For quite some time, I've been eyeing these little mercury glass votives from Pottery Barn. But at $6.50 to $16 a pop (for the small votives!), I just couldn't justify the price. But a few weeks ago, I spied a fun tutorial on how to make your own mercury glass votives. Boom! I pinned the article on my Pinterest account and decided to make this my next project.
This project was kind of an adventure, so sit back and let me tell you a little tale ; )
Last weekend, I went on a hunt for the infamous Krylon Looking Glass spray paint that the DIY mercury glass article recommended. After visiting five different stores and finding none, I decided to use a shiny chrome spray paint. And by "me," I actually mean David because we all know that this preggo won't go near any paint for the next nine months. Yes, I have a champ for a hubs! So Round 1 of the project went underway and we painted the Dollar Store votives I found with the chrome spray paint. Big. Mistake. They looked like silver-painted votives. I mean, duh. Could have guessed that.
Okay, time for Round 2. This time, we did it right. Of alllll the places in the world, I finally stumbled upon some of the Krylon Looking Glass paint at... Wally World. Seriously, way to come through in the clutch, WalMart! I also found a few $0.50 votives, which were cheaper than my Dollar Store finds. Let's just pretend we start from scratch here, eh?
Learn from my mistake and make sure you have the Krylon Looking Glass paint. You'll also need some painters tape, water in a spray bottle and a few cute votives.
Step one: wipe down the inside of the votives and then tape the outside with painters tape.
Step two: spritz the inside of the votives with water and then follow up with spray paint.
Isn't he cute? Such a trooper : ) A few tips from David on this step... spray the water and spray paint verrrrry lightly. No matter what, you'll have some of the water + paint run down and pool at the bottom of the votive, but you want to avoid a lot of streaks. So take it lightly! You could probably go a little heavier on the paint than we did, but we liked the translucent effect.
Step three: let dry and then relish in the fact that you paid about 80% less than the Pottery Barn version for your fabulous mercury glass votives.
I decided to put my votives on some shelves in my master bedroom. As an aside, I kind of hate these shelves because they're simply not big enough for the wall that they're on. But they work for now. And certainly look a heck of a lot cuter with my new mercury glass votives on them!
Um, yes. Please ignore the wooden box + nightstand at the foot of my bed. Things tend to get a little crazy when your house is on the market and you're trying to move!
So there you have it! My DIY mercury glass votives. All in all (well, in Round 2), I spent $5 on seven votives of varying size and $9 on the spray paint, for a total of $14 (or $2 per votive). That certainly beats the $74 I'd have to spend at Pottery Barn to get seven similarly sized votives!
Whatcha think?! Have you tried to track down the mystery paint that is Krylon's Looking Glass? Had any luck with this project yourself?
I'll be linking up this project with the Winter Pinterest Challenge link up over at Young House Love, Bower Power and Hi Sugarplum!!
Also sharing with: Between Naps on the Porch
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Those look great! I've been wanting the large mercury glass vases from PB, but don't want to spend the money. I'm thinking I should try this... :)
ReplyDeleteGood to know where you found the spray paint - I've been searching for it everywhere too! Tell your hub he did a great job! I'm on my way to Wally World now! ;)
ReplyDeleteThey came out great! I love it when people recreate something they like for a fraction of the cost. Well done!
ReplyDeleteThese look amazing Michelle! I love them on the shelves in your bedroom - so glamorous and pretty!! What a fun project!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great tutorial! I LOVE mercury glass...will definitely try this soon!
ReplyDeleteLovely! I've been looking for that looking glass forever! I'll to try my Wally World again. Thanks for sharing, they look great!
ReplyDeleteGreat tutorial! I love mercury glass and love how subtle the look of these are :)
ReplyDeleteLove how yours look! thanks for the tutorial! Bonnie ;)
ReplyDeletewww.uncommondesignsonline.com
They look great girl!! And I def love your price better!
ReplyDeleteoh my god, i love anything with mercury glass! i was looking for wall sconces that were mercury glass but had no luck...i wonder if i could do this to a lucite or glass sconce. hmm....
