Thread: Stained Glass Windows

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Here's an easy way to give your windows that Gothic, vampire, castle vibe. Stained glass! After a few days, I won't be able to edit this thread so please check out the album tutorial for any updates and lessons I have learned from this project: Halloween Forum - Terra's Album: Tutorial: Stained Glass Windows



Basically this is a thin, old, white sheet that I painted with very thin acrylic paint. There is a light shining behind it to give it illumination. If you live in a cold climate like I do where you might get some condensation on the windows, you may want to give the painted sheet a plastic backing so the paint wouldn't leech onto the window frames.

You will need:

Several colors of acrylic paint including dark gray
1 1/2 inch angle brush
Small brush (about 3/4 inch)
Old, thin, white sheet
Plastic sheeting
Glue gun
Sharpie
Yard stick
Interesting shape (I used a French curve)





Cut out the sheet to be about 3-4 inches bigger than the window.

Find an interesting shape that you could trace out over and over again. I picked a French curve. Do the perimeter of the window. Be sure to mirror the design with the left and the right side.





For the inside of the window, take your yardstick and trace out a diagonal line. Then repeat the next line 3 inches apart. Continue until you fill in the space. Then do the opposite diagonal line. This will give you those diamond tiles you see in a lot of stained glass.






In a jar or cup, mix in a lot of water with your paint. Then start to randomly paint in the shapes. See how in the first picture the paint bleeds into the next square? That is good, it actually helps give it that authentic stained-glass look. Don't be too careful filling the whole square in. The paint should bleed in and fill the square. You actually want that mottled uneven look. If it leaves white spots after a few minutes, do touch it up though.

Leading: For the leading, mix in less water with dark gray paint and using your smaller brush, paint in the lines to give the illusion of leading.






I was concerned that if my windows sweat from the cold, the paint may leach into the window frames. If you are unconcerned, you can skip this step.

Lay out the plastic sheeting and glue it to the sheet in sections. Be sure to keep the sheet as taut as you can.





Hang in your window and be sure there is good illumination from behind. I have a flood light behind this window.


Here's a video where you can see the window in action 21 seconds in: Click link to watch




Thanks for looking!



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Do you think this would look good with the boarded up window effect on the outside?

The plastic you used. Is that the heavy duty stuff like you would find at the fabric store you can buy by the yard?

Oh, absolutely would this look good with the boarded up windows! That was my intention but I ran out of time. I will do that next year.

The plastic sheeting I used was the plastic drop cloths you get at Home Depot. If I remember correctly it was 2 mil thick. Basically, I found sheeting that was see-through but also thick enough to protect the window frame.

That stained glass works perfect with that shape window you have and looks amazing.

I had a feeling you were using that painters plastic. I use the black 6 mil for walls to enclose my carport. I have had so many ideas how to use this since you posted it. I had an idea to use that heavy duty plastic from a fabric store like people use to make covers. Then have my grandmother sew it to the sheet. That way it is heavy duty and would last longer and maybe store better.

Since the only front window you would be able to see from the front is my daughters room and the window is under her bed I was thinking about taking some firing strips like 1"x2" and make a frame use L brackets to hold the strips to make it seemless. Then take the sheet and wrap it over the strip frame staple it on the back of that strip frame. This would allow it to slide into the window sill perfect and make for easy set up and take down, keep it taunt, and seamless looking. You would just take some of those push pins and after you slide that frame in to hold it to the window frame since it is recessed at the top. That would keep it from sliding back.

Before I would put it up I was thinking about taking some rope light and line on the inside of the strips. This would give it the light it needed since I can put up a flood light in her room and can have this up from the start of Oct. and allow you to be able to live around it. Then if that wasn't enough...LoL. I thought I would put the rope lights on a flicker circuit so it would flicker behind the stain glass. Then have the boarded up window look on the outside of the window. I think that would look pretty dang cool and creepy.

Thanks for the idea and sharing it, I am going to run with it now...LoL This will definitely dress the windows up.

Wow! I love all of your improvements. The framing and the rope lights I think I'll incorporate next year. Along with the boarded up windows. Hmmm, I still have some foam left....Halloween is still 6 days away.

Hey do it, I would love to see it!

After thinking about it some more the frame would work kind of like a canvas. Like how they wrap the canvas around the wooded frame and staple it to the back. It would work like that, then once you get it attached you could paint it that way it would look right instead of painting it then putting it on and cutting some of the design off. Of course you wouldn't be able to sew the plastic on, you would have to wrap it over and staple it like the sheet after you paint it.

I am just wondering if the rope lights would be bright enough to shine through enough to see it. I think it will and the flicker addition would even high light it more if it does. Another advantage is the rope light is cheaper to use then a flood light.

You are my hero. You do some great things and the haunt looks terrific.

Finn

I have a large window of similar shape in the front of my house that I was wanting to do. Another member told me you had done this and it looks great. Since our "haunted house" is in our back yard I plan to do several of the windows and our back door. Last year I only had time to throw some black plastic over the door. I have been researching some patterns from old castles and I think I have found a few I might use with variations. And I was also thinking of doing a frame for the front window because I didnt know how I was going to attach it. I am trying to avoid putting holes in the house.

I got to thinking..my mistake. My uncle is somewhat an artist and he got started by recreating on paint and canvass famous persian rugs. He started by seeing one he liked but couldnt afford and did one up to have on his floor. He covered it in some kind of varnish so it would hold up when it got wet. I wonder if you can do the same to the windows so they would not leach onto the window. Might last longer too.

Originally Posted by Johnson724

I got to thinking..my mistake. My uncle is somewhat an artist and he got started by recreating on paint and canvass famous persian rugs. He started by seeing one he liked but couldnt afford and did one up to have on his floor. He covered it in some kind of varnish so it would hold up when it got wet. I wonder if you can do the same to the windows so they would not leach onto the window. Might last longer too.

I would think. That's a really good idea! Thanks for the kudos by way