Splat!

Splatter-design wine glasses...a fun, easy way to spice up your set of vasos de vino. You can use any color scheme; it can be one that matches your kitchen, one that matches your wedding (inexpensive bridesmaids' gifts, anyone?), or one that has your favorite colors. The possibilities are endless! 

I purchased a set of four wine glasses, two red and two white, from Bed, Bath, & Beyond for ten bucks. The first step in any craft using glass is to wash with soapy water and dry completely. An additional great tip is to apply rubbing alcohol after to remove any spots that may have lingered after washing.

The next material you need is glass paint. Depending of which brand you buy, it may require a conditioner as a first step. I had Delta's PermEnamel in my craft bin, which does require a conditioner.  The conditioner comes in a large bottle (see right) and it about $7. With a sponge brush, I coated all four glasses with the thin solution, and set them aside to dry. These dry very quickly, and in order for the solution to be "active", you must apply the glass paint within four hours. If you pass the four hour mark, you have to start re-condition the surface. 

For the red wine glasses, I decided to use the Royal Purple & Light Burgundy colors I had to represent the purple/red grapes. For the white wine glasses, I used the Light Foliage Green & Green Tea colors I have to represent the green/white grapes. (Paint: Delta PermEnamel)

Next, I prepped my glasses and painting area. Since I wanted to leave the stems of the glasses unpainted, I covered them with a small piece of tissue paper. For my "splatting" area, I brought home two shoe boxes and a bunch 'o rubber bands from work. All you need to do is stretch the rubber band around the open shoe box and viola!: you just made your own ghetto spin art. 

 I then placed a wine glass in the box (underneath the rubber band), grabbed a paint, and lightly painted to underside of the rubber band. I pulled back the rubber band and let go. And thus begins the splatter effect! I moved the rubber band forward, back, and on a diagonal to get overall good coverage at different angles. I did one color shade first, and then switched to the second shade. I re-painted the rubber after every other snap.

When I was finished splatting all for glasses, I took off the tissue paper and was really happy with the new wine glasses! I am going to go ahead and apply a gloss finish later for extra hold. This step is not necessary, but Delta offers finishes, and I figured it would be an extra whammy to keep the paint lasting longer and the gloss will give the glasses added shine. Even though the paint dries within an hour, you should wait 10 days before using/washing. So, say mid-March I'll be getting Cj drunk ;)