I love the look of Mercury Glass Christmas Ornaments, especially when the lights reflect off of the aged silver. When decorating my Christmas tree, I like using many ornaments that match, so I decided to make my own. I thought, how hard could it be to replicate a doubled sided glass blown ball with silvering solution in between the layers? Actually, it is not hard at all! With some glass crafting ornaments, Krylon Looking Glass spray paint, vinegar and water solution, and a hairdryer, replicating fancy Mercury Glass couldn’t be simpler.
I found the ornaments at a local craft store. They are just plain glass balls begging for you to decorate them. They were very inexpensive, about $3-4 for a pack of 8, so I bought many boxes for future projects.
Start by removing the ornament tops. With little effort, they pop right out. I gave the bright silver ornament hooks a quick brush with black craft paint to dull them down. Set these guys aside to dry while you work on the Mercury Glass.
Take your paint and give a couple of quick sprays into the ball and roll the paint around.
When you get sheer coverage, use a hairdryer set on medium heat and slow speed to dry the paint. I found blowdrying the outside of the ball, along with the inside, was the best result. You are looking just to set the paint, not thoroughly dry, so 15-30 seconds is perfect.
Next, spray a mixture of half water and half vinegar into the ball. Take a folded paper towel and close the opening of the ball. Giving a couple of shakes causes the water-vinegar solution to spread throughout the ball evenly. Use your hairdryer once again to start to dry the residual moisture.
Give another 2-3 sprays of the paint and twirl the ball to coat, then after a couple of seconds with the hairdryer, and you are finished.
I found that a wire rack held the balls perfectly while they dried. Just lay a folded brown bag or paper towels underneath to collect any residue.
As the spray paint completely dries, the dull silver spray turns into a mirrored finish.
The look of a single coat might be perfect for you, and when they are dry inside, reattach the topper and use them to decorate as you like. I prefer two coats, so they are more opaque. The process goes fast. I have it down to about 1 minute per ornament, and by the time the last ball has the first coat, you can start on the second round. You can do about a dozen ornaments in half an hour!
These Mercury Glass ornaments look so pretty on the tree, however , don’t limit to just that. Fill a large bowl of them for a simple centerpiece, or tuck them into garland over your mantle.
Storing is super easy. Since all the paint is inside, you don’t have to worry about anything chipping from year to year. Simply store them back into their original boxes to keep them safe.
Leave a Reply