Glass Painting Tips N Tricks #3: Mixing

Mixing different shades of glass colors is not quite an easy task to accomplish. It is perhaps a bit laborious process.

It takes a lot of patience and hardship to achieve proper mixing of different shades of glass colors.


It is very important to note that colors of two different medium or make should never be mixed. If mixed, water based and solvent based colors react with each other forming an opaque substance.

The mixing process can be achieved using :

• Brushes
• If brighter strokes are to be applied on top of a lighter shade, brushes are used. 
• When the lighter shade is dried up, strokes of the darker shade is to be applied on top of the lighter shade to get the required effect.
• It must be noted that glass color strongly damages the bristles in brushes as the color get hardened upon drying.
• Thinner for solvent based colors and water for water based colors are to be used to wash the brushes immediately after use.
• Pointed objects
• If two different shades of colors are to be mixed together then pointed objects such as toothpicks or pins are to be used to amalgamate the juncture.
• The second color must be poured and the mixing process must be initiated before the first color starts drying.
• It must be noted that the edges of the colored area dries up faster than the middle portion. 
• There is no pre-defined method for using this. It takes a lot of practice to incorporate an almost perfect shaded area using this.
• Droppers
• More than shading, droppers are generally used to pour drops of colors, be it for the initial coloring or mixing or producing textured effect, either directly on glass or above a layer of color.