Enter your toolkit code
This page is for customers who've bought a marryful stained glass template. Your code is in the instructions PDF that came with your download.
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Your template's downloaded and you're all set to make your sign. Everything you need is right here: the tool to print your tracing guide at home, my colour-mixing cheat sheet, the exact supplies I'd reach for with links, and answers to the questions that come up while you're painting. Work through it at your own pace, and bookmark it so you can come back.
How to make your sign, step by step
Here's the whole thing, start to finish. None of it is hard. It just likes a bit of patience.
Open and edit your template in Canva
These are Canva templates. Your download PDF has a link that opens the design in Canva, which is free and runs in your browser. Edit your names, date and wording, then download it as PDF Print for the cleanest lines. New to Canva? My step-by-step Canva guide walks you through opening the link and saving your own copy.
Print your tracing guide at 100% scale
You can tile the guide across home-printed sheets with the tool below, or take the PDF to a print shop if you'd rather have it on one big sheet. Either way, print at 100% scale with no resizing, so the design stays true to size.
Tile your tracing template at home
Upload your JPG or PDF template, choose the finished sign size, and download a tiled PDF with a small overlap for lining up the sheets.
Tape it behind your acrylic or glass
Fix the printout behind a clear acrylic sheet (cut to your sign size) or a clear glass frame so nothing shifts while you trace. Acrylic is lighter, easier to carry, and what most people use. If you're painting on the back, use the mirrored print from the tool above.
Trace the leading, then let it dry fully
Trace the lines with a black acrylic pen or glass liner. Then stop, and let the leading dry completely before you add any colour. This part really matters: if the black is still soft, the colours bleed into it and your crisp outlines go muddy. An acrylic pen dries in a few minutes; liquid leading is safest left for a few hours, or overnight if you can.
Fill in the colour
Once the leading is properly dry, fill each section with glass paint in your colours. Work in sections and let each layer dry before the next. That's what builds the depth that makes it look like real stained glass. Stuck on colours? The cheat sheet below has my mixing shortcuts.
Let it cure, then display
Give the finished sign time to cure before you stand it up. Glass paint keeps drying and clearing for a day or several after it feels touch-dry, so check the instructions on your paint. When it's ready, set it on an easel or in a frame, ideally near natural light or candles for the full glow.
Give it more than one sitting. The painting is about 3 to 5 hours for a welcome sign, but that isn't the whole timeline. The leading needs to dry before you colour, the colours need to dry between layers, and the finished sign needs a day or more to cure before it's ready to display. Table numbers are quicker, around 30 to 45 minutes of painting each. Start a couple of weeks ahead, not the night before.
The colour-mixing cheat sheet
Get any shade without buying every bottle
You don't need a separate bottle for every colour. Most shades come from mixing a few, and glass paint has one rule that catches people out: to make a colour lighter, you add clear, not white. White turns it solid and kills the glow.
The basic mixes:
To lighten a colour or make it more see-through, add clear. Gallery Glass makes a clear you can mix into anything, or use it on its own for glass-like panels. To go deeper or richer, add a small drop of black or a darker shade, a little at a time so you can stop when it's right.
For texture and depth, let the first layer dry, then add a second where you want it stronger, or stipple lightly with the brush for a bit of movement. Leaving some sections thinner gives a soft, watercolour feel.
Test your mix on a scrap of acrylic or paper first. The colour shifts once it dries and the light comes through, so it's worth a quick check before it goes on the sign.
What I'd use to make it
Here are the exact supplies I'd reach for. You don't need all of it. A sheet of acrylic, a black pen and some glass paint is enough to start.
A few of these are Amazon affiliate links. If you buy through them, marryful may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. I only link things I'd use myself.
The colour
Gallery Glass paint
This is the paint I see recommended most, and it comes in loads of colours. You can also mix shades to make your own.
Another paint option
Pebeo Vitrea glass paint
Another glass paint I like. The colours are strong and translucent, so it works well on its own or alongside Gallery Glass.
For see-through parts
Clear Gallery Glass
The clear is worth having. Mix it into any colour to lighten it or make it more see-through, or use it on its own for glass-like panels.
The leading
Black acrylic paint pen
I'd use an acrylic pen for the black outlines. It's easier to control and gives you smooth, even lines.
For crisp lines
Precision tip bottle
Prefer Gallery Glass for the outlines? Pour it into a precision tip bottle for cleaner lines, corners and small details.
For the detail
Paintbrushes in different sizes
Small brushes help with edges and tiny spots. Bigger ones are good for blending colours and soft gradients.
The surface — welcome sign
Clear acrylic sheet
For a bigger sign I prefer 6 mm acrylic, it feels sturdier. Plenty of people use 3 mm too, so go with what suits your project. Match the sheet to your sign size, and remember the bigger the sign, the thicker it should be.
The surface — table numbers
Blank acrylic table number signs
These work well for smaller table numbers, in arched or rectangular shapes. A stand is often included, and 3 mm is thick enough at this size. Look for 5×7" or 4×6" to match my templates.
Questions that come up while you're making it
Do I paint on the front or the back?
Either works. The front is simplest: trace and paint straight onto the side facing you. The back looks glossier and more like real glass, and it keeps the paint protected from scratches, but you have to flip the design first or your names read backwards. There's a mirror option in the tool above that does the flipping for you.
Why does my leading have to be dry before I add colour?
If the black is still soft, the colours seep into it and the outlines lose their sharpness. Let the leading dry all the way through first. An acrylic pen only needs a few minutes; liquid leading is safest left a few hours or overnight.
What paint and supplies do I need?
For the leading: a black paint pen or a glass liner. For the panels: glass paint like Gallery Glass or Pebeo Vitrea, which give the truest translucency. Acrylic paint mixed with a clear medium also works and is a bit more forgiving for first-timers. Paint it on a clear acrylic sheet cut to size, or a clear glass frame. My full supply list with links is just above.
Can I print at home, or do I need a print shop?
You can print at home, that's what the tiling tool above is for. It splits your design across regular paper with a small overlap so you can tape it back together behind your acrylic. A print shop is only worth it if you'd rather have the design on one big sheet. Either way, print at 100% scale with no resizing.
My template shape looks a little different from the sign size. Is that a problem?
No. If the file's proportions don't quite match the size you pick, the tool keeps your whole design and adds a little white space rather than stretching it. You'll see a note in the tool when that happens, and your design never gets distorted.
How long does the whole thing take?
The painting is roughly 3 to 5 hours for a welcome sign, spread over an evening or two so the layers can dry. On top of that, leave time for the leading to dry before you colour, and a day or more for the finished sign to cure before you display it. Table numbers are quicker, about 30 to 45 minutes of painting each.
Complete your set
The look is best when it runs through the whole day. Your welcome sign has matching table numbers in the same designs — here are a few, and there are more in the collection.
See the whole collection
New motifs and matching pieces get added all the time. If there's a flower or palette you'd love and don't see yet, message me. I design based on what customers ask for.
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