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Glass paint makes a DIY project easy

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Glass paint makes a DIY project easy

Glass paint makes a DIY project easy

After a fairly long hiatus, glass is making a comeback as a structural and decorating surface in homes. Designers have reintroduced glass into commercial spaces in the last three decades. That’s created a new interest in glass use in residential designs . Not everyone can move into a newly designed space, but that doesn’t mean you can’t take advantage of glass decorating ideas. Glassprimer™ glass paint can help you make the most of decorative glass in your home.

Glass can give you more than a unique look. Back painted glass can also be used to cover surface imperfections that make decorating difficult. Painted glass laminates can disguise missing or damaged plaster, areas that repeatedly crack or stains that seep through paint.

Painted glass laminates also work well in challenging areas of your home, like kitchens and bathrooms. These rooms are tough to work with because they regularly get wet and messy. They also happen to be the most visible rooms in the house. You need to be careful with decorating decisions in these rooms because they can seriously impact the value of the home. A solid decorating plan here can really increase the value of your house.

Glass paint is the key to success

Creating your own painted glass panels is easy when you use the right paint product and the right tools. Making your own painted glass can save thousands of dollars, and it’s easy to do.

The key to a successful glass paint project is using the right paint. Most paints won’t stick to glass, and won’t tolerate abuse of any kind. Glassprimer™ glass paint is specially formulated for use with glass. It bonds permanently to the glass surface, so it won’t fail like ordinary paints. Aside from making a permanent bond with glass, Glassprimer™ glass paint won’t fade, even when it’s exposed to direct sunlight. It also stands up to humidity – an important consideration if you plan to use it in the kitchen or bathroom.

Glassprimer™ glass paint is tintable to match the paint palette of any major paint manufacturer. You can incorporate it quickly and confidently into your decorating plan. If you’d like more information about Glassprimer™ glass paint, or you’d like to place an order, please visit our store!

Photo Credit: saragoldsmith, via Flickr.com

GlassPrimer™ is the ideal glass back splash paint

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GlassPrimer™ is the ideal glass backsplash paint

GlassPrimer™ is the ideal glass backsplash paint

In the last post, we talked about making your own backpainted glass backsplash. In this post, we’ll look at why Glassprimer™ glass paint is the ideal glass backsplash paint.

Not all glass backsplash paint options are equal

Paint is expensive. Today’s paints are much different than those you may have worked with in the past, and it’s tempting to want to find the least expensive paint to complete a project. But there’s real value in choosing the right paint for the job!

Glass is different! Glass isn’t an ordinary surface, so ordinary paint doesn’t work well on it. Paint will dry on anything, but to really stick, the paint needs to work its way into the surface that’s being painted. Glass isn’t porous, so there’s nowhere for the paint to go! It sits on the surface, and the solvent eventually evaporates. The paint looks dry. It feels dry. But it’s vulnerable to damage. Because the paint isn’t really attached to the surface, it won’t stay in place very long.

To get good performance on glass, the paint needs to modify the glass surface so it has something to bond to. Specially formulated paints like Glassprimer™ glass paint are engineered to make nanoscale modifications to the glass surface. This allows the paint to cling to the glass in a way that ordinary paint just can’t.

Standard conditions will deteriorate ordinary paint. Temperature and humidity change all the time. A bright, sunny day, a quick rainstorm, a steamy shower – even cooking dinner in the kitchen can change the local environment in a way that affects paint. Cooking releases some food particles into the air. As a result, the kitchen walls get loaded with food splashes, grease, smoke particles and other visible matter. These also affect the paint. Food acids can weaken paint, as can the cleaners people use to remove them from the walls! You need a paint that’s specially formulated to stand up to tough environments.

Glass works well in the kitchen

Using glass as your outward surface makes a lot of sense, especially in the kitchen. The glass surface won’t absorb grease, smoke particles, food spatter and other kitchen hazards. It won’t harbor bacteria, and it’s easy to sanitize. Using a quality glass backsplash paint on one side, and mounting it to the wall gives your kitchen walls the colorful appearance you want, and the easy cleaning surface you need.

If you’d like more information about our specially formulated glass backsplash paint, please visit the rest of our site.

