I love the look of “mercury” glass, all shiny but pretty and vintage at the same time. I thought some mercury glass tealight holders would be nice on our Christmas table, so I went to buy some but found they a can be quite expensive, especially by the time you’ve bought a few! So I figured I’d have a go at making some myself…….
You Will Need:
Glass beakers, dishes or pots, (I got mine from charity shops (thrift stores)), looking glass (mirror) spray (not Chrome, it’s not shiny enough), an empty spray bottle, vinegar, water and kitchen paper towels.
Prepare your vinegar-water spray: fill spray bottle half full with vinegar then fill remaining half with water, replace spray lid.
Step 1: Following the instructions on the looking glass can, spray your chosen glass item lightly with looking glass spray, using a sweeping motion. You are aiming for a very thin first coat. Allow to dry (a few minutes). Don’t worry if you get dips, move the glass around slowly until dry, it just adds to the vintage look.
NB: Spray the inside of your glass item, i.e. the reverse of the side that will be showing. This is because the painted side will be dull but the reverse side will be shiny, strange but true!
Step 2. Repeat step 1 a few more times until you are happy with the coverage. Now spray with the vinegar-water, it will bead on the surface, wait a few minutes…..
Step 3: Wipe the vinegar away with the paper towel, it will remove the paint, giving a distressed look. Experiment with applying different pressures of to the glass with the towel, I found a dab and slight twist of the towel worked well. Don’t worry if you remove too much as you can just start again with more spray! (The pic below shows the dull inside/sprayed side)
That’s it! Pretty silvered glass containers, they also make great gifts.
An alternative method is to spray the vinegar-water first, before the looking glass spray. With this method the silver blisters and is easier to remove, it gives a more distressed look. Try both methods and see which you prefer.
