Etceteras: cranberry glass

I am obsessed with painted glass bottles and jars. I have seen so many beautiful projects lately; simple spray painted bottles, white paint inside of the glass resulting in a milk glass effect and Mod Podge and blue food coloring inside of the glass which makes beautiful sea glass.

I decided to try to make cranberry glass. True cranberry glass is an art and the glass is typically hand blown.  My cranberry glass is made from everyday jars.

I used the Mod Podge method to make these. The amount you need will depend on the size of your jar. To make the largest jar, I used:

• 2 Tbsp of Gloss Lustre Mod Podge
• 1-2 tsp water
• 2 drops blue food coloring
• 3 drops red food coloring

Mix your ingredients and pour into your jar. Swirl the mixture around and continue swirling as you pour the mixture out. Make sure the entire inside of the jar is coated. Most of the tutorials now say to place your jar upside down on newspaper or wax paper and to wipe the opening of the jar every now and then. I found that the Mod Podge pools and makes a huge messy clump around the top of the jar. I came up with these drying racks made out of strawberry baskets.

Note the color of the Mod Podge – as it dries it becomes darker and translucent. I used varying amounts of food color to get the three different colors on my jars.

I embellished the jars because the color wasn’t quite even around the neck of the jar where the Mod Podge dried thicker.  

 

The jars are purely decorative. Because Mod Podge is waterbase, you can’t fill these with water and use them as vases.

Tips: I’ve tried this project a few times and here’s what I’ve learned.

1. Some tutorials say you can use white glue but I found that the Mod Podge works better.
2. The more water you add the more translucent your result will be. Too much water and the glass will not coat evenly.
3. Make sure the inside of the jar is very clean or the Mod Podge will not adhere correctly.
4. Be patient – don’t touch the inside before it’s completely dry. Trust me on this…

And if you’re not happy with your results, soak your jars in water and start over.