Glitter Disco Balls by Linda Hess

Can you hear the Funky music playing?? Are visions of polyester leisure suits dancing in your head?? Well then let’s create some beautiful jewels to accompany those visions! Here are some super simple baubles that can be created within 5-10 minutes plus drying time.

These start with round wood beads from Indus Trading Company (www.buildurbeads.com). I love working with their wood products, because the surfaces are all SO smooth…perfect for any type of surface decoration. They are also quite lightweight.



Next I paint the surface of the beads with a color of Shimmer Opaque paint from Earth Safe Finishes (www.earthsafefinishes.com). I LOVE this product! It easily covers in one coat and gives whatever you paint a glowing finish plus it dries quickly. Perfect for those last minute projects that need a big impact. Plus all of the products from this company are EcoFriendly. For this particular project I used “Ruby” Shimmer Opaque to coordinate with the GORGEOUS “#291 Fire Engine Red Ultrafine glitter.

Allow the paint to dry completely and then cover surface with Art Glitter™ Designer “Dries Clear” Adhesive. Be sure to cover the bead surface completely, then roll in glitter (I dunk the bead directly into my glitter pot, but this makes some artists cringe!). Tap off excess glitter and set bead aside to dry. Repeat with additional beads. Once the glue