Pull off the top of the glass ornament. I\u00a0stocked up on\u00a0these from Michael's before and right after Christmas, but you can get them year round online at Hobby Lobby<\/a>, and I'm sure lots of other places too.<\/p>\n They\u00a0are always a little dusty inside and out, so before you can paint them, you need to get them clean. I\u2019ve tried all I can think of to avoid it, but rubbing alcohol works best. I hate the smell of rubbing alcohol, with its disturbing similarity to plain vodka. Which I\u2019ve enthusiastically avoided for\u00a0just about\u00a016 years, after a terrible post-prom experiment where I learned that…well, vodka may mix well with many things, but\u00a0it doesn't mix well with EVERYthing. Like, together.\u00a0(hope you're not reading this, mom!) So,\u00a0I can honestly say that I have\u00a0tried various other methods of cleaning these guys, but nothing works as well, not even vinegar. The alcohol leaves it perfectly clear, it dries within a couple of hours or less, and the paint adheres better.<\/p>\n So swish a little bit of rubbing alcohol around in there for a few seconds, dump it out (or into\u00a0another ornament if you are going to\u00a0use more than one),\u00a0and\u00a0that'll do\u00a0the trick. And while you're at it, how about using a little bit of it to take off any month-old nail polish on your nails, especially if you find that your hands are often making their way\u00a0into your blog post photos? Sheesh…<\/p>\n They will need to dry out for a little while, and I like to use those little bathroom sized paper cups to turn them upside down and drain into…they work perfect.<\/p>\n After they have dried completely,\u00a0pour a little acrylic paint inside.<\/p>\n I've used a\u00a0whole\u00a0bunch of different kinds of paints, and I've found that some work\u00a0well, and others don't. \u00a0One of the types that work really well is the Folk Art Enamel Paint<\/a> …I used Calypso Sky for this ornament. These paints are super thick though, so you really have to shake it like crazy to cover the entire surface inside of the ornament. I believe this kind of paint is meant to be baked, but I'm not about to try that with these thin glass ornaments. It works fine with no baking required. :D<\/p>\n You can pour the excess, if there is any, back into the bottle of paint, and then let the ornament dry upside down in a cup again…this time it'll take longer, at least overnight.<\/p>\n Yay, now the best part…\u00a0Use a paintbrush to paint a polka dot with glue on the surface of the ornament. I use Martha Stewart Glittering Glue<\/a>, for no particularly great reason other than the fact that it was right beside the glitter at Michael's. (And I'll tell you what, the Martha Stewart craft section at Michael's is marketing at its finest; I fall for it EVERY time).\u00a0This glue\u00a0does work well though. It also comes with a handy little brush built right into the lid, which I do\u00a0use for\u00a0a lot for other projects, but for this particular ornament, a smaller brush is definitely best.<\/p>\n Sprinkle on some glitter. I did this one polka dot at a time, because I'm slow. When I tried to paint a few glue dots before putting on the glitter, the glue started to dry too fast for me.<\/p>\n I just used a very soft bristled paint brush to sweep away the excess\u00a0glitter around the dots as I went, so I could paint on my next one.<\/p>\n If you mess up as you're painting on the glue, it wipes off really easily with a damp paper towel, and you can just start all over.<\/p>\n After this has a chance to dry for a few minutes, paint a thin layer of an acrylic sealer over the glitter. This will help keep the glitter from chipping off after it dries.<\/p>\n Now the lid can go back on. Be sure to squeeze the wires together as you are sliding it on, so that the edges don't scratch the paint on the inside of the neck of the ornament. For mine, I added a little purple bead using an eyepin, before I put the lid on the ornament, just to dress it up a little.<\/p>\n How about a couple more in pink and purple to match?<\/p>\n![\"Take](\"https:\/\/theornamentgirl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/04\/take-off-glass-ornament-lid.jpg\" "\\"Take")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Clean](\"https:\/\/theornamentgirl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/04\/clean-glass-ornament-with-alcohol.jpg\" "\\"Clean")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"dry](\"https:\/\/theornamentgirl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/04\/dry-the-glass-ornaments.jpg\" "\\"Drain")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"paint](\"https:\/\/theornamentgirl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/04\/pour-paint-inside-glass-ornament.jpg\" "\\"Paint")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Cover](\"https:\/\/theornamentgirl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/04\/shake-paint-inside-glass-ornament.jpg\" "\\"Cover")
<\/p>\n![\"Drain](\"https:\/\/theornamentgirl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/04\/drain-paint-from-glass-ornament.jpg\" "\\"Drain")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Brush](\"https:\/\/theornamentgirl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/04\/add-glue-polka-dot-to-glass-ornament.jpg\" "\\"Brush")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"sprinkle](\"https:\/\/theornamentgirl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/04\/sprinkle-glitter-on-ornament.jpg\" "\\"sprinkle")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"brush](\"https:\/\/theornamentgirl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/04\/brush-off-excess-glitter.jpg\" "\\"brush")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"wipe](\"https:\/\/theornamentgirl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/04\/wipe-off-mistakes-with-damp-towel.jpg\" "\\"wipe")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"paint](\"https:\/\/theornamentgirl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/04\/paint-glitter-with-acrylic-sealer.jpg\" "\\"paint")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"put](\"https:\/\/theornamentgirl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/04\/put-top-back-on-ornament.jpg\" "\\"put")
<\/a><\/p>\n
![\"Glitter](\"https:\/\/theornamentgirl.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/04\/glass-easter-ornaments.jpg\" "\\"Glitter")
<\/a><\/p>\n