Photo Credit: Chris Hunkeler, via Flickr

Backpainted glass backsplash can give a cool new look to your kitchen

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Backpainted glass backsplash can give a cool new look to your kitchen

Backpainted glass backsplash can give a cool new look to your kitchen

There’s no denying the attractiveness of glass as a decorative material. In addition to having a unique look and feel, glass is also a great working surface. Because it’s non-porous, it doesn’t absorb dirt, oils or inks. That means it will look great for a long time. At the same time, it won’t absorb paint. So how can you create a backpainted glass back splash if you can’t get the paint to stick to the glass? Easy! Use Glassprimer™ glass paint!

Backpainted glass backsplash is a great DIY project

Backpainted glass is easy to make, easy to install and gives a unique finished look to your space. A backpainted glass backsplash is ideal for use in the kitchen or bathroom because it cleans well, sanitizes easily and will not absorb bacteria.

Backsplashes help protect vulnerable vertical surfaces around sinks, countertops and stovetops. By laminating these spaces with glass, you can create a surface that looks great. It can also take the near constant cleaning that happens in kitchens and bathrooms.

Any kind of glass will work. If you intend to create your own backsplash, you can get glass from a local glass shop. Glass is easy to cut, and you can create custom cuts that precisely fit your wall space.

If you plan to place a glass backsplash around the stove, or in areas where rapid changes in temperature are likely, you’ll want to use tempered glass. Since tempered glass can’t be cut once it’s been heat treated, you’ll want to make sure that the glass precisely fits your space before it’s tempered.

One of the best parts about creating your own backpainted glass backsplash is that you don’t need to use thick sheets of glass. Glass can be heavy, and the larger it gets, the heavier it gets. Using a very thin sheet of glass will give you the same benefits as a thicker piece of glass, but it will significantly decrease the weight of the glass. That makes it easier to work with and mount. It also makes it easier to remove, if you decide you want to change the color of your space, or go in a different direction.

For more information about Glassprimer™ glass paint, or to place an order, please visit the rest of our site.

Photo Credit: Tim Pierce, via Flickr

Permanent window paint for commercial and residential applications

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Permanent window paint for commercial and residential applications

Permanent window paint for commercial and residential applications

Glass and painted glass are emerging as decorating trends. Beyond trendiness, however, painted glass can be a real solution for light control, privacy and energy efficiency. Permanent window paint, like Glassprimer™ glass paint, can play an important role in all of these applications, all while looking great!

GlassPrimer™ makes permanent window paint

If you intend to paint glass, you want to use the right paint for your application. Whether you’re painting glass in a commercial space, or windows in your own home, you want to make sure that the paint looks good both now and in the future.

Using a specially engineered glass paint will produce the best results. Ordinary paints require a porous surface to cure properly. As you can see, glass isn’t a porous surface! Ordinary paint will dry onto the surface of the glass, but everyday “insults” like sunshine, humidity and mechanical contact will change the way the paint looks and performs.

Humidity can reconstitute the dried paint! Your previously dry paint can turn into a soft, sticky mess quickly when the moisture content in the air rises. Sunlight can cause paint to fade, crack and peel, leaving your glass paint project looking more than a little rough around the edges. Even mechanical contact against a painted glass surface can cause the glass to chip. Your good looking glass paint will not look so good once the paint begins to chip off.

GlassPrimer™ avoids these problems

To avoid these problems, Glassprimer™ glass paint has been specially engineered to bond permanently to the surface of the glass. By changing the surface of the glass itself, Glassprimer™ glass paint can bond to the surface, while providing a look that’s guaranteed to last for 10 years! That means you can be sure that sunlight, humidity and normal “wear and tear” won’t harm your beautiful painted glass.

Glassprimer™ glass paint is rugged enough to be used in commercial environments for signage, decoration, light control and privacy. In addition, Glassprimer™ glass paint can be tinted to match the paint palette of any major paint manufacturer. That means you can put your desired shade of latex paint on the walls and trim in your space, and perfectly matching Glassprimer™ glass paint on glass and other non-porous surfaces.

If you’d like more information about Glassprimer™ glass paint or you’d like to place an order, please visit the rest of our site.

Photo Credit: Allan Harris, via Flickr

Backpainted glass – should you buy or DIY?

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Backpainted glass – should you buy or DIY?

Backpainted glass – should you buy or DIY?