ReplyDeleteThey are darling. Great DIY. And yes, David is a trooper. I am way behind on the pin it party. Must getting working today! :)
ReplyDeleteThese are so great. Easy and big impact. LOVE mercury glass...especially at a nice price :)
ReplyDeleteDIY mercury glass is on my project to-do list - just have to track down the paint. I found it at amazon.com, but I'm hoping to spot it at a local store. I'm going to check out our Walmart - thanks for the tip :-)
ReplyDeleteYour votives look so pretty - love how they dress up the shelves in your bedroom :-)
Kelly
I have to try this! I have a bunch of votives left over from a party and this is going to be the perfect thing to spiff them up a bit!
ReplyDeleteGreat job (helpful husband)! :)
I;ve totally got the mercury glass look pinned...and even (finally) found the looking glass paint. I'm glad you tried this out and shared the errors of your ways...now hopefully when I attempt it, it will halfway work! Great job...thanks for linking up!!! xoxoxo
ReplyDeleteCute! I finally found this paint. But, I've got to ask, is it safe to have a flame near the spray paint?
ReplyDeleteVery cute! I'm glad you powered through and made it work. I love the end result.
ReplyDeleteI have been meaning to tackle this little project. I'll definitely heed your tips. Great job! They fit well in those shelves, too!
ReplyDeleteSo cute! We have those same shelves and can NEVER figure out where to put them. They seem to be too small for a lot of spaces we've tried. We finally found a home for them in our small bathroom off the kitchen right above the toliet. The don't seem to be so small there :)
ReplyDeleteI love them! It seems simple too, which makes me a super fan!
ReplyDeleteI love this! I've been obsessing over mercury glass lately, but I'm not going to pay a lot of money for it, especially now! :)
ReplyDeleteI've been wanting to tackle this project too. Thanks for your tips and insight. I'm having a hard time finding the Looking Glass spray and totally would've tried the silver.
ReplyDeleteWay to go, the votives look great!
~Danielle
Shut your mouth sister! hahaha. This is awesome! They turned out fantastic!! I am so doing this--probably this weekend! Thanks for the great idea!
ReplyDeleteI haven't tried this yet but it's on my list, you know the one that never ends. I think yours turned out fantastically and what a good hubby you have!!
ReplyDeleteI tried this project on an old storage jar-- the kind that used to be used for flour. I sprayed the inside in a couple light coats, then the outside. I also gave the outside a quick spray with a vinegar water solution while the paint was still wet. It seriously looks like the antique mercury glass featured on Martha Stewart. I am using the jar (with another vessel inside it) as a vase for some tulips. It looks so sweet!
ReplyDeleteThese turned out so perfectly! I've pinned them so that I can give it a go myself :)
ReplyDeletePinning now! Thanks for the review. I'm always cautious about DIY.
ReplyDeleteThis are great! I can't wait to try!
ReplyDeleteSuch a cute idea! The translucent effect makes the candlelight shimmer and glow perfectly. Great tutorial!
ReplyDeleteGreat tutorial. Thanks to the hubby!
ReplyDeleteWhat a cool effect for not much money! Great job, and thanks for linking up with the Winter Pinterest Challenge!
ReplyDeleteErin @ The Great Indoors
Great job and I love the thrifty price tag. I searched everywhere for some of that paint and finally found it at Hobby Lobby. It's still sitting here waiting for my first attempt. Thanks for sharing and for the tips.
ReplyDeleteI learned something new today! Didn't even know that Krylon had looking glass paint. Great look for little money. I am a huge fan of Mercury glass!
ReplyDeletePaula ~ Mise en scène
Oh my, this is awesome! The same happened to me, I just didn't want to pay for small votives that same price and I did wanted at least 6 for a dinner party and yours came out perfect. Thanks for the tutorial! Enjoy your week.
ReplyDeleteFABBY
Your hubby did a very nice job on these. I've been playing with the Looking Glass paint & water for a bit and haven't quite got the knack. I have a lead finger maybe..haha. Did you try Hobby Lobby for the paint...that's where I found it when I went over to the States. xo wendy
ReplyDeleteI finished doing 48 votives using Looking Glass spray this weekend for my daughter's wedding. Each votive got three sprays..when they were dry I used a vinegar/water solution and sprayed inside votive then waiting about 30 seconds/1 minute and dabbed inside with paper towel. They came out great!
ReplyDeleteWas wondering if this would work on a large picture frame glass? I'm putting a Halloween display up and need an old mirror
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for sharing! I was wondering if you had any issues with the flamed candles? I'm a bit worried with the paint on the glass -- want to make sure it's not flammable!
ReplyDeleteI'm just getting to make these and am sooo excited. I just hope they turn out!
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