It’s no secret that glass is transparent, so you may be concerned that truly opaque glass paint doesn’t exist. With Glassprimer™ glass paint, you can not only achieve a true opaque coating, but once the paint has cured, you can mount your painted glass using silicone or mirror mastic without fear that your bonding agent will show through the paint.

The secret to achieving opaque glass paint coatings

In many glass paint applications, the opacity of the coating doesn’t matter, but for those applications where you need truly opaque glass paint, look no farther than Glassprimer™ glass paint. You can order Glassprimer™ glass paint in any paint color. In fact, we can match any paint color from any major paint manufacturer. This means you can count on getting the color and the coverage you want for your glass paint application.

Depending upon the color you choose, you can improve the opacity of your glass paint project by applying additional coats of paint to the glass surface. When you want an opaque result, it’s tempting to use a thick coat of paint. With glass paint, the best strategy to use to achieve good opacity is to apply a number of thin coats of paint.
Apply your first (thin) coat and allow it to dry. Glass paint will be dry to the touch in about two and a half hours, and you can safely handle the painted piece in about four hours. After the first coat has dried sufficiently, apply a second thin coat.

You apply as many as 8 thin coats of glass paint to achieve an opaque glass paint coating. Be sure to let each coat dry completely before applying additional paint. If you apply more paint to a surface that’s not completely dried, you will not only increase the drying time of the second coat, but also the curing time for the project. You’ll also increase the amount of time needed before you can safely handle the painted piece.

If you’re working with a light shade, you’ll need to apply more coats of paint to your glass to achieve an opaque glass paint finish. If you’re working with a darker color, you may be able to achieve sufficient opacity with fewer coats of paint. In any case, the trick to producing opaque glass paint coatings is to apply thin coats to your glass surface, allow the paint to dry completely, and reapply the paint in thin coats until you achieve your desired opacity.

If you would like more information about opaque glass paint, please look at our FAQs. If you would like to purchase Glassprimer™ glass paint, please visit our online store.