Angie's Glassworks

Here you are at the start of a new and exciting journey: learning to paint on glass.

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Most of the materials needed are fairly simple and you will already have many of these around your home.

You will need:

• A tube of liquid leading (Relief outline) it is a thick, non-toxic, acrylic-based paste which comes in tubes or large bottles, generally in four shades (silver, black, gold & imitation lead).  It is squeezed straight from its tube via an attached nozzle which makes it easier to control the thickness & flow of the line that you are painting.
• A selection of glass paints.  Transparent paints are made especially for stained glass painting as well as opaque (non see-through). You can buy either water-based (acrylic) or solvent- based paints.  Both types can be painted over with extra layers of paint when dry, but the two cannot be mixed with each other.  Both types can give an excellent finish.  Water-based paints are available in a wide variety of colours; they are easy to use and are particularly suitable for children.  Water is used to thin the paints and clean the brushes.  Solvent-based paints are durable and also have a wide variety of colours.  They are also much less likely to fade in direct sunlight than the water-based acrylic paint, but have a much stronger odour (always use these paints in a well ventilated room) these paints are cleaned with white spirit which must also be used to clean the brushes.  Some manufactures of glass-painting materials make their own brands of thinners.  However I find that a basic large plastic bottle of white spirit available from any DIY store is much more economical 
• Tracing paper to transfer designs from books etc or you could always photocopy them.
• Plain white paper
• Carbon paper if transferring to a mirror or other non see through object
• A dark pen to trace out a design (Engineering pens usually work best)
• Toothpicks to help spread paint to the edge of the leaded outline.
• A pin to prick any air bubbles, should they occur.
• Paper towel to wipe brushes/nozzle and mop up any spills.
• Cotton buds-use these to wipe away any excess paint if errors occur whilst applying it.
• Scalpel or craft knife- if it is necessary to remove any damaged area of dried paint, a scalpel can be used to cut along the leading and peel away the unwanted paint.
• Special varnish-this is only necessary to use over dried, cured paint to protect items such as storage jars if they are to be washed in water.  Make sure that you do a test first to check the compatibility of varnish to paint.
• Palette and brushes, it is important to keep the colours separate from each other, so you will need a plastic palette with several deep wells.  I always use a white nylon number 4 brushes.  The fineness of the brush tip makes it easy to reach into any awkward corners etc.  For lager areas, use a number 8 or 10 brush.  If you are adding any fine lines of detail to a dry area that has already been painted, use a number 1 brush.
• Glass of water for cleaning brushes.

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