I have seen some vintage dish and plate flowers on Pinterest and thought making my own from some inexpensive Dollar Tree glassware and Deco Art glass paint would add a pop of pizazz to my yard. These are so easy to make and it is really hard to screw it up. You don’t need to have painting experience to make this garden art. Just a few swooshes with a paint brush and some glue and you are all set.
Supplies:
Dishes from Dollar Tree
E6000 Glue
glass marbles from Dollar Tree
paint brushes
rubbing alcohol
3/8” coupling ($1 at home store)
threaded rod ($2 at home store)
Deco Art glass paint (see colors below)
1. Wash all of your glass pieces with soap and water. Once dry lightly wipe them with alcohol to get all the soap residue off. This will help the paint to have maximum adhesion.
2. With the turquoise Crystal Gloss Enamels and the Turquoise Frost Glass Enamel paint big brush strokes onto the sides of your big plate alternating paints. At this point both of the paints look similar but when they are dry they will look different.
3. Start in the center and paint outwards with the Blue Crystal Gloss Enamel on the small plate.
4. With the flower dish paint the center upwards with Turquoise Gloss Enamels. The big brush stoke will give some great dimension to the flower. Once dry stripe the center up with Turquoise 3D Frost Gloss Enamel writer.
5. Drip blue Gloss Stain Pearlescent in a stripe pattern into the candle holder and let it pool at the bottom.
6. Once the pieces are fully dry glue them together with a generous amount of E6000 glue. Then leave them undisturbed to cure overnight.
7. You can stop here and display the pretty flower on a plate rack. However I think the glass marbles just add a little something to it. Embellish them with swirls with the White 3D Opaque Glass Writer. Glue the marbles around the large plate with E6000.
8. You can also add some of the White Opaque Gloss Writer to the edge of the dishes or add polka dots for more interest.
9. After everything has dried then glue (be generous) your 3/8” coupling nut onto the back. Thread a 3’ threaded rod into the nut and stick it into your landscaping for some cool garden art.
For more glass paint ideas visit Deco Art. All of these paints mentioned in the post can be found at Michaels. It isn’t in with the regular paint though it has its own little section by the vases and flowers.
Disclaimer: This is a compensated post from Deco Art. I got paid to create a project using their new glass paint line.
Love it. Sure wish I would have made my own last year for Christmas instead of spending the bucks on them. They look great!
Love, love, love it! I thought it looked 3D…how clever! Definitely going to make one of these!
This is crazy awesome cool. I kinda want to take a hammer to mine and begin from scratch now.
Great job, Beckie.
HA! You are funny!
Looks great! I’ll have to pin this one to try next spring, thanks for sharing!
Pinned! beautiful job Beckie! LOVE the colors!
gail
Thank you for the pin Gail.
I especially like the little ruffled piece. It totally makes it look floral
So pretty and eye catching. The blues are really pretty too!!
I know the ruffled piece was a great find, it really does make the flower.
Beautiful! The photographs turned out great!!!
I know right? I was pleased with them too. Thank you so much for showing me how to do this.
These are so stinkin adorable! I will be making a few of these!
Talk about thinking outside of the box…what great and Whimsy way to add interest to your garden ….so cute xo
Lu
Genius! It’s lovely!
http://mandycrandell.blogspot.com/
What a super, creative way to add garden art. I especially love homemade pieces of art. I have a mosaic stone my son made when he was 6. He is now 20 and getting ready to head out for Army Bootcamp. That stone is a treasure. I like how the piece you created has dimension to it! Terrific! Thanks for sharing this great tutorial! Have a sweet day!
Love the dimension to it and that you can really make it any style you like depending how you paint it!
I love the way you layered several pieces to make this wonderful piece, and the painted designs really add to the floral look. Thanks for sharing- I’ll be pinning this one and maybe even giving it a try!
Really cute! Just a note because I don’t want your pretty art to be found broken to bit on the concrete. E6000 doesn’t hold up to UV. For items sitting out in the garden that will be exposed to sunlight and the elements, I suggest UV6800. I am interested in how long your piece holds up using the E6000 in the elements. Keep us posted.
Can UV6800 be purchased locally at a hardware store??
I am not sure. I have never heard of that glue.
That’s true E6000 on my garden pieces turned yellow and some fell apart after being out during the summer.I make garden art from punch bowls and other large items.
This is so pretty, Beckie! I love the dimension of the stacked glass, and the various shades of blue and different types of paint look fantastic together.
How perfectly fabulous!
This is so pretty Beckie!! I love the 3D look to it and the colors are so gorgeous!
Thanks Bev!
I love this! Great job!! Love all kinds of garden art and will be trying this!
I tried to find the paint at Hobby Lobby with no luck. When I asked about glass paint they said to use acrylic paint but the store is so new I decided to wait and see if I could find it elsewhere. Now I’m worried about the glue! It would be a shame to have the piece fall apart and shatter. I just recently learned about E6000 (probably on Pinterest) so I don’t know much about glues other than scrapbook adhesives. Our handyman uses some type of glue to affix memorial plaques to a brick wall at our shelter and I’ve never seen one come down. I believe he told me it was some type of plumber’s glue. I’ll check and let you know what he says.
