Techniques and important instructions for glass paintings

Glass Paintings » Techniques and important instructions for glass paintings

Glass paintings are always head-turning. The beautiful designs, great color combinations, and the reflection of the glass make it perfect. The paintings look elegant, and many wish to make the same themselves. Glass painting is difficult, and requires practice to make a perfect piece of art, but it is not impossible to learn it. Anyone who wishes to learn this art can easily learn the same via internet. Practice and passion for the art will help one make beautiful artworks. To help you with it, we have listed below a few techniques and instructions. These instructions will help a beginner learn the art, and a practitioner can gain perfection in his art.

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Tips and techniques to make a glass painting:

• Choose a theme:

  Be it a beginner or a practitioner, choosing a theme is important. If you are new to this art choose a simple design like flowers. Alternatively, you can choose a theme from Bible and try to recreate the same on a glass sheet. For beginners it is advisable to select some simple designs and practice

• Choose the right glass:

  For making glass paintings, the 3 mm thick glass is the perfect glass. A 2mm thick glass will also do, but it is very delicate. A 3mm glass on the other hand is durable and comparatively strong. For practicing, you can also make use of glasses of old photo frames, wine glasses, etc.

  

  In this image we can see that a simple flower is painted on a water glass. You can do the same to practice before making an actual painting.

• Cleaning the glass:

  Before starting the painting, clean the glass using soap and water. If there are stubborn stains on it, try using alcohol to clean the same. Wipe the glass dry, first with a clean piece of cloth, and then with some tissues.

• Position the glass:

  Once you start painting on the glass, you cannot and should not move it. Thus, place it where you want, and then begin with the painting.

• Design:

  It is always good to trace the design on the glass first. Alternatively, you can stick the design on the hind side of the glass (in case of transparent glass), and then start painting on the front side. Having a rough sketch ready, will help in making a beautiful painting.

  

  In this image, the sketch of the design is placed below the glass. Thus, one making the painting can see the sketch easily and then make the painting.

• Air bubbles in the color:

  Never shake the color bottle before use. Usually we do so, but in this case it will lead to air bubbles in the color. If still the bubbles persist, then pierce it with a needle.

• Flat surface:

  Place the glass on a flat surface. If you place it on an uneven surface, the color will spill, and spoil your painting.

• Use simple designs:

  Beginners should opt for designs that have large areas instead of intricate, delicate and complicated design. First practice on simple designs, and then you can shift to fine designs.

• Light:

  Make sure that the room is brightly lit up while making these paintings. If possible, try to place a lamp or light below the glass surface. This will help you bring more perfection in your design, and avoid mistakes.

• Do not leave the painting in an open area:

  Once the painting is complete, place it in some closed place where there is not too much dust and sunlight. Leaving the painting in an open place with sunlight will lead to fading of colors, and accumulation of dust, on the same.

• Shading:

  Some paintings will require color shading. Consider the example of a design, which shows under water scenes. For this you can use the regular glass colors, apply a light shade in some portions, leave some portions blank, and apply a dark shade in some portions. This will give you the required shading effect.

  • To make a light shade � add white color
  • To make a shade brighter � add yellow
  • For dark shades � add black
  • A black outliner or Camlin�s transparent outliner will help you give your painting a complete finishing touch.
  • Skin color � This color is used in many portraits, and you can make this by mixing brown and white, mixing brown with flesh tint.
  • Painting on curved surfaces:

  Painting on curved surfaces like glass can be difficult if the color does not dry quickly. In this case, you would need high quality glass strainers, and quick drying poly utherine. This dries in almost 2 minutes. You might find it difficult to get these but surfing the web can help you know where to get it from.

• Storing unframed paintings:

  After completing the painting you can place another piece of glass on it, and get it fixed. Alternatively, you can use thick bubble plastic sheet, or the OHP paper to give a shield to your painting.

Next time when you see a glass painting, you can actually think of making the same. All you need is a glass painting tool kit, imagination skills to make good color combinations, and the passion to learn the art.