Glitter wine glasses make perfect gifts for birthdays, weddings, and other fancy occasions.
They’re usually personalized with a decal or motif and have different patterns which are achieved with tape.
Buying glitter wine glasses from individual sellers can be pricey, especially if you need a lot of them.
To combat these hefty price tags, here’s a helpful guide on how to make your own glitter wine glasses.
What you’ll need
While making your own glitter wine glasses isn’t difficult, you will need to get your hands on specific supplies before crafting.
- Wine glasses
- ModPodge, or similar
- Tape (ideally masking tape/painter’s tape)
- Cardboard
- Paper plate
- Glitter
- Isopropyl alcohol
- Large paintbrush
- Scissors
- Cotton balls
Step 1
Make a plan. Never dive in headfirst into a new craft and risk wasting your supplies.
Also, cleaning craft glue off of glass is no walk in the park. It’s a good idea to sketch what you want the wine glasses to look like.
You don’t have to be an artist, this can be a rough sketch. It’s just important to have a reference to your end-goal. Try experimenting with color and work out what looks good and what doesn’t.
Here are some popular designs people often choose when making glitter wine glasses:
- Only applying glitter to certain parts of the wine glass e.g. just the stem or just the base.
- Use glitter to write an initial or a number.
- Create a glitter stripe effect using tape.
- Apply glitter to the entire glass (although make sure to leave 1-inch blank at the rim of the glass).
- Blend two or more colors to create an ombre effect with glitter.
Step 2
Prepare your workstation. Always craft on a flat table and protect it with newspapers as working with glue can get messy.
Place your piece of cardboard on the table, as this will come in handy later to collect excess glitter and make it easy to put back into the container.
Step 3
Clean the glasses with isopropyl alcohol. The glass needs to be extremely clean for the glitter to stick to it.
Any grease or soap residue risks ruining the outcome. Dip some cotton balls in the alcohol and use them to wipe the glass.
Leave upside down for a few minutes to dry.
Step 4
Next, you’ll need to cut a strip of tape and place it onto your wine glass.
The amount of tape you need and what size it needs to be will depend on what which design from Step 1 you’re hoping to create.
Here’s how you should apply your tape accordingly:
- If you only want glitter on the base of your wine glass, tape off the stem of the glass and leave the base exposed.
- If you only want glitter on the stem of your wine glass, tape off the base and the bottom of the bowl of the glass.
- If you want to create an initial or number using glitter, you can apply the glue freehand or use a stencil to help.
- For a glitter stripe effect, tape around the bowl of the wine glass a few times using individual strips of tape. Be sure to leave spaces in between to get that striped effect.
- If you want to create an ombre effect on your glitter glass, just tape off the areas where you don’t want glitter.
Step 5
Pour a generous amount of ModPodge onto the paper plate. Using your large paintbrush, start painting the areas of your wine glass that you left exposed, starting from bottom to top.
Be sure to apply a thick enough layer of ModPodge so that there are no gaps and the glitter will definitely stick.
If you’re having any trouble with streaky glue, try using a foam brush instead as they can sometimes distribute it a little better.
Step 6
Working above the cardboard, hold your wine glass with your fingers only on the taped areas and begin pouring glitter over it.
Continue to do so until the entire wine glass is evenly covered with glitter.
After this, use the cardboard to return any excess glitter to the container by bending it to create a funnel. If you’re wanting to use more than one color of glitter, you’ll have to use one color at a time and make sure the previous color has dried completely first.
If it is still wet, you risk mixing the colors.
Step 7
Leave the wine glasses to dry.
Although some glass glues and ModPodge varieties state that the glue dries in just a couple of hours, we recommend leaving them to dry overnight instead.
The drier the glue, the easier it’s going to be to remove the tape seamlessly.
Step 8
Carefully and slowly remove the tape.
Once peeled, you should notice a clean line between where the tape was applied and where the glitter has been glued.
Discard the tape after removal.
Step 9
Next, you’re going to need to seal the glitter.
This can be done via a few methods:
- You can use more Modpodge or similar glue to seal the glitter on your wine glasses. Simply use the same paintbrush to add another generous layer of the glue and leave to dry for at least an hour
- Use a food-safe epoxy resin. This method is fiddly as epoxy is strong stuff. But if you’re confident with resin, this style of sealing guarantees the best protection.
- Use a spray sealant. There are many options in craft or DIY shops to choose from. Be sure to only use spray sealants outdoors. Protect any exposed ground or surfaces with newspaper, place your wine glass on it and spray the glittery areas of your wine glass. Allow drying for 1-2 hours.
Step 10
To ensure maximum longevity for your wine glass, be sure to only use them after they have completely dry, for best results leave overnight.
It’s important to remember that these should be hand-washed only and are not safe for dishwasher use. Use the soft side of the sponge and take extra care when cleaning the parts with glitter.
It’s a good idea to dry your glitter wine glasses immediately after washing as any moisture building can lead to damage and glitter chipping.