Apple Barrel, FolkArt, Gallery Glass and Simply Screen are registered trademarks of Plaid Enterprises, Inc. Norcross, Georgia, USA. The information in this blog is presented in good faith, but no warranty is given, nor are specific results guaranteed.
Looking to have some fun with Gallery Glass, but not sure where to find patterns or instruction? We are very excited to introduce a new blog to the Plaid family – Gallery Glass Class! Carol Smith, our Vice President of Media Marketing, has begun this new blog to provide inspiration and community to those who love Gallery Glass. As most of you know, Carol has worked with the product since its inception and is the perfect person to teach others how to use it! Carol will be updating the blog regularly with patterns, pictures and more – she’ll even be offering kits for sale so that you can get all of the goodies to make a project in one place!
We hope you will join Carol as she begins her Gallery Glass blogging adventure. Visit here to see the blog and start some beautiful fall projects of your own.
I like pumpkins, yes I do – I like pumpkins, how about you? Contributor Carol Smith created this pumpkin suncatcher to celebrate fall and Halloween using Gallery Glass. It’s perfect for hanging in the window of a kitchen or child’s room, and beautiful when the light shines through. Carol leaded (drew the black outline) of the pumpkin using Liquid Lead. I asked Carol to share with me how she gets her perfect leaded lines. I was shocked to find out that she uses a tape tip – made with regular Scotch tape! Wow. I asked for information to share with you, and here are her instructions to create a tape tip for your leading. Cool, huh?
One more thing abou this pumpkin – Carol is so kind, she’s even provided you the pattern! Download the image and then enlarge or size down to fit the item of your choice. To fill in the pumpkin, Carol used Gallery Glass Window Colors Kelly Green (16008), Pumpkin Orange (16429) and Cameo Ivory (16003). Customize to fit your own decor.
Have you been seeing leopard and animal print everywhere? I have. Like this coat from Garnet Hill that I kind of want:
I also found this trend report in Real Simple – look at all the fun accessories:
There are so many more that I could scan for you (but don’t worry, I won’t) - I know I was at the nail salon yesterday and saw a spread in People. Animal prints were here just a few years ago, and now they’re back! Given that they are so big in fashion, I thought maybe you would want to incorporate them into your painting as well. ”But how, Amy?” I can already hear you asking. Here’s a great example from PlaidOnline.com, a funky animal print glass frame:
I would be intimidated at the thought of painting animal print, but the good news is that a pattern is included for this project. So you don’t have to be afraid of the “wild beast” that is glass painting. This frame was painted with FolkArt Enamels in some funky colors, and while I’m not typically an animal print girl, I’m kind of getting into it this year. I hope you do too. For full project instructions, go here.
One of my favorite things about fall nights is lit pathways. Darkness comes earlier, and every now and again on my evening walks I see a house with lights going up to the front porch. I don’t know what it is, but it’s almost a precursor to the upcoming holidays that the fall brings.
I found these homemade tealights on Think Crafts, and they are exactly what I’m talking about. Gillian from Dried Figs and Wooden Spools did them as a guest post, and she even got her kids involved. With some recycled glass tealights and leftover acrylic paint, you can have some of these too. Consider using some orange for Halloween or other fall colors – you could even paint a little jack-o-lantern face on the front. Cute, huh? Visit the entire tutorial here. Oh, and I recommend Apple Barrel paint for a project like this one.
I’ve got to give a shout out to the FolkArt users overseas – there are so many of you who make beautiful projects with acrylic paint! A perfect example is this cabinet from Monosalaobra.tv, a site in Argentina. The artist is Leonor Esposito, and she uses both FolkArt Acrylics and Enamels on this aged cabinet with the look of lace on the door. I’m inspired by projects from other countries; many of them have gorgeous paintings and architecture that outdates ours by a long shot – and these provide inspiration to so many projects. Cool, huh? Visit the project here – if you can read Spanish, great, and if not, go here for Google Translator.
Father’s Day is coming up quickly (June 20th), and I’m well aware of how difficult it is to find something to make for that special guy in your life. It reminds me of the time that I bought a leg lamp from A Christmas Story for my dad and a few years later found it unopened in the garage sale pile. You’ll be pleased to know that I rescued it and it’s now at work! Okay, maybe not the best choice of gifts.
I was drawn to this #1 Dad suncatcher because of the color palette (love my blues and greens) as well as the thought that my dad would probably actually use this. He could hang it at work or in his home office. If you have children, this is especially awesome because Gallery Glass is easy for children to use. Get the instructions for the project here.
Have you heard of Donna Dewberry? If not, where have you been? I’m kidding, but truly, Donna Dewberry is not only creator of the One Stroke painting method, but also a great instructor. With the current popularity of glass painting, I suggest watching this and giving FolkArt Enamels a try. You’ll be able to create projects like this. Check it out!
Decorative glass is such a big trend right now. I’ve been seeing many different types of designs, from basic shapes to whimsical – all of them cute and fun! Here are some great examples:
Island Time Juice Glass from Anthropologie
Decorative Glass Cat
Glass Plates from Nano Studio
Here’s our contribution to the world of glass crafting from one of our favorite designers, Julie Lewis. It uses FolkArt Enamels in bright colors and a simple taping method. Visit the project instructions for this awesome retro drink set here.
