“Everything’s coming up roses. Well, at least on my glass vases. I love to paint roses, but not great at growing roses.”
“Handmade from the heart ❤️ is always the best.”
~Toni Armenta Andrukaitis
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My friend Miss Pat received some lovely flowers from her daughter for Mother’s Day. When they had all faded away, she was left with a nice clear glass vase. She asked me if I’d kindly paint some red roses on the vase so she could have a special remembrance. She already had a yellow rose and Bluebonnet vase , but no red roses. The vases would match her wine glasses that were a gift painted by yours truly a few years back.
This gave me an incentive to paint. While I was at it and the paint was handy, I decided to paint 10 vases all together. I also needed a birthday gift for Miss Linda today. A good time to build up my gift inventory.
The finished products. There were many steps and many hours involved, but well worth the effort, as you can see. I start out with a bunch of blank clear glass vases and ivy bowls. They get wiped down with alcohol to remove dust and fingerprints. I use FolkArt Enamel Paint that is made for glass. I paint one layer on all the vases, then by the time I get done with the tenth, the first is dry enough to add a second layer. I let the paint dry at least overnight, sometimes a whole day. Then, I bake in a 350° oven (no preheat) for 30 minutes, turn off oven, but don’t open oven door for several hours so they can cool down slowly. This heat sets the paint. (Miss Pat’s vase is the one front and center.)For Miss Linda, I decided a nice ivy bowl with a flickering tea light would make a nice birthday gift. I like unusual shaped glass vessels to paint on. It makes them unique, many of my glass items have been given to me by friends who know that they will be transformed into something special. Aren’t these pretty! You can see why I love to take something ordinary, or a discarded thrift store find, and turn it into a lovely work of art.
Toni Andrukaitis 
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