Why people love it

Light does half the work: even a simple design glows once it sits in a window or holds a candle.
It turns thrift-store glass and empty jars into gifts people actually use.
Mistakes are cheap until you bake: a botched design comes off and the glass is good as new.
Sessions fit an evening at the kitchen table, with no solvents or special room needed for most paints.

Wisteria and long leaves painted onto a round window, with a lake visible through the clear glass between them — Paint on glass, light behind it

02

Which kind should you start with?

Oven-Cured GlasswareWine glasses, glass mugs, vases and jars painted with opaque or frosted colors, then baked in a home oven so the design holds up to gentle hand washing. The paint is water-based and cleans up with soap and water. Start here if you are unsure, because it covers the most projects.

Start here

Clean a plain jar or wine glass with rubbing alcohol and paint a simple band of dots or leaves below the rim. Let it dry for a day, then bake it.

Faux Stained GlassRaised black outlines filled with thick transparent paint on jars, lanterns and window pieces, so light pours through like real leaded glass. The colors are more jewel-like, but the paint stays softer and is for decoration, not washing.

Start here

Tape a printed pattern inside a clear jar or behind the glass from an old picture frame, trace it with liquid leading, and flood the cells with color once the lines are dry.

Reverse painting in a framePainting on the back of a flat sheet of glass, in reverse order, so the finished piece is viewed through clean glass. Either paint type works because the painted side is protected.

Start here

Take the glass out of a cheap picture frame and paint on its back, laying down highlights and details first and the background last, then put it back in the frame facing out.

Open a card and add its paint to put that path's lines in your kit. Picking Oven-Cured Glassware takes Faux Stained Glass out, and the other way round. Reverse painting needs nothing extra: it works with whichever paint you choose.

03

Your first session, step by step

Hands brushing gold paint onto a glass jar banded with green tree shapes, more jars and scraps on the table — A jar, a brush and an evening

What you can paint in your first month

Dotted wine glasses

A band of dots below the rim is forgiving, quick and looks great as a gift set.

Painted jar lantern

A loose floral or stripe design on a jar that glows with a tea light inside.

Faux stained glass jar

An outlined butterfly or flower filled with transparent color, glowing on a sunny windowsill.

Framed reverse painting

A sunset or silhouette painted on the back of the glass from a picture frame you already have.

04

Skills to practice early

Thin, even coats

Two thin coats look smoother and cure harder than one thick one, which shows brush marks and can peel.

Clean outlines

Squeeze outliner with steady pressure while pulling the bottle toward you, and keep every cell closed so fill paint cannot leak.

Dots and strokes

Dots from the brush handle end and one-stroke leaves let you decorate a glass quickly without drawing skills.

A clear glass bauble with a white painted snowflake, hanging among lights on a Christmas tree — Fine white strokes and dots on clear glass

05

Food safety and ventilation

Keep paint off any surface food or lips touch: leave about 3/4 inch bare below the rim of a glass or mug, and paint plates on the underside or keep them for display.
Read the label: most glass paints are non-toxic, but they are not food-safe.
Always start oven curing in a cold oven and let the glass cool inside. Putting cold glass into a hot oven, or pulling hot glass into room air, can crack it.
Some stained-glass-effect paints are solvent-based. Paint with a window open, keep them away from flames, and check the label for cleanup with a solvent instead of water.

06

What trips beginners up

Brush marks show more on glass than on paper, and transparent colors can look streaky at first. That smooths out within a few pieces.
Curved glass is harder than flat. A straight-sided jar is easier for a first project than a tapered wine glass.
Baked paint stays soft and scratches easily for a while. Many labels ask you to wait several days, sometimes up to three weeks, before the first wash, and to hand wash after that.
Stacking or nesting freshly painted glasses, which smears designs that feel dry but are not.

Close-up of panes painted in red, yellow, white and blue between black leading, the brush marks visible in the color — Brush marks show in transparent color

07

Where to learn

Paint makers publish the most reliable free guides, because curing temperatures and drying times differ between paints. Use the links below for projects and technique, and always follow the label on the paint you actually bought. Free printable coloring pages make good outline patterns for faux stained glass.

Free projects and technique guides

08

About the kit

The base kit is just fine brushes and some clear glass to paint on. Then add the paint for the path you chose: the Oven-Cured Glassware add-on for things you will use and wash, or the Faux Stained Glass add-on for suncatchers and windows, which also brings the liquid leading for raised outlines. You probably already have the rest: rubbing alcohol from any drugstore, cotton swabs, paper towels, painter's tape and an old plate for a palette all work, any brand. Paint pens and dotting tools are extras for later.

Compare the options, then set your tiers on the paint table. Clicking a card selects it there, and clicking the selected card again takes that line out. The paints stay out of the total until you pick your path, and paint pens and dotting tools are extras for later.

Fine synthetic detail brush set

Essential · Core equipment

Soft synthetic brushes lay glass paint down smoothly, and small rounds and liners let you paint thin lines and dots on curved glass.

budget

Transon 20pcs Art Painting Brush Set for Acrylic Watercolor Gouache Hobby Craft Face Painting Black

4.6(2.3K)

$6.99

Glass Painting

Why people love it

Which kind should you start with?

Your first session, step by step

Skills to practice early

Food safety and ventilation

What trips beginners up

Where to learn

About the kit

Set the paint table

Fine synthetic detail brush set

Plain clear glassware to paint

Oven-bake glass paint set

Stained glass effect paint set

Liquid leading outliner

Oven-bake glass paint markers

Dotting tool set