How to Make Stunning Faux Stained Glass With Just Glue and Paint

I don’t know about you but I always seem to have an abundance of old frames kicking around at home. Many of them are wood and some are really ornate and beautiful. I know thrift stores have an overabundance of them so I am always looking for new ways to use them.

Not long ago I did an episode of Hometalk TV and turned an old frame into a piece of faux stained glass art. It was much, much easier than real stained glass and it was really fun to create.

The Frame

I started with this wood frame that was pretty straightforward. I didn’t want the frame to distract from the beautiful art I was going to make so kept it simple.

After cleaning it well and removing the matt and glass, I gave it a coat of Fusion Mineral Paint in Elderberry. The rich colour of the Elderberry reminded me of vintage stained glass so it seemed like a perfect choice.

The Floral Design

To prep the glass for the design, I used painter’s tape and marked off the edges of the glass. The tape was easy to line up with the edge of the glass so that it was the same width all the way around.

For the design itself, it was easy peasy. I found a floral pattern I liked online and printed it off.

The paper with the design was taped to the underside of the glass so that it showed throw and I could use it as a guide.

Creating the Faux Stained Glass Art

To create the art, I outlined everything with faux leading first. The faux leading was really easy to put onto the glass and the little bottle comes with a nice small point at the end. I started by outlining the painter’s tape edges.

Then I moved on to the flower design. I didn’t worry about all of the little details but rather just stuck to the main flower and leaf outlines.

Once I had everything outlined, I left the faux leading to dry overnight. Doesn’t it look like real lead? I was really impressed with the faux leading.

Adding Colour to the Design

After leaving the faux leading to dry, it was time to add some colour and make the piece of art come to life. I really can’t tell you how easy this part was and all you need is clear glue and a little bit of paint.

To make each of the colours, I put some clear school glue into a small but and then added a spoonful of each of the colours I used.

Once they are mixed, it created a coloured glue.

For my art piece, I used Fusion Mineral Paint in Elderberry, Peony, Conservatory, Bayberry, and Winchester.

After mixing each of the colours, I used small artist’s brushes to fill each of the flowers and leaves in.

It was really fun to paint the piece. It felt like colouring 😉

Once the flowers and leaves were dry, the final step was to give the rest of the piece a stained glass feel as well. This was easy to do with the same clear school glue I used with the colours.

Using a small brush, I painted all of the remaining areas with clear glue. You can add as many layers of clear glue as you’d like. I only did two but the more you add, the blurrier the effect will be.

The Final Art Piece

I really can’t get over just how fun creating this piece was. It was a project that could be done at home,  reused an old frame, and created something beautiful without needing any fancy art skills. I would definitely recommend trying it if you love the look of stained glass and want some new art for your window.

Now I just keep thinking how beautiful (and fun!) it would be to do something similar on an old window to create a really big piece…

Check out some other ways to use old frames here, here, and here…

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Have a great week and happy creating!