Paint Mason Jars with Vitrea 160 Glass Paint

After creating painted mason jar lights out of solar path lights, I decided to paint my mason jars with colored glass paint to really add some whimsy to them. Read on to see how I used this awesome product by Peveo called Vitrea 160 Glass Paint.

These painted mason jar lights are solar powered, cheap, indestructible, fade-proof, dishwasher safe and an amazingly colorful way to light up a pathway or dark corner of your garden. Let’s learn how to make them!

Paint Mason Jars at night with solar lights

Paint Mason Jars: Peveo Vitrea 160 Glass Paint

I used Peveo Vitrea 160 Glass Paint. It’s a water based paint that makes the glass translucent and looks like watercolor paint. Baking it makes the color set and brings out a bit more depth to it. The great thing about this paint set is that you can mix your own colors — mix the red and yellow to make an orange, or turquoise and red to make a purple. I love, love, love the WHITE. It’s soooo cool.

Paint Mason Jars with Glass Paint - Mix Your Color with Paint Thinner — Mix your color with Peveo Vitrea 160 paint thinner to get the translucent effect your want

Another great feature of the Peveo Vitrea 160 glass paint is the paint thinner. When you paint mason jars, this thinner lets you actually add more to make the paint more translucent if you’d like. Add only a little bit to keep the paint really really vibrant. So your colors can be very vibrant or more clear and watery depending on your preference. There’s a lot of flexibility to it.

Special bonus tip:

Since I’ve posted this tutorial about the glass paint they’ve come out with an awesome new product: Stained glass spray paint. I’ve personally tried it and within a few seconds you can get an amazing look! Try the orange! I think the Peveo glass paint is really fun too… and you can make all sorts of patterns and designs. But… if you are looking for an easier way and a solid color this will do the trick!

Paint Mason Jars

After mixing the paint, I put the mason jars face down on a baking sheet covered in wax paper and used a paint brush to brush the paint on the outside of the jar. After baking and setting the paint there is a bit of streaking from the brush strokes. I don’t think there is a way to avoid this when you paint mason jars with this product… I honestly don’t mind it (you can check out the photo at the bottom of the post to see it). If you are worried about this or are a perfectionist and do not want the streaks and don’t plan to drink out of the glasses, I’d recommend applying the paint to the inside of the jars and swishing it around with the thinner so that you don’t get the brush strokes. After you are satisfied with the coverage you can bake them just the same and it will set up just the same.

Setting the Paint by Baking in the Oven

Paint Mason Jars with Glass Paint - Bake in Oven at 325 degrees — Bake in the oven at 325 degrees for about 40 minutes to set the paint.

After you paint mason jars, bake them at 325 degrees F for 40 minutes. Unlike a lot of other techniques out there, I painted the OUTSIDE of the jars. This allows you to actually drink out of the jars (or wine glasses or drinking glasses). Again, if you are going to mind the streaks, swish the paint on the inside, but then you can’t drink out of these (see my instructions above). This paint is also dishwasher safe. I’ve had the mason jars outside for 2 months how with the solar lighting in them and they have not faded in the sun or weather at all.

The end result:

Paint Mason Jars with Glass Paint - Finished in Green — Painted mason jar lights during the day.

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Amy Fedele

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Amy is the founder of Pretty Purple Door and has been a garden designer since 2014 and graphic designer since 2005. She helps home gardeners design their own beautiful landscapes that are colorful in all four seasons, show off your personality and suit your lifestyle. Amy's work has been featured in publications like The Spruce, Family Handyman, Buzzfeed, Country Living Magazine and more. Read full bio.