Backpainted glass is one of the most sought-after looks in interior decorating. Glass is at home in either a residential or commercial setting, and and work into virtually any decorating plan. You can purchase backpainted glass, but should you?

Buying backpainted glass gives you a ready-made solution, but it may not be the best choice for your home or office. Here are a few things to think about before purchasing pre-painted glass.

Backpainted glass is easy to make

Cost. The cost of making your own backpainted glass will be a factor in your decision. When you use Glassprimer™ glass paint, you can get exceptional coverage for about $1 per square foot. At that price, you can make your own glass! The cost of the glass itself depends upon the thickness of the sheet you want to use, but generally, float glass isn’t expensive. For a painted glass project where cost is a factor, DIY is definitely the better option.

Transportation. When you purchase backpainted glass (or any other sheet glass), think about transportation. First, glass doesn’t transport well over long distances. You should be concerned about breakage. If you do end up with a broken panel, you can get a new one, but at that point, color-matching the replacement panel with the existing panels can be an issue. In addition, small panels of glass don’t weigh much, but the weight of glass goes up significantly as the size of the panel increases. Weight is a primary component of the cost of transportation. If the weight of your glass is significant, or you need a lot of glass, DIY is the better option.

Fitting. Every space in your home is unique to your home. Walls have unusual dimensions or contours. You may need to cut a glass laminate to fit the space you’re working with. You can certainly cut prepainted glass, but you run the risk of damaging the paint. It’s easier to fit your unpainted glass first, then paint it before installing it.

Color choice. We can tint Glassprimer™ glass paint to match the color palette of virtually any major paint manufacturer. You can be sure that Glassprimer™ glass paint will match the colors for the rest of your room. When you purchase pre-painted glass, you may need to accept available colors.

Peace of mind. When you purchase prepainted glass, you don’t know what kind of paint the fabricator used. When you apply your own paint, you know exactly what you’ve got. Glassprimer™ glass paint bonds to the surface of the glass. Once the paint cures, it will not fade, chip or peel, even in high-temperature and high-humidity spaces. Glassprimer™ paint is UV resistant, so it can tolerate direct exposure to sunlight. When you purchase prepainted glass, you don’t know whether the paint on the glass can stand up to the challenges of your environment.

If you’d like more information about Glassprimer™ glass paint or you’d like to place an order, please visit the rest of our website.

Photo Credit: New York City Department of Transportation, via Flickr

Want to know how to paint glass?

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Want to know how to paint glass?

Want to know how to paint glass?

Creating backpainted glass is easy, but despite that, many people don’t know how to paint glass. The good news is that backpainting glass doesn’t require any special tools or skills. Even better, you can complete a glass painting project in as little as a few hours. Here are a few things to know about painting glass.

When you are planning a glass painting project, plan to use glass paint! Ordinary paints aren’t designed to stick to glass. You can get paint to dry on glass, but it won’t stay put, and it won’t stand up to humidity, sunlight or mechanical contact. Glass paint bonds to the surface of the glass, and will not chip, fade or peel

Here’s how to paint glass!

The glass is the starting point in a glass paint project. The glass should be cut or sized to fit the final space – whether that’s a wall, a backsplash or a table top. Since you’ll be backpainting the glass, you’ll need enough horizontal work space to move around the glass while you’re painting. You’ll also need to allow the glass to dry between coats. Laying the glass flat means that you can eliminate problems with drips or runs. Since glass is heavy, you’ll need to fully support the glass while you’re working on it. Consider using a large sheet of plywood to support your glass sheet.

Once you have your glass cut, you can start painting. Glass requires minimal surface preparation, but don’t skip this step. To prep the glass surface for painting, you’ll need standard rubbing alcohol, steel wool and the cheapest paper towels you can find. Wash the glass down with the alcohol, and remove any surface dirt with steel wool. Use the paper towel to dry the glass until it’s “squeaky clean.” (Literally.) Don’t be tempted to use expensive paper towels or lint-free cloths. More expensive paper towels will leave paper fibers behind on the glass. The cheapies are definitely the way to go.

Now you can paint! You can apply the paint with whatever painting tools you prefer – brushes, rollers, sponges or sprayers. A high-volume, low-pressure sprayer – which you can find in a home improvement store – will provide the most professional coverage. It will also make your paint go farther! Finally, it will minimize the amount of time you need to wait before applying additional coats of paint.

