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Glass glitter is a high quality product. A quality glitter is often the final touch that can really set your projects apart from others.
Glass glitter is all about the sparkle, and like a thousand tiny diamonds glistening. This glitter has a shine like no other, due to the labour intensive hand-crafted production process. German Glass Glitter a bit pricier due to the hand made process involved.
Please note:
***Application: For best sparkle retention, & amazing bling, it is recommended to place this medium on top of your resin or adhesive. Stirring/blending coloured glass in to resin or varnishes may possibly cause colour bleeding &/or colour change. The darker colours would be more noticeable. If still wanting to use coloured glass inside resin casting projects, prepare your design knowing ahead there may be potential colour change or bleed. A practice test would be recommended. ***
This glitter is produced by Bavarian glass artisans and are not mass produced in large glass manufacturing plants. So these artist grade glitters are a bit more rare. It is created from a seven step process that starts with coating a thin substrate of glass with a coat of pure silver. After firing the glass at high temperatures, colour coatings are added, followed by additional firings and coats of silver. After the coated colour glass is completed and cooled, it is ground into different grits (grains or cuts) ranging from ultra fine powder (100 grit) to course shards (70-40 grit).
The manufacturer for the German glass glitter available at Artworks Resin Canada, does not add clear glass to their glitters. It is apparently a trick some vendors use to reduce the cost of their product. Adding clear glass directly reduces the shimmer and sparkle of the glitter and reduces the overall quality of the product. So where we have German glass listed, you will know it does not have the clear glass added. Another thing to know, is there is absolutely no lead in this glass.
Much of the German glass glitter is coated with real silver which tends to tarnish to a rich vintage look over time. This is most notable in the silver glitter. The coloured glitters, barely show any sign of tarnishing since they are coated with colour over the silver. The sheer glitter is just glass and contains no silver so will not tarnish.
Glass glitter works beautifully on resin projects, as well as numerous other arts & craft projects.
Any items being interacted with or touched regularly, such as charcuterie boards, Table tops and cabinetry must be topcoated, to cover the sharp edges of the glass glitter.
Since this product is ground/cut glass, it is not recommended for children and should be handled with care by the user.
Application:
Coating your hands with a thin film of baby powder before you start will help reduce glitter sticking for regular crafts. However if you're using the glass glitter with epoxy resin, do not use baby powder as the powder could ruin your resin project.
Instead of using it with resin, you can apply any clear drying adhesive or craft glue to a substrate. Also white or black glues can be used if you like the base colour added. You can use any pvc, tacky adhesive or even Elmers Glue to a surface.
Then sprinkle the glitter on item from the tip of a spoon. Or you can use a bendable paper cups to form a spout then pour in thicker lines. For very small areas, you can use the tip of a paintbrush to lightly brush glitter onto the adhesive. Or if wanting wider lines, you can buy dollar store condiment bottles & cut the tip of the pouring spout to size desired.
If needed, then press the glitter down into the glue using a piece of cardstock between your hands and the glitter.
Some items may require a sealant, and some may not. The choice is up to the artist and each individual project. Artist grade spray on sealants are fine to use if a sealant is needed on an item. it is recommended in this case to do a small test though with sealant to see if it will effect the colour at all, or cause colour to bleed off the glass.
To save things being covered in glitter, use a box while creating with the glitter, or at the very least some type of surface, that you can lift up to pour overflow glitter back into your storage container.
Here is a (quick 1 minute) video link covering a bit about grits (grains or cut) of the glass glitter.
Here are some ideas to inspire you for using glass glitter on arts & crafts:
- If you are using on wall art, there is no need to spray over top of the glass glitter.
- If you are using glass glitter with resin on a charcuterie board, or any item that will be touched by people, it's best to apply the glass glitter on first layer. As you will need to coat any glass that is above the surface area so no one can cut themselves while cleaning or using item. Depending on grit of glass used, it may take a few layers to completely coat sharp tips. Smaller finer grits will typically be covered by one resin layer. It is recommended you test the colour under resin first in your application, to see if a coating may affect colour.
- If you are stamping with paint, then it's a great substance for glitter to stick to, and no added adhesive or glue is needed.
- Double sided tape is a great base for glitter, and a great way to get straight lines.
