These beautiful glittery glass magnets would be a perfect accessory on any magnetic surface that needs a little sparkle. They can be made using just about any type of glitter, so they can be customized in any way you like.
For awhile now, I’ve wanted to make some kind of glass magnet tutorial. Years ago, I would make magnets using glass cabochons and paper. That was a fun project as well, and I may even make a tutorial on that in the future. But for now, I wanted to try something new.
So because I have an abundant collection of glitters, I decided to craft with those. In addition to glass cabochons, I also had some smaller floral gems left over from my Cracked Glass Marble tutorial. So I was able to experiment using both of them.
These glittery glass magnets turned out so incredibly cute! I started off with just some fine glitter, but then I thought, “I wonder if other types of glitter would look good too?” And before I knew it I was trying out every different type of glitter I had until it suddenly became a mini collection.
I liked some glitters better than others. And I’ll talk more about that in the tutorial. But overall pretty much any kind of glitter will work really well. So thankfully you don’t need to worry about getting a specific type.
And with that, let’s get on with the tutorial!
What You Need to Make Glittery Glass Magnets
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Start by grabbing your materials. Here’s what you will need:
Glass Gems (Cabochons or Floral Gems)
E6000 (or similar glue)
Though I’ve listed E6000 in my supply list, in my picture I have Aleene’s the ultimate pictured. This is the glue I ultimately ended up using because I had run out of E6000 and haven’t gotten around to buying more.
The Aleene’s glue works just fine and I haven’t had any noticeable issues. I still prefer E6000 for making magnets, though. Mostly because E6000 is a bit thicker and I find it’s easier to work with overall. But any sort of multipurpose glue should work fine for these.
What Type of Glass Gems to Use
I’ve used both the little glass gems that are meant for floral vase filler as well as the round glass cabochons that are usually used for jewelry.
The little gems are easier to find (I got mine from the dollar store). They are also usually less expensive overall depending on where you get them.
However, I’m my experience the quality is very hit or miss. In every bag there tends to be quite a few that are cracked or have weird imperfections in the gems.
The glass cabochons, on the other hand, can usually only be bought online. But the quality is going to be much higher.
These cabochons will always be uniform in size and it’s far less likely to get one with imperfections. I also think the glitter shows up better under these types of gems.
Alternate Adhesives
If you don’t want to use Mod Podge, there are a few other alternatives. I also tried making a few magnets using a clear craft varnish as well as a clear nail polish.
Mod Podge dries clear, but I wanted to see if there would be any difference with a completely clear coating.
They are both easy to brush on and do a decent job of adhering the glitter to the gem. However, when everything has dried there is a visible layer over the glitter that cuts down on the sparkles a bit.
Here they are side by side. Mod Podge is on the left, varnish in the middle and clear nail polish on the right.
And here they are seen at an angle. Looking at them from the side, you can really see the differences between the adhesives.
Once again, Mod Podge is on the left, clear varnish is the middle, and clear nail polish is on the right. As you can see, Mod Podge by far dries the most clear.
In the end, I would still recommend using Mod Podge over anything else. But these alternate coatings would still work in a pinch.
How to Make Glittery Glass Magnets
Step 1: Prepare Gems
Any time you craft with glass, it’s best to give it a quick cleaning first. Any little bit of dust or oils that can get on it can prevent the glitter from sticking properly. Also, making sure the front is polished will let the sparkles of the glitter show through better.
As far as how to clean them, there’s a few things you can do. The easiest is to wash them in a little soap and distilled water. You can also use tap water if you have a water softener. Then let them air dry or pat them down with a microfiber cloth.
Another thing you can do is wipe them with alcohol. This is a quick and easy way to clean them, but could be very tedious if you are planning on making a lot of magnets.
Finally, if you have glass cleaning spray (for glasses, not for windows) you can use that too. Just like the alcohol, it’s quick and easy as long as you aren’t making a ton of magnets.
As far as whether pre-cleaning the glass is truly necessary, that’s up for debate. So if you’re in a rush and the glass doesn’t look visibly dirty, you’ll probably still be fine.
Step 2: Add Glue
Now it’s time to get into the actual crafting part. For this, grab the Mod Podge and a paintbrush.
Flip the glass gem over so the flat side is facing up. Then paint on a very, very thin layer of glue.
On most of my other projects involving glitter I specify to use a thin layer of glue. But this time I really, really mean it. The last thing you want is a lumpy layer of glue when you want your glitter showing through on the other side.
Speaking of glitter, once the glue is applied, immediately move onto the glitter before the Mod Podge has any chance to dry.
Step 3: Add Glitter
So now for the best part: adding glitter. You can use just about any kind of glitter you want. But for my demonstration I’m using an extra fine glitter.
If you’re interested in how other types of glitter look on these magnets, I have a few examples at the end of the tutorial.
To add the glitter, just generously sprinkle it over where you just brushed the glue. It’s not possible to pour too much so don’t worry and just dump it on there.
At this point I should mention that it’s best to use something to catch the glitter. That way you can pour any excess back into the container.
