How to Make Crushed Glass for Paint Pouring, Geodes, and Crafts

If you've ever purchased some crushed glass for your paint pouring or resin projects, you'll know how expensive they can be! So today I am going to show you how to make crushed glass at home for less money.

I will also teach you how to color your crushed glass any color you want or need!!!

However, if you don't mind the price and would rather just purchase it, click here to see some options.

Making Decorative Crushed Glass

So how do you make decorative crushed glass? Well, all you need to do is get some really cheap glass stones and smash them up yourself to make decorative crushed glass.

Yes, that is what I did!

It is super easy and affordable. Let me tell you step-by-step how to do it. 

How Do You Crush Glass Stones?

First, you will need to purchase some glass stones or gems in whatever color you want. They are sometimes called vase fillers as well.

Here are a few option that you can purchase on Amazon if you can't find any locally.

Next, you will smash them up. You can smash them up if you hit them pretty hard on a very solid and hard surface like concrete, however, I prefer to crack the stones with some heat and ice water before smashing them up. I think it makes them easier to crack!

If you want to see exactly how I do it, watch the video down below!

If you want to try smashing them up with a hammer on a concrete surface then go ahead, however, this is how I do it:

  1. I heat up the glass stones inside a pot on high heat for about 5-10 minutes. Make sure you put a lid in case any stones explode with the heat.
  2. In the mean time, add some water and ice to a bowl. 
  3. Once the glass stones are really hot, drop them into the bowl with ice water. The glass stones will break with this temperature change.
  4. Now drain the water.
  5. Dry your glass stones.
  6. Put a piece of cloth on a solid surface like a concrete floor and put your glass stones on the cloth. Make sure that you get a piece of cloth that you don't plan on using later cause it will end up all banged up. 
  7. Wrap your cloth over the glass stones to cover them up so they don't end up flying everywhere when you smash them.
  8. Put on some protective eyewear.
  9. Now hit them hard with a hammer or mallet until you crush them to the desired size.

Is Crushed Glass Sharp?

Yes, crushed glass is sharp. So be careful when handling the broken pieces of glass. Or make sure you don't touch the broken glass with bare hands.

How Do You Glue Crushed Glass?

I find that the easiest way for me is to just glue my crushed glass onto my canvas or craft surface with a clear liquid varnish. I apply a clear coat of liquid varnish and then place the crushed glass pieces on top.

You can also use resin or a clear craft adhesive.

I have even glued my crushed glass onto my canvas by just placing the broken glass on canvas surface while the acrylic paint is still wet.

How to Apply Crushed Glass

Like I said, I first add a layer of varnish onto my painting surface and then just sprinkle the pieces of crushed glass onto my painting or place a few pieces at a time with my hand wherever I need them. 

You can then do a second layer of varnish once that first layer of varnish has dried to secure the pieces even more.

What Can I Do With Crushed Glass?

There is an infinity of projects you can do. Just a few examples are geodes, paintings, vases, land or seascapes, etc. Youtube is full of crafts that use crushed glass. 

I will also be doing some projects with crushed glass so make sure you take a look around my blog.

How to Color Crushed Glass

Now that you know how to make crushed glass, let's take a look at how to color your crushed glass any color you want.

You see, most of the times you will be able to find the exact color of gems that you are looking for, however, what do you do when you can't find an exact shade? 

Here is where this next video comes in. Take a look at my solution!

Premade Crushed Glass Options

Here are a few options for those of you who don't want to go through the hassle of making their own crushed glass at home and don't mind paying for it.

The first few options I included are glass pieces, however, I also decided to include an option of rocks and crushed pebbles at the end since they are also a great embellishment for acrylic pours or geodes.

Let me know in the comments below what option you will be using on your next project!

Want to Learn How to Create Geode Artwork?

Crushed glass is great to use to embellish geode artwork. Checkout these two amazing courses below if you want to learn how to make stunning geodes!

In this first course I will teach you how to create jaw-dropping geodes without using any resin. 

How to Create Jaw-Dropping Sparkling Geodes WITHOUT Resin!

In this second course, the queen of resin geodes, Agnes Rup, will teach you how to create geode wall art along with some functional pieces using resin.

Master the Art of Resin Geodes!

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