- Greeting cards
- To make your embossed cards shine, add some fine glitter to the embossing powder before you heat it.
- You can add glitter to ready made brads, ribbons and chipboards.
- Add a sparkly edge to your cards or projects by running a glue stick along the very edges of your project. You can then dip the entire edge of the card in a pool of glitter (can use a plastic container or cookie tray lined with parchment paper).
- Christmas ornaments of all types. Coat various shapes, or just on edges. Paint a shape on the outside like a bird, then add glitter to the shape.
- Fill glass or plastic ornaments with glitter. Pour polycrylic into the ornament, move it around, then dump the rest out. Then pour in your glitter, move it around, then dump the rest out. You can use spray adhesive inside the ornament, but it may not be as long lasting. You can set a sealed photo or image inside the ornament, let it unroll or manipulate into place with tweezers. You can push it up against the front of the ornament or leave loose depending on size. Vintage music sheets might look lovely inside these as well.
- Giant, small or medium super glittery snowflakes is another easy craft that's fun for Christmas decor.
- Use leftover plastic Easter eggs and coat them in beautiful 90 grit glass glitter. Coat each side of the plastic egg with a thin layer of Mod Podge using a sponge brush. It's easier to do each side separately, let them dry, then put the egg back together. Be careful not to get any of the ridge that snaps the two sides of the egg together. Once back together, you may need to do a few touch ups on the center of the egg where they join together.
- You can buy ready made letters at Michaels craft store, and coat them in glitter.
- Make a glitter banner for New Years Eve. Cut circles or triangles, then spray paint letters on each using a template, then coat the letters in glitter. Add ribbon to each piece then hang in desired location.
- Make a seasonal glass filled vase using glitter without glue. Layer heavy glitter in a layer in a clear vase. Plastic glitter will not stay in place to give you the same effect (static electricity does not effect the glass glitter). For best results, use a chunkier glitter (70 grit or chunkier) to start, then add different layers of other grits to give it different monotone dimensional effect, or layer other colours related to the season. Carefully pour a little glitter in the bottom of the vase, or jar, then very carefully spoon additional glitter layer on top, and repeat for desired look. Be careful not to tip vase over, since there's no glue involved.
- Repurpose things like ceramic figurines, or other items to turn them into something special. You can shop dollar stores to find unique items as well. Spray paint the item in white (or desired colour) then add a bit of glitter (matching colour or other) to make it sparkle.
- Take old photo frames and upgrade them with your new favourite decor colours, and add some bling using the german glass glitter in colours of your choice. You can make specialty pet photo frames as gifts for friends & family.
- When it comes to weddings, it's fun to have unique sparkling decor & centerpiece items for the special day. You can create all kinds of lovely wedding decor pieces coating items with glitter glass in desired colours.
- Glitter shoes - Paint glue on liberally all over the shoe.
Notes on the glue: Craft glue will dry white, but will crack and is not waterproof. Rubber cement is water proof, but not clear. And spray on all purpose adhesive is water proof and clear and may be the best for this project. However if it is a canvas type shoe, then rubber cement is best to use. Push plastic bags through dry shoes, to cover the inside, and wrap it to the underside to protect the shoe from glue overspray. Use tape to mask off the sole and keep plastic where you want it and out of the way of the spray area. Sprinkle large amounts of glitter over the shoes and pat lightly to set. It is messy, so use some paper underneath, you can pick up and pour the overflow glitter from into a cup to reuse and pour over shoes again while you're working on getting it fully coated, as it may take a few pours or more to get the glitter coverage desired. Keep doing it over until it's well glittered. Shake shoe, and tap to get excess glitter off. Leave to dry for about 1/2 hour, then completely spray coat in a clear sealant (test for colour changes under sealant before starting on project). This process may need to be done several times to hold the glitter in place. It's a good idea for the base of shoe to be similar colour, so any bare spaces that occur are not as noticeable.
- jewelry items
- burlap
- silk flowers
- twigs
- edges on pine cones to give look of snow
- glamourous pumpkins in the fall
- mason jars
- polymer clay items
- glittery shamrocks on St. Patricks Day
- blingy hearts on Valentines Day
Feel free to add comments on how you use your German glitter glass in the comment section, and inspire other artists and crafters.