I use a small sheet of wax paper so that I also don’t have to worry about any glue getting stuck. But I’ve also used a sheet of printer paper and that works just fine as well.
After pouring on your glitter, gently tap off any excess and set it aside to dry. This will take about 30 minutes or so.
At this point if you flip your gem over its not going to look so great. There will likely be a lot of thinned spots and the glue will overall make everything look pretty cloudy.
But not to worry, it will all work out in the end.
Step 4: Repeat
Once the first round of glue has dried, the glitter will look a bit thin.
So it’s time to add some more. Repeat the previous two steps again, adding a thin layer of glue before pouring on a pile of glitter.
This time the glue layer will likely be thicker than the first. And that’s completely okay. Just keep it as thin as possible.
Once the glitter has been added, simply tap off the excess and set aside.
Again, if you look at the front of the magnet, it won’t look pretty. Although this time the layer of glitter should be completely solid.
All the cloudiness of the glue will turn clear as the glue dries. How long this will take mostly depends on the type of glitter you used.
For me, the magnets made with extra fine glitter dried the fastest, but I still had to leave them overnight before they became completely clear.
The magnets made with chunky glitter, on the other hand, took quite a bit longer. I wasn’t paying close attention but I think it was closer to 24 hours.
Here it is once the glue was completely dry:
Perfectly sparkly!
Step 5: Seal Glitter
With the second layer of glitter added, it can now be sealed. This will prevent any loose pieces from falling off the back of the magnet.
One last time, paint on a final layer of Mod Podge as thin as possible. Then set aside to dry.
I like to leave this overnight to make absolutely sure that everything has dried properly.
Now, at this point, you have some beautifully sparkly glass gems to work with. There are plenty of different crafts you could make with these, from jewelry to home decor and more.
But this is a tutorial for making magnets. So that leaves just one thing left to do.
Step 6: Add Magnet
For the very last step, it’s time to transform these glass gems into actual magnets. Like with my conversation hearts I’m using neodymium magnets that are about 3/8 inch wide.
I’ve always preferred neodymium because even the small ones are still extremely strong. I also like that they are thinner than some other magnets, so they don’t stick out too much from whatever surface they are on.
To add the magnet is simple. Just put down a bit of glue onto the back of your magnet.
Then press the magnet down onto the back of the gems.
And that’s it! Now your magnets are ready to be added to a fridge, locker, or any other magnetic surface you’d like to stick them to.
If you are making a set of magnets, I’d suggest facing the same way. That way you can stack them if need be and they will stick together instead of repel each other.
Different Types of Glitter to Use
I wanted to test out how different types of glitter looked under the glass so I used a variety of different kinds from my stash. They all worked, but I liked some better than others.
Extra Fine Glitter
These were my favorites. They were really easy to work with and I think they give the best sparkle when finished.
Because the glitter pieces are so small they made nice smooth layers. They also seemed to dry the quickest.
Regular Glitter
This is the standard glitter size and it was exactly that: standard.
The flakes still weren’t very large so they made for decently flat layers, just not as good as the extra fine. They also had a bit longer of a drying time but not by much.
Chunky Glitter
Because of the much larger flakes, these were the hardest to work with. After applying each layer you usually need to clear away any pieces from the edge that stick out too far.
It’s hard to tell in the pictures, but some of them have tiny bubbles that formed between the glitter flakes. Even close up it’s not horribly noticeable, but it’s a problem that I didn’t have with the other glitters.
This type of glitter also took the longest time to dry by far. So if you wanted to try this project with chunky glitter, make sure you are able to leave it for up to several days.
Mixed Glitter
These glitters were a mix of fine, regular, and chunky glitter flakes. I bought them both pre-mixed, but there’s nothing stopping you from making your own custom mix as well.
I would say overall they went about as well as the regular glitter did. It takes longer to dry than just fine glitter, but was faster than just chunky glitter.
Glow in the Dark Glitter
I happened to have some glow in the dark glitter in my stash and thought it would be fun to try as well. It was a fine glitter, so the process was the same as all my other fine glitters.
They don’t look like much compared to any of the other magnets I made. And I wasn’t even sure if they would work. So I charged them using a flashlight, turned off the lights, and…
Wow! They actually glow!
So just for full disclosure, as cool as they look they don’t glow for very long. And you need to charge them with a strong light to even get a good glow in the first place.
But it was a fun little experiment and is still worth it if you love glow in the dark stuff.
Final Thoughts About Glittery Glass Magnets
I’m really glad that I finally got around to trying these glittery glass magnets. The project was very easy and the results were beautiful. It is also a perfect beginner project.
The biggest downside, as with any glitter project, is the tiny glitter flakes getting everywhere. It will happen no matter how careful you are. So just keep that in mind before getting started.
I would definitely be up for doing this project again in the future if I ever need some sparkly magnets. There’s so many ways to customize this project and that’s always a huge plus for me when it comes to crafts.
I hope that you enjoyed this tutorial and found it helpful. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to leave them below. I’d love to hear from you! Thank you for stopping by and happy crafting!
If you liked this tutorial, don’t forget to pin it for later on Pinterest!
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