Installing the finished product

Once your glass is painted and dried, you can install the glass using a quality neutral-cure silicone adhesive. Apply the adhesive to the painted side of the glass. The adhesive will not show through on the reverse side when you hang the glass. If you’re using a very heavy piece of glass, you may want to use mirror mastic for extra strength. Like the silicone adhesive, the mirror mastic will not show through the cured paint.

Glassprimer™ glass paint can be tinted to match any manufacturer’s paint palette. If you’d like more information about Glassprimer™ glass paint, or you’d like to place an order, please visit the rest of our site.

Photo Credit: Greg Nehring, via Flickr

Painted glass revives verre églomisé technique

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Painted glass revives verre églomisé technique

Painted glass revives verre églomisé technique

Although back painted glass predates the Roman Empire, a refined version of the technique is making a comeback. Jean-Baptiste Glomy, an 18th century art dealer, revived and popularized the painted glass technique. Verre églomisé refers to a painting technique that uses both a painted design and gilding on glass.

Verre églomisé combines painted glass and gold leaf

Glomy’s original designs were small. Often he made them from picture frames and other small pieces of glass. Over time, other artists adopted the technique and expanded the canvas to include murals, signage and other large-scale images.

The technique requires the artist to create an image in reverse order. The artist applies the gilding and highlights first, then creates the background image on top of the highlights. Verre églomisé art examples created in the Middle Ages still exist.. Glomy didn’t invent the technique, but merely revived it in both Europe and North America.

The original verre églomisé technique used adhesive to apply to gold or silver leaf to the glass. Artists may have used a gelatin or oil-based adhesive. Afterward, they applied steam to the leaf to create a shiny, mirror-like finish. Once the adhesive dried, the artist applied additional colored paints to complete the image. Traditional verre églomisé work often uses plain paint colors because it contrasts well with the metal leaf.

True verre églomisé artwork incorporates a recognizable design into the finished piece. In more modern works, the term can describe backpainted works that use metallic leaf but do not use an obvious design. Painted commercial signs made heavy use of the verre églomisé technique prior to the development of more modern silk screening and UV inkjet printing on glass.

Glassprimer™ glass paint works well on painted glass projects. We also make an excellent glass primer designed especially for UV inkjet printing applications. If you would like more information about our products, or ideas for making decorative painted glass, please visit the rest of our website.

Photo Credit: Jasperdo, via Flickr

Painting glass doesn’t have to be difficult

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Painting glass doesn't have to be difficult

Painting glass doesn’t have to be difficult

Some surfaces are notoriously difficult to work with. If you don’t know your options, you might think that glass is one of them. If you’re looking for a new decorating option that’s easy and cost effective, consider painting glass.

Painting glass made easy

Glass is an ideal surface for both commercial and residential applications. It’s easy to shape, install, clean and maintain. Thanks to Glassprimer™, you can also paint it and achieve exceptional results.

If your project involves painting glass, you’ll need a paint that’s specially formulated to make a permanent bond with the glass surface. Glass doesn’t take ordinary paint because glass isn’t an ordinary surface. Ordinary paint needs a porous surface to make a bond, but glass isn’t porous. While you can apply regular paint to glass, and it will dry on the glass. Unfortunately, regular paint will not permanently adhere to glass. Using ordinary paint on glass amounts to wasting time and money to achieve less-than-optimal results.

Glassprimer™ glass paint modifies the nanosurface of glass. It enables the paint to bond permanently with the surface of the glass. Once the paint is cured, it will not chip, fade or peel, even in challenging environments like the kitchen or bathroom.

Painted glass works just as well in commercial applications. Glassprimer™ glass paint is UV resistant, which means it won’t fade even when exposed to direct sunlight. It offers exceptional performance in conference rooms, offices and other location where light control and privacy are desired.

Painting glass is also cost effective. With Glassprimer™ glass paint, you can achieve excellent coverage for about $1 per square foot. Compared to true frosted glass, painted glass can offer significant savings.

If you’d like more information about creating painted glass for your home, office or commercial space, or you’d like to order Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit our website.

