you are working.
Start to put the paints on underneath your plate, one at a time. If you paint on the topside of your plate,it would not be safe for use with food! If you have taken my advice and used an embossed plate, it will be quite simple to follow the lines.
If you possess the gold metallic paint, this is so handy for in point of fact highlighting particular parts of your pattern, like the edges of plants or petals, for instance. Now we all make mistakes, this is not too much of a snag here. If you leave it to dry you can in a while scrape any mistakes off with your razor blade.
Persevere applying your colours beneath your plate. You do not have to pause to put a different colour on as this paint will become dry in no time. On the other hand, when you do apply other colours, you will want to draw on some of the rag to erase extra paint from the brush, then cleanse the brushes in turpentine as a consequence dry them well.
Just to finish off, I think it adds to the decoration if you do some kind of small pattern around the outside edge underside of your plate in the gold paint. Do not wash in water, just wipe this over with a damp cloth to clean.
About the Author:
Anna Meenaghan, the author of this article, is a
contemporary artist and knows a thing or two about art. Working as a
contemporary painter she has been involved in the arts all her adult life. Her newest venture is an online art community where I am a happy participant myself. Comment by Michael Bruckner.
Tags: Arts & Entertainment by Anna Meenaghan
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