How to Make a Stunning DIY Mercury Glass Pumpkin Centerpiece
Just in time for fall, this DIY mercury glass pumpkin vase is a quick and easy project for the season. Add some nice flowers, and you will have a great centerpiece for the fall holidays.
I did a mercury glass tutorial before, but this time, I decided to add a step to show you how you can make one that has some background color to it!
You will only need a pumpkin jar and some mirror glass spray paint along with some Mod Podge and food coloring for a nice crackled color finish. Let's get started!
Tools and materials:
- Glass pumpkin jar
- Mirror spray paint
- Mod Podge
- Food coloring
- Water/vinegar mix in a spray bottle
- Scissors
- Floral foam
- An array of flowers
1. Color the inside of the jar
Place several drops of blue and green food coloring into the bottom of the pumpkin jar. I probably added 3-4 drops of each color. Pour a good tablespoon of Mod Podge into the jar on top of the food coloring.
2. Stir it up with some water
Add a small touch of water to the mixture in the jar. A teaspoon is probably fine. I kind of went by eye. You want it to be a bit less thick, but not too soupy either. Stir it all up!
3. Coat all the sides
Swirl the mixture around the inside of the pumpkin jar making sure to coat all sides nice and evenly. Get in all the crevices and don't miss any spots.
4. Let it dry a little bit
Place your jar upside down on a piece of cardboard or plastic and allow any extra Mod Podge mixture to drip out. (You should leave it for a couple of minutes.)
5. Bake the jar
Place your pumpkin upside down on a cookie sheet on top of a piece of wax paper and bake it in the oven on warm for 20 minutes. Turn the pumpkin right side up once the 20 minutes is up, and bake it for another 20.
If there are still streaks, you can leave it in for several more minutes and they will fade. It should look like the bottom picture once it is done. (This is a great method to color any glass item.)
6. Spray the jar with vinegar and water
Once your piece has cooled down from being in the oven, you are ready to add the mercury effect.
First, spritz the glass with a vinegar/water mixture so that water droplets form. Immediately following your water/vinegar spritz you will spray your mirror spray paint evenly over the whole far.
Tips: You can dab any water beads away from the glass with a paper towel. You can also repeat this process as many times as needed to gain the effect you want.
7. Add your pretty flowers
Now it's time to add the blooms! First, you will need to place some floral foam down on the bottom of the vase to stick the stems into, so the flowers stay in place.
Cut your stems to the appropriate width and arrange the flowers as desired.
The glass looks great even without the flowers... You can apply the same effect to the lid and just use it as a candy or treat jar too! I will probably use it for both, honestly.
DIY mercury glass pumpkin centerpiece
I feel like I need fresh flowers in my house on the daily now... Well, okay, I have always sort of felt that way.
I know these English roses (a great faux peony for when peonies aren't in season, which is unfortunately most of the year) sort of take the cake in this picture, but that mercury beauty is still shining through.
Here is a better close-up of all the crackled mercury goodness in this fall floral arrangement!
What do you think of this DIY mercury glass pumpkin centerpiece? Let me know in the comments below.
DIY fall centerpiece ideas
Comments
Join the conversation
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What temperature did you bake the vase? Thank you.
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Love the idea, turned out really pretty. How many stems of flowers did you use? What was the size of the pumpkin jar?
Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this project?
Could I use paint made for glass (that gets baked on) on the inside to create a finish that will stand up to water? That way, I could also paint using more than one color.
How would the finish look if I started with etched glass (sea glass look)?
So...the food coloring mix goes INSIDE the glass, and the mirror paint goes on the PUTSIDE? Do I have that right?
Thx!