A Pretty Picture

I have always loved stained glass windows. In November, I discovered a video explaining how to make my own fake stained glass and thus embarked on the adventure of trying it myself.

Step 1: Using a silver sharpie, draw the desired design on 3mm black EVA foam.

Step 2: Cut out the design (following the edge lines of the marker) using an exact-o knife.

Step 3: Glue the cutout down onto a clear transparent plastic sheet using clear glue.

Step 4: Thoroughly cover the foam in clear glue and allow the glue to dry. (Ensure all the edges are pressed down - this will help avoid color leaking from space to space under the foam). I found it took 48 hrs to completely dry.

Step 5: Mix clear glue with food coloring to get the desired colors, and fill in each space. (I found darker colors read better in the final project). Also the glue will flatten as it drys, so while I added color to fill the space (being careful not to overfill so the colors don't mix), it will not fill the space once dry. Again, dry time was around 48 hrs (to be safe).

If you have a silicone resin mold:

Step 6: pry the design off the plastic sheet and cut off any remaining glue around the edges you don't want.

Step 7: Pour UV resin into the mold to cover the bottom of the mold. Place the design in the mold. Pour more UV resin to cover the top of the design. Allow 48 -72 hrs to dry.

Step 8: Remove from mold, place in your window, and enjoy!

If you don't have a mold

Step 6: Pour UV resin over the design to fill in all the spaces. Allow 48-72 hrs to dry.

Step 7: Pry design off of plastic. Cut the edges how you want them (removing any excess glue and resin. I used an exact-o knife to cut it away, but wire cutters style tools also work).

Step 8: Brush UV resin on the back side of the design and around the edges. Allow 48-72 hrs to dry.

Step 9: Place in window and enjoy!

Total cost for supplies varied, but I found the foam at Hobby Lobby for $5, plastic sheets at Hobby Lobby for $3, glue at Walmart for $7, Resin on Amazon for $10. I got a mold on Amazon for $8 after finishing several without a mold.

With my supplies, I made around 20 designs in various sizes. All in all, a wonderful adventure. Looking forward to making more!