The paint is sold at Michaels for sure. They have a little section of glass paint by all their vases. e6000 is pretty strong stuff if you let it cure. But let me know what you find out.
Funny thing is I ripped a page out of a magazine with a picture similar to this. It has been something I want to do now all summer. Thanks for the tutorial on yours.
You are welcome please let me know if you make one. I would love to see your creation.
I love these plate flowers…but wanted to let you know that E6000 may not hold in rainy weather…mine fell apart and also E6000 isn’t UV tolerant. I now use Lexel adhesive.
Eleanor! Thanks so much for the tip! I love hearing what works and Doesn’t {giggle} work for others!
What a beautiful piece……..seriously….it just “wowed” me…..
My bf and I are going to try mosaic art for the 1st time today
and I’m thinking I might try to incorporate your idea with the
mosaic later on if the mosaic works out. Thank you very much
for the directions and supplies, ect! Take care!
On the bottles of enamel it said to cure in the oven. You didn’t mention doing this. Is that just for items you are planning to serve food on?
Christine – yes! It isn’t necessary unless you plan on cooking on them and then washing them.
Great! I was hoping that was it. We just finished 10 of the flowers. My kids, niece and nephew did our annual making of gifts for my sis and mom. They are definately what you would call “more creative/ colorful ” thank yours as the ages are 5 to 14. We used a combination of repurpised and new glass. They loved painting them. I just need to glue them. Wonderful craft for all
Magnifico trabajo. Felicitaciones!!!!!!!!!!!!
I live in AZ and during the heat, most flowers fade away! I’m looking forward to doing a few of these so when I look outside there is color. Thanks for sharing your ideas.
Let me know how they turn out. I would love to see yours.
I would LOVE to do this project with my girls (ages 9 and 7) this summer! Do you need to treat the painted plate at all? Spray it with any type of coating? We live in MN and get quite the summer storms at times. I just wonder how it would hold up to the elements here. What a fun project!
It should be fine. You can bake them for extra hold. Your girls would love it!
We had so much fun making these for Mother’s Day gifts! I really LOVED this project and have requests from other family members who want their own. So happy I came across your post.
Oops, here’s the link to our project.
http://hollysartcorner.blogspot.com/2013/05/craft-project-handpainted-garden-art.html
Holly, they look great! I am so glad your family loved them and that you could create them with your girls. I just love crafting with my kiddos! Hugs!
If you don’t want to stake them,hang from plate hangers!
Thank you so much Beckie for the info! I’ve seen these around and decided to make my own but didn’t know what to use for fine detailing that would be weather resistant. So I tried Krylon Indoor/Outdoor spray paint and sprayed some in a disposable cup and brushed it on a existing coat, but it hasn’t been tested yet by mother nature. Does anyone have experience with this? Like Holly, I’ve wondered about spraying with clear coat for protection.
Will all glass hold up to the recommended baking in the oven or only oven safe glass? I have some great finds and don’t want to loose them.
That is a great question. i would think glass should bake just fine. You aren’t baking at extremely high temperatures. But obviously test it first, this is just my guess.
they are very pretty….ive made birdbaths from goodwill plates and platters with E6000 glue and it is very good…just make sure it cures awhile before using it . u could also use pretty thrift store plates (cost maybe $1.00 or under). im more concerned about the glue holding the connector and stake !! sometimes its very windy in my yard and i would be worried about them blowing over and breaking…….yours are very pretty……..thanks for the ideas…check out my Pinterest pages for some of my birdbaths and things i’ve made. Weezie
Just beautiful….thanks for the excellent tutorial.
Becky, I am ready to do some now. I have saved this post so I can refresh my memory! I have two stacked and ready to be glued, but I am curious how you put them in the ground. I am thinking the ground eventually will be soft and they will fall over if just stuck in the ground? How did you do this? I am really loving painting the plates because I have several plain Jane plates!
A threaded rod. You can stick it in there rather deep and it should stay well.
Becky,
Thank you so much for the tutorial on these beautiful plate flowers. I just (today) received all 7 bottles of my paint. I too had some trouble finding the paint at Hobby Lobby, Micheal’s and JoAnn Fabrics. I did however find all 7 online at Createforless.com Can’t wait to get started, I’m so excited. Thanks again, a happy crafter in Ohio
Let me know how it goes. Good luck!
Does this glass paint hold up in rainy weather, and where do you find Lexel adhesive ? Thanks
Yes. I am not sure where to find Lexel adhesive but e6000 you can find at any craft store.
Do you have to coat the plate with nothing to keep paint from running, to seal it?
Nope, the paint has natural sealers in it. You can bake them if you want according to package directions. Enjoy your garden flower!
Thanks for sharing! I featured your project today in a last minute mother’s day gift round up on Creative Green Living.
Thanks!
Thanks for the feature, Carissa!
Love this project! I am definitely making some of these sometime soon!
Thanks, Friend! Hugs!