In an earlier post I shared tips on how to paint those cheap glass vases that florists use to hold their floral arrangements. I’m sure many of you have a stash somewhere in your house. I know I do! I have them shoved in the back of my kitchen cabinets. Those vases aren’t pretty enough to use once the cut flowers have dried up, yet most of us don’t want to toss them out. Hence they end up cluttering our cabinets and closets.
When I decided to redo my guest bathroom those vases along with other plain vases we used for weddings and parties came in handy. I discovered that with a couple of dollars worth of paint those plain vases take on a whole new look. In fact with just a bit of time they can be made to look like those expensive vases found in many decor shops.
Earlier I painted the inside of a vase with Enamel paint making it look pretty good. It’s the blue vase on the right! So I experimented with stenciling the outside of the clear cylindrical vase and I think it looks great!
The stenciled glass vase was really easy to do using paint left over from that blue vase I made. So really it didn’t cost me anything!
To make this vase I cut out shell stencils (I’m redoing my bath in a beach theme) on clear Dura-Lar film using my Cricut Explore cutting machine. I’ll share the template with you in this post. If you don’t have a cutting machine or clear Dura-Lar film no worries! Just print out the template and cut it out of card stock with a craft knife or scissors.
Once you have the stencil you just have to tape it into place on your vase and start stenciling. Easy! This project took less than an hour, it might take you longer if you have to cut the stencil by hand. Or if you prefer you can buy plastic stencils from the craft store and use those.
By the way, you don’t have to use those vases just for flowers! They’re great for holding guest soaps and other bathroom stuff, kitchen utensils, or you can even use them in the candy buffet at your next party! So never toss those cheap vases again, instead upcycle and re-purpose them!
Here’s how to make your own Stenciled Glass Vase! I used shell stencils to fit my beach theme, you can download my template for free if you want shell stencils or use whatever kind of stencil to fit your decor or event; like maybe leaves for fall decor, hearts for Valentines, really just about anything you want, you’ll just have to make or find the right stencil for you.
Supplies:
Vase
Stencils click here to download the free template for my shell stencils or use whatever stencil you like
Enamel Paint – I use Plaid’s Folk Art Brand, but you can use any brand as long as it’s Enamel paint so that it will stick to glass
Stencil Brush – you’ll need to use a stencil brush not any other paint brush. Stencil brushes are stiffer than other brushes, it allows you to paint within the stencil without the paint running under the stencil and creating a mess.
Fine Paint Brush – I used this to fill in some spots and to outline the shells after stenciling
Rubbing Alcohol
Painter’s or Masking Tape – Either tape works and will be easier to remove when you’re done.
Paper Towels
How to:
Start with a clean vase.
Wipe the outside of the vase with rubbing alcohol and let dry.
Lay the stencils on the vase where you want the pictures to be and secure in place with painter’s tape.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
To stencil:
Dip stencil brush in paint then holding the brush perpendicular to your paper towel daub paint off the brush using a circular motion. You want the brush to be dry not dripping in paint.
Once you’ve gotten most of the paint off place the brush at the edge of the stencil, holding the brush perpendicular to the vase work in a circular motion to apply the paint. Start at the edge and work towards the center. When you begin applying paint at the edge most of the paint should be on the stencil and just a bit on the vase. As you work toward the middle you will be applying paint on the vase. On the line border I started at the top edge and worked towards the bottom edge.
Allow the first coat to dry completely and apply a second coat the same way.
Once you’ve applied paint in all the images gently lift the stencil off the vase. Try to lift it straight up to avoid smearing the paint. Remove stencil before the paint dries completely, otherwise the paint may stick to the stencil edges and lift off the vase when you remove the stencil.
With the paint brush you can fill in any spots you might have missed while stenciling. You can also define the image edges with the brush.
Allow paint to dry for 1 hour. Then you must cure it.
Curing:
There are 2 ways to cure your vase:
Let air cure for 21 days. Don’t wash it or get it wet during curing time.
OR
Place vase on a baking sheet and put it in a COLD oven
Turn heat on to 350 degrees
When oven reaches temperature set timer for 30 minutes
After 30 minutes turn off oven
Allow vase to cool in the oven
Once it’s cool it’s ready for use!
Curing the paint will make it permanent. Cured vases are dishwasher safe on the top rack. [spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
I’m using my Stenciled Glass Vase in my beach themed guest bath! I love how they turned out![spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
I liked it so much I made matching soap dispensers!I got this set of glass soap dispensers on clearance at Target for $7.99. With a couple of stencils, which I’m also sharing with you, and left over paint they look great!
You stencil these soap dispensers the same way as the vase, just don’t bake the metal pumps.
Vase Stencils
Click here for these stencils.[spacer height=”20px” id=”2″]
Click here for these stencils.
Feel free to use these stencils on vases, soap dispensers, or what ever project you have! You may have to adjust the size to fit your needs, you can do that by downloading them and popping them into any photo editor and resize.
I’d love to see your Stenciled Glass Vase projects! Share your photos on the comments!
