While out and about, I am always drawn to the pressed glass I come across. It’s so beautiful, and not many people collect it or use it anymore. I shudder to think of how much of it ends up in the garbage.

In my latest experiment with hot glue, I decided to try my hand at making hot glue impressions from glass. It’s incredibly simple, and the result is gorgeous. Read on to learn how to make this simple project with your handy glue gun!

Supplies you will need:

• AdTech® 0400 High Temp Glue Gun  Click here to buy on Amazon
• AdTech® Multi-Temp Full-Size Glue Sticks (Very important for clarity!)  Click here to buy on Amazon
• Depression glass (or any non-porous surface than can handle heat)
• Hand cream (I like Silicone Glove by Avon for its non-stick properties) or petroleum jelly
• Cotton swabs
• Jewelry findings (earring wires, o-rings, etc.)

IMPORTANT: Anything made with hot glue will start melt above 140 degrees Fahrenheit. Do not leave your finished project in a hot car, near a heater, run it through your clothes dryer, etc. 

Step one: Apply hand cream to the depression glass.

Add a small amount to your finger and rub it into the crevices of the glass. I highly recommend Avon’s Silicone Glove, because it has amazing non-stick properties! If you don’t have access to the cream, you can use petroleum jelly (Vaseline).

Step two: Remove excess.

Use a cotton swab to remove any excess amounts of cream from the crevices. You want the glass coated just slightly, but if you leave globs of cream in the crevices, your design will not be as crisp.

Step three: Apply hot glue over design.

A full-sized glue gun is helpful here because it’s easier to squeeze out more glue quickly and smoothly. As you can see, I propped the dish onto a pencil so it was more level. The quicker you get the glue onto the glass, the better. Let is cure completely – for about 5-10 minutes depending on the amount and thickness of glue – then carefully peel off.

Pro Tip – If you want your glue to cure more clear, you can try carefully dipping it into cool water as it’s curing. (Don’t use ice cold water, because your glass could shatter!) You can see the different in the two samples below. The one on the left was cured normally at room temperature, and the one on the right was cured by gently running cool water on it for about 60 seconds. Remember to use AdTech brand glue. It’s the most transparent and glass-like.

Step  four: Wash them off – then color with alcohol markers, add glitter polish, jewelry findings… whatever you want!

At this point, you can do whatever you’d like to make your own personalized pieces. (Use a leather punch or scrapbooking hole punch to make the holes.) I actually enjoy these plain, but I’ve also had fun adding glitter nail polish, alcohol inks, permanent marker, tinted nail polish and more. Just make sure you wash them well with soap and water beforehand, or give them a good cleaning with some rubbing alcohol. Adding a coat of non-yellowing clear nail polish can make them shiny and more glass-like.

I kept these earrings pretty simple, but feel free to add beads or more tiers to make them fancier! Have fun creating!

Love what you created? We will, too! Tag us in your image on Instagram, @adtech. Use the hashtags #glueasamedium and #thisishotglue so others can see your creation!

The instructions are the same as the flower shirt (click here for that post), except that you want to make a shamrock shape out of hot glue instead.

Read on for instructions on how to make this awesome shirt for yourself, or your favorite leprechaun!

Supplies you will need:

• AdTech Pro 80 Glue Gun —> Get a 20% off Amazon coupon while supplies last! Click here!
• Full-size AdTech Multi-Temp hot glue sticks —> Click here to buy on Amazon!
• Parchment (baking) paper or a large silicone mat
• A green cotton t-shirt (I used a kid-sized.)
• Bleach
• A spray bottle
• An old toothbrush (optional)

Step one: Warm up your glue gun

Load your glue gun with a glue stick and let it warm up. I highly recommend you do this project with a high-quality, full-size glue gun because this project uses a good amount of hot glue, and you want good flow when laying your glue lines. The AdTech Pro 80 warms up really quick and puts out a lot of glue quickly and easily, AND it comes with 3 interchangeable applicator tips! (I love this glue gun! It’s my personal fave.)

Step two: Create your hot glue stencil

Lay down a large sheet of parchment paper. You can freehand your design, or place a drawing or printout of a design under the parchment and trace it with the hot glue. Squeeze the trigger and lay down your glue in a shamrock shape – which is basically 3 or 4 hearts with a stem.

Then, let it cure for a few minutes and peel your hot glue stencil off the paper. Don’t worry about little glue strings that you might see. They don’t really matter in this project.

Step three: Prep the shirt

Lay your t-shirt out and place some cardboard inside to protect the back of the shirt. Place your new glue stencil onto your shirt and press it down flat with your hands.

Step four: Apply the bleach

Wear your eye protection (safety first!) and pour some bleach into your spray bottle. Lightly spray a fine mist over your design… 2-3 pumps. Let the bleach do it’s work for at least 15 minutes before you decide to spray again. If you’d like more of a blotchy look with bigger drops, you can dip an old toothbrush into bleach, and splatter the bleach onto the shirt by bending the bristles with your thumb and letting go.

See photos of this step here, in our bleached flower shirt post.

Step five: Wash the shirt

Once you get the shirt lightened to your satisfaction, remove the stencil. (You can reuse it!) You can then launder the shirt, but either wash it alone or rinse it well before laundering with other clothes so you don’t get remaining bleach on anything.

One of our staff members brought the shirt home and took a photo of it on her daughter. Isn’t she the cutest little leprechaun?

Love what you created? We will, too! Tag us in your image on Instagram, @adtech. Use the hashtags #glueasamedium and #thisishotglue so others can see your creation!