For the Back to Basics contest where everyday materials must be used to create something fun, my work of art utilizing stained-glass is what decided to do. Not only can I challenge myself based on having an unfamiliarity with stained-glass, but I can also use that to express an image in a creative way that makes me feel calm and relaxed. It may not be something that helps you find or fix something else, but the image of a whale's tale as it dives under the sea during nighttime is something pleasant and beautiful for adding to a frame.

Supplies

Materials

- Paper

- Glass

- Paint (Blue, Purple, Yellow, Grey, Black, White, Silver)

Tools

- Pencil

- Permanent Marker (Sharpie)

- Q-Tips

- Glue

Step 1: Pencil Trace

A piece of art has to start with an image, so I started searching for the perfect template to use, then placing a piece of paper on top of the screen, and finally tracing the every part of the picture to have a clear image to start out with.

The images showcase the progression when it comes to the paper going from being blank to an exact re-creation of the template.

Step 2: Permanent Marker Trace

A pencil trace won't allow me to properly see clearly when it comes to painting and adding glue. Therefore, a trace now using a black sharpie had to be done before I moved on to the main components of the image.

Step 3: Glue to Glass

Now with a clear trace came the time to add the final trace which is applying glue to the glass. But in order for the glue to be black in order for the boundaries of the picture to blend in with the rest of the paint, the images demonstrate that black paint was dropped inside the glue, shaken, and mixed utilizing a q-tip in order to change its color.

After 30 minutes of the black paint consuming all the glue, now came the point where the final trace was ready to be done on the glass. But to replicate the same image from the paper to the glass, tape was placed underneath the paper to avoid it from moving while having a consistent trace and the paper was placed underneath the glass.

Initially as the glue is being inserted on the glass, its color starts out gray from the mixing of black and white. But as the glue tries off, it's color start morphing to being black which can be seen from the difference of the pictures that show the before and after on how dry the glue gets. When finishing the trace, the glass is placed under a fan in order for it to dry at a faster rate.

Step 4: Painting

The final trace is ready and dry which meant that it was now time to start painting. A wide variety of colors are selected from blue to purple to silver and many more not only to have the appearance of the painting be more dynamic and pleasant for the eyes. But by blending the right colors, it ends taking a painting with a more simple presentation and making it more memorable and identical to how it would be seen in reality.

Step 5: Let It Dry

The stained-glass has now finished been completely painted after 5 hours and the last step to follow is to let it dry on a flat surface. It would be recommended to place the stained-glass aloft something else in order to avoid paint being spilled on the flat surface. Also applying a hair dryer or heater to the stained-glass would make it dry faster. Now the stained-glass is ready to framed and absorbed after a long process of getting it ready.