Photo Credit: Jules and Jenny, via Flickr

Glass painting distinguishes Burmese culture

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Glass painting distinguishes Burmese culture

Glass painting distinguishes Burmese culture

If you follow this blog, you may think of the reverse glass painting technique in a purely decorative way. For centuries, however, Burmese artists employed a reverse glass painting technique to preserve their history.

Glass paintings were stored at a temple

Cultures often use art to preserve their history, and these Burmese glass paintings embody that. The Wat Chong Klang temple in Mae Hong Son, Thailand houses a collection of 185 such paintings that share the tales of various incarnations of Buddha. Burmese artists from Mandalay first brought the paintings to the temple in 1857. The temple displayed the artwork for nearly 150 years, until an earthquake damaged or destroyed many of the images.

Fortunately, an Austin-area artist who saw the images both before and after the earthquake stepped in to help. Judy Jensen, who is an experienced glass painting artist, volunteered to recreate the broken pieces. (Reverse glass painting must be redone – it can’t be repaired once the glass is broken.)

Jensen created a Kickstarter campaign to raise the funds she needed to replace 16 images. That’s nearly 10 percent of the original collection! Jensen said that glass painting isn’t like standard painting. When creating a glass painted image, the artist first applies the details and shadows. Then the artist creates the foreground, and finally adds the background.

Jensen’s Kickstarter campaign caught on and she raised the funds she needed to complete the project. She has worked since 2012 to help replace the damaged panels.

Buddhist imagery plays an important role in the practice of Buddhism. Local artwork often depicts Buddha in one of his known incarnations. The temple paintings reflect the ongoing importance of religion in the Thai culture.

You don’t have to be an artist to incorporate glass painting into your home. You can create simple painted glass pieces, like backsplashes and table tops to create a unique look for your home. For more information about glass painting or to place an order for glass paint, please visit our website.

Photo Credit: Ronan Crowley, via Flickr

Start a summer glass paint project

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Start a summer glass paint project

Start a summer glass paint project

Summer is a great time to complete home improvement and decorating projects. Today we’ll look at one glass paint project that can even pay for itself! The term “home improvement” covers a lot of ground, but the summer sun reminds us that interior spaces can heat up quickly! Sunlight can raise the temperature in a space to 80° F, 90&#176 F or more in just a few hours.

Trapped heat takes a long time to dissipate That means spending a lot of money on air conditioning, fans and other cooling. By controlling light carefully, however, you can reduce the temperature in your space. You can also reduce or eliminate the need for expensive air conditioning. You can control the light in your home or office by applying glass paint to windows that receive direct sunlight. Glass paint has a translucent effect, which means that light can still penetrate the window while reducing heat-generating infrared waves. The more you reduce IR light penetration, the cooler your space will stay.

Working with glass paint is easy

Fortunately, working with glass paint is easy. By performing some simple glass preparation, you can make this painting project go smoothly, and enjoy professional results. If you’re working with glass that’s already in place, you’ll want to be sure to cover trim, sills and other nearby spaces to eliminate potential overspray problems.

The most efficient way to apply glass paint is by using a high-volume, low pressure paint sprayer. These tools are available at home improvement stores, and you can clean them completely using ordinary paint thinner. A HVLP sprayer will apply paint evenly to any surface, and as an added benefit, they typically work well with a variety of paints, stains and lacquers.

Completely clean the surface of the glass you plan to paint, using rubbing alcohol, fine grit steel wool and paper towels. Once the surface is completely clean, you can apply the first coat of paint. Be sure to use paint that’s specially formulated to adhere to glass surfaces. Ordinary latex paints will not bond with glass. Dried paint will chip, fade and peel even in standard conditions. After each coat is dry to the touch, you can apply additional coats to fine-tune the look of the finished project.

Glassprimer™ glass paint is specially formulated to work with glass. It will bond permanently to glass surfaces. You can also use it on other non-porous surfaces, like tile, metal, and stone. It’s UV resistant, which means that in addition to controlling light effectively, it won’t fade, even in direct sunlight.

Glassprimer™ glass paint can be tinted to match virtually any color from any major paint manufacturer’s palette, and can be used to create frosted effects directly on window glass. For more information about Glassprimer™ glass paint or you would like to place an order, please visit the rest of our site.

Photo Credit: Yugank Singhal, via Flickr