One of my favorite things about creating mixed media art is finding beauty in unexpected places. A while back, I dropped a ceramic bowl and instead of heading straight for the trash, I noticed the broken pieces had cracked into perfect little triangles. Right away, I saw sailboats. I tucked the shards away, knowing they’d eventually become the star of a new project.

Today, I’m pairing those pieces with a simple painted background, a bit of glass, and a layer of resin to make a coastal sailboat scene that’s charming, dimensional, and beginner-friendly.

Step 1: Create Your Background

Begin by dividing your canvas so that the top third will be your sky and the bottom two-thirds your ocean. Paint the top section with white and gently blend in a touch of Bahama Blue to create a soft, airy sky. Keep some of the white peeking through for depth and lightly scrub in clouds with more white.

For the ocean, start at the horizon line with Stormy Blue. If you want a very straight line, you can...

If you’ve ever looked at a pretty vase and thought, “I could make something out of that…”, this project is perfect for you! In this tutorial, we’re cutting up a recycled vase, painting a beachy background, and transforming it into a stunning tropical palm tree scene with glass, resin, seashells, and even coconuts. This piece is 8x16 inches and perfect for adding a touch of coastal charm to your home.

Step 1 – Safety First!

Before you start cutting glass, make sure you’re protecting yourself. Cutting vases with nippers can send tiny shards flying, so gloves and eye protection are a must. A simple pair of cut-resistant gloves from Amazon works great, and any safety glasses will do, even your everyday glasses can help protect your eyes. Place a grid or bin under your work area to catch little shards and chips, since they’ll fly as you nip. Once your vase pieces are cut, run the edges across a honing stone or sanding pad to dull the sharp points. It only takes a few swipes, and it make...

Got a broken bottle sitting around? Don’t toss it... turn it into a stunning mixed media art piece that captures the spirit of the ocean! In this tutorial, we’re creating a coastal-inspired canvas with a reclaimed glass bottle, resin, sea glass, and real shells. It’s the perfect project for beach lovers, shell collectors, and anyone who wants to transform “trash” into treasure.

Step 1: Prep Your Canvas

We’re working on an 8x16 canvas. To start, I prepped the background by painting the top portion with a soft ocean blue, blending in white acrylic paint to mimic the look of distant waves. For the sandy shoreline, I used a color called Oyster Beige and topped it with Coarse Texture Gel to give it a beachy, gritty finish just like real sand.

Let your background dry completely before moving on to the resin layers.

Step 2: Choose and Clean Your Bottle

For this piece, I chose a broken bottle that had a sliver missing but still looked beautiful and safe once honed down. If your bottle...

If you've got a stash of special seashells tucked away from beach vacations and don't know what to do with them, this Beach Book Box is the perfect project for you. In this tutorial, I’ll walk you through how I turned a wooden book box from Hobby Lobby into a gorgeous coastal keepsake, complete with a painted beach scene and real shells encased in resin. It’s perfect for holding your beachcombing treasures or gifting to a fellow sea-lover.

Step 1: Prep Your Wooden Book Box

I picked up this raw wood book box from Hobby Lobby and got started by sanding the inside to remove any splinters or loose wood bits. Then, I gave the entire inside one coat of Bahama Blue acrylic paint using a large flat brush. The raw wood really soaks up the paint, so I plan to do a second coat (and maybe even seal it) before adding resin later. Pro tip: sealing raw wood beforehand helps prevent it from eating up your paint and resin.

Step 2: Paint the Outside Base

For the outside bottom of the box, I blen...

If you’re looking for a fresh and simple way to bring a coastal vibe into your home, you’ll love this charming driftwood and seashell art piece. In this tutorial, I’ll walk you through how to paint a minimal beachy background, layer driftwood, glass, shells, and even a sweet little bird, all finished with resin for a beautiful glossy look.

Step 1: Create the Beachy Background

I started with a simple canvas and chose a few soothing beach-inspired paint colors: Bahama Blue, Sea Breeze, and white.

First, I loaded a 1-inch brush with white paint and brushed it across the bottom third of the canvas to mimic ocean water. I blended a little Sea Breeze and Bahama Blue for extra dimension, working left to right using a flat brush for gentle horizontal strokes. I left “skippies” (small unpainted gaps) here and there for a natural look, and even added a few extra streaks of white on top to simulate seafoam.

