Hey guys! I love mercury glass ornaments, but I don’t love the price tag on the real ones! That’s when I decided to try making some faux ones so I could cover my tree with them without breaking the bank!
DIY Mercury Glass Christmas Ornaments
Here’s what you need for this project:
- Darice 12-Piece Heavy Duty Glass Balls Clear Glass, 70mm (where to buy)
- Rust-Oleum Specialty Mirror Effect Spray (where to buy)
- Rust-Oleum 210849 Hammered Metal Finish Spray in Copper (where to buy)
- Vinegar
- Rubber gloves
- Hair dryer
This post contains Amazon affiliate links for your convenience to help you find the supplies I used to make this project. I make a small commission if you order through my links, but it doesn’t cost you anything more! If you do, thank you!
Remove the metal tops from the ornaments and add 4-5 drops of vinegar.
In a well ventilated area, spray one quick spurt of the copper spray followed by 4-5 quick spurts of the mirror spray INSIDE the ornament. I added the copper spray because I think it gives the paint a more vintage look.
Blow dry the paint through the hole on the top of the ornament while rolling the ornament around in your hand to spread the paint around the inside of the ornament. It should take a minute or so before the paint is dry.
Allow the ornaments to air dry overnight to insure that they are completely dry inside.
Re-attach the metal top to the ornaments, hang them up and enjoy! 🙂
I hope you enjoyed my DIY Mercury Glass Christmas Ornaments tutorial! If you have any questions or comments, please leave them in the comments section below!
GORGEOUS
Thanks so much Lee Ann! 🙂
I loved the Christmas ornaments. I will try this.
These are awesome. I am definitely going to try this.
Thanks so much Nan! 🙂
these are beautiful and yet look quite easy to pull off!
Yes they are very easy to make! 🙂 Thanks so much Janet!
These look so elegant! I have to try this for my tree!
Thanks so much! 🙂
This is a terrific idea. I think I have both spray paints and some glass balls. I am pinning his.
Thanks so much Barbara! 🙂
The ornaments are beautiful! I have never known how to make these kind. I never imagined you could make them at home! You are so creative to make these.
Thanks so much Natalie! 🙂
The mirror effect spray is silver, correct? Just want to make sure I get the right color.
Yes the Mirror effect spray is silver!
Hi Sandie! Yes, it is silver. 🙂
Love this idea. The way you mixed the paint does look so realistic. Nice job! Thanks for sharing at our link party!
You’re very welcome Stephanie – thank you for hosting!
Do you empty out the vinegar before using the spray paint?
Hi Deanne! No – the vinegar mixing with the paint is what gives the ornament the mercury glass effect.
Michelle,
This comes at a perfect time for another purpose. I have a one gallon apple juice jar which I am turning into a lamp. I experimented with several combinations on practice bottles and am getting close to a combination I like. The vinegar definitely helps the antique effect. Thanks for posting this.
Tom
You’re welcome Tom! I’m happy this helped you out with your lamp project – I bet the finished piece will look fabulous! 🙂
I did this with a few glass ornaments a couple of years ago. I found it a pain in the you-know-what, but they were cool. Yours look much better.
Thank you Carole! 🙂
Hello, these are absolutely stunning! I am planning NOW for my theme Christmas tree but wanted to know if you do not have a hair dryer (cause I do not use one) after the swirling step can you place them in a plastic cup with the opening faced down to let dry naturally?
Hi Leticia! 🙂 That will work too, but try to swirl the paint around inside the ornament every once in a while as they’re drying to make sure the paint doesn’t puddle on the bottom.
Thank you so much for the top Michelle! I can not wait to try this out!
You’re very welcome Leticia! 🙂
I tried these using half vinegar/half water in a fine mist spray bottle, then spraying the mirror-finish paint (I used Krylon Looking Glass). I twirled the ornament while aiming the hairdryer on the outside, then inside. For color I added several drops of alcohol inks in gold, red, green, amethyst, or deep blue. I got great results but found one or two quick sprays of the Krylon enough; more covered too much of the inside and left no spaces for the color to show. I got equally good results with the shatterproof plastic ornaments, no recognizable difference from the glass ones I did.
Good to know plastic ornaments can be used as well.
I love the look of Mercury glass, so I love this DIY. I will be trying this. Thank you.
I have mercury glass paint. Would it work the same?n
Hi Nellie! I don’t know since I never tried it myself, but I think it would work? It might even work better! 🙂 If you try it, let me know how it turns out!
Just saw thisarticle. these ornaments are really beautiful..
Thank you! 🙂
Hi there,
Thee are beautiful and on my list. Unfortunately I will not get to them this year. Can I ask why you mention the hammered copper in the materials list. Did you try this with copper? How did it turn out? I have seen these made and have always wondered what it might look like with other colors and with metal paints.
I want to make these the way you do, with the paint on the inside. There is no doubt the color will last longer this way. All the other methods I have seen put the paint on the outside and I have only seen one method where it made sense to do so.
So I will be doing it your way and I thank you so much for having figured out how to do it so they come out correctly. Now I do not have to figure it out. Yay! Thank you so much
Happy Holidays to you and yours
Marietta
Hi Marietta! I have not tried it with exclusively the hammered copper paint or any other metal paints besides the silver, but I’m sure they’d look awesome! If you try it in any other colors let me know how they turned out. I’m happy you liked this tutorial! 🙂 Happy Holidays!
I have a BUNCH of the scent ‘bulbs’ from Bath & Body Works wall plug-ins. They are basically shaped like an old fashioned Christmas bulb (with a pointed bottom and a wider top where the wick fits in). Do you think, if I pull out the wick and the parts that hold the wick into the glass ‘bulb’ that these might work OK using your technique? The interior volume is much smaller than the clear glass ornaments you used, but otherwise, maybe it would work?
Thank you for the beautiful tutorial . I have seen these ornaments at Rogers Gardens in Newport Beach California where I live for $25.00 each. I’m thrilled to be able to make some as gifts this year. ( they’ll never know)😊
You’re very welcome Mary! I’m happy you found this project useful!
Can you use any color with the silver
Hi Tamera! Yes, you can use any color you like!
I’m behind the 8 ball as I just found this DIY project and fell in love! I bought all the recommended ‘ingredients’ and set out to make them this morning. Mine did not turn out nearly as nice as yours. some have paint runs and many of them did not lock in the colors near the stem. Can you make any suggestions? Can I add more color to these or is it too late? Help please! I love your creativity!
Jennifer
Hi Jennifer! Yes you can add more paint if the paint inside is already dry. If not, use the paint that is still inside and increase the drying time. It sounds like you might have added too much paint as first and/or you didn’t dry them long enough. Don’t be afraid to pour some paint out once you get the effect you want inside. I hope this helps!