This Old-School Glass Trend Is Making A Comeback. Get The Look With This DIY

Amber glass has a dark appearance that complements rustic atmospheres, which makes it a great decoration for a country home or a back porch. With these cozy aesthetics becoming popular, amber glass is making a resurgence. It was originally used as a protective container for medications, oils, and perfumes. The dark color comes from manganese dioxide, a naturally occurring mineral that's added in during the glass-making process. But you don't need authentic amber glass for this trend. You can simply apply your own color mixture to give any clear glass the same appearance. This is one of many ways to give glass vases a stunning makeover and works well for any decorative piece, including vases, ash trays, and jars.

This project is not only very quick, but it is also an extremely affordable way to DIY a gorgeous decor piece out of repurposed glass. You should be able to get all the supplies for less than $15. You'll need a container of Mod Podge, which is a water-based glue that doubles as sealer, as well as red, green, and yellow food coloring to give the mixture its amber tint. You'll also need a paintbrush, a paper bowl, and some paper towels. At least for your first try, don't use any glassware that you're worried about ruining. 

Start by putting down some paper towels or newspaper to avoid staining your table. You might even want to work on this project outside, where you won't have to worry about a spill. Pour ¼ cup of the Mod Podge into your paper bowl and add a drop each of yellow, red, and green coloring. You can use your brush to stir everything together. The color of the mixture when it's wet won't be exactly the same as when it's dry, but it should be close. So, while the mixture is wet, you can adjust the pigment by adding more coloring.

The mixture should be fine to sit for a while. So if you haven't cleaned and dried your glassware, this is a good opportunity to do so. Once you're happy with your mixture, use the paintbrush to spread it onto your glassware. At first, the mixture will be dark and opaque, but once it dries, it will become a translucent shade of amber. Give the mixture 24 hours to dry. 

To further style the vase, put a candle inside your amber glass and glue pressed flowers to them to create cottage core lanterns. Try this trick with glass figurines, vases, bowls, and jars. If you liked this project, you can also turn your glassware different hues and brighter colors with various food coloring.