Faux Mercury Glass Light Fixture Tutorial

 

This is the "before" picture of the Charming Mid-Century AirBNB kitchen. (Not so charming, is it?)

Notice the pendant light near the window.  Very plain, the lightbulb was so large it actually stuck out of the bottom of the clear glass shade.  I am following a (somewhat strange) rule of decorating for this house -- I don't want to see any light bulbs.  I think we can agree that mid-century was not an Edison Light Bulb era.  

This is looking toward the same wall now.  Slightly funky perforated corrugated metal wall.  I don't have room in the budget to replace the pendant light.  But I decided to make it blend in a little better with the weathered metal of the wall by painting it to look like a faux mercury glass shade.

There are all kinds of instructions for spray painting the inside of clear glass to make it look like mercury glass. I choose a "recipe" that seemed to make the glass look more authentic and aged.  For prep I cleaned all of the built-up kitchen grime off of the glass -- yuck.  

You will need:

-- frosted spray paint

-- paper towel

-- painters tape

-- plastic wrap

-- white vinegar

-- spray bottle

-- mirror spray paint

-- oil rubbed bronze spray paint

#1 -- You are SUPPOSED to spray frosted spraypaint on to a paper towel and smear around the interior.  I THOUGHT I already had frosted spray paint, but it turns out I just has a satin "finishing coat" spraypaint -- so I just used that to save some coin.  Allow to dry.

#2 -- Use a combination of painters tape (for edges) and plastic wrap around the outside to protect the exterior glass.

#3 -- Fill a spray bottle (one that has a spray setting) with straight white vinegar (you don't need much.)  But of course I didn't have that either, so I used White Wine Vinegar.  Spray a very light coat on the inside (light so there aren't actual drips).

#4 -- Spray inside with Mirror Spray Paint (this was $10 and was my total cost for the project) before vinegar dries.  A light coat, you still don't want drips.  Allow to dry.

#5  Repeat steps #3 & #4.  You are shooting for about 80% mirror coverage on the inside. Allow to dry 12-24 hours.

#6 -- Spray very lightly (from a distance) with Oil Rubbed Bronze Spray Paint.  (Yes, crazy -- I did actually have that.) The ORB is what gives the illusion of age.  Allow another 24 hours to dry before using / installing.

The "after" of the light shade.

Back in the usual spot.