Moving up the canvas, I used white as the base for the sky with just a bit of Bahama...

If you’ve got a stash of seashells from a beach vacation and no idea what to do with them, this fun and easy art project is the perfect solution. In this tutorial, I’ll show you how to create a stunning ombre background, layer in crushed glass, and embed your favorite shells in resin to make a beautiful 6x12 coastal canvas that feels like a piece of the ocean right at home.

Step 1: Paint the Ombre Background

To start, I used a 6x12 canvas, but this technique works with any size. I chose three main colors: white, Desert Turquoise, and Midnight Blue for the ombre background. The trick to getting a smooth blend is to work wet-on-wet. I added dots of each color directly onto the canvas (white at the top, turquoise in the middle, blue at the bottom), then blended them together using a flat brush. Starting from the top with white, I worked my way down, gradually blending into the turquoise, and finally into the blue. I used light brush strokes and kept a steady rhythm, blending back and ...

Welcome to a spring-inspired glass art project that’s as sweet as it sounds - Pretty in Pink Flowers! In this tutorial, we’ll walk through how to paint a dreamy background, create flowing stems and leaves, and top it all off with dimensional flowers made from beads, acrylic petals, and resin.

Step 1: Painting the Background

Star by painting the background using a mix of Shoreline Blue and Hauser Light Green acrylic paints, creating a loose sky and grass effect. With a large brush, loosely apply your white paint across the canvas. Then, using the same brush, gently blend in Shoreline Blue by swishing in X-patterns. This gives the sky depth with highs and lows in color, rather than flat blue.

Leaving the bottom inch or two unpainted, switch to your green and use the same X-motion to bring the grass up into the blue. To warm it up, add Poodleskirt Pink to softly blend above the grass for a rosy glow. Dry with a heat tool.

Step 2: Adding Blades of Grass

Next, use a long liner brush ...

There’s something about sunflowers that feels like instant joy - and when you bring one to life using layers of colored glass and shiny resin, it’s pure magic! In this project, I created a sunflower using glass-on-glass techniques, meaning everything is built directly on a piece of clear glass. I'm sharing how to build your flower from cut yellow glass petals, copper glass, mosaic pieces, and a chunky vitrigraph stem.

I started with a piece of found glass that likely came from a light fixture, but you can use any piece you have on hand. A frame from the dollar store works just fine - just pop the glass out, and you’re good to go. First things first: clean the glass thoroughly to remove dust and fingerprints. Then, wearing gloves to avoid smudging the surface, flip it over and tape off the back. Taping isn’t essential, but it does make cleanup easier if resin drips. If you skip this step, no worries - a razor blade will scrape it right off once it cures.

Once the base is ready, prep...

I'm sharing how to make this creative glass art project where we’ll be painting a bright and cheerful lemon-themed piece. I’ll walk you through each step, from tracing the lemons onto your canvas to adding vibrant colors and finishing touches with glass bottle rings. This tutorial is perfect for anyone, whether you're a seasoned artist or just starting out!

Grab your tracer, tape it to your canvas, place graphite paper underneath, and trace your lemons with a stylus. You don't have to trace all of the details, but just the shape of your lemons.

Next, we will paint our background with a blend of Desert Turquoise, Bahama Blue, and white paint, making sure to go around our lemons. Paint the sides of your canvas too, and dry with a heat tool.

Paint your leaf with a basecoat of Hauser Green Light. Dry it with a heat tool and add a second coat of paint. Add shadows with Plantation Pine and highlights with white paint. 

Now, let's work on our lemons! First, I'll apply a base coat of w...

Looking for a fun and creative way to spend an afternoon? Join me as we transform ordinary canvas panels into adorable, personalized happy hour magnets! This project is perfect for glass art crafters of all levels, and the end result is a set of cute magnets that will add a touch of personality to your fridge. These would also make thoughtful gifts or great products to sell as an artist! 

Apply a few coats of white acrylic paint to each panel, allowing them to dry completely between coats. For added protection, finish with a coat of clear coat spray. Dry with a heat tool.

For this tutorial, we have two designs: "Cheers" with martini glasses, and "Happy Hour" with various drink glasses. Sketch our your drink glasses with a permanent pen along with writing the words "Cheers" and "Happy Hour". 

To add a splash of color to your designs, consider painting the back of your sea glass pieces. Use acrylic paints in colors like yellow, green, and pink to mimic different drink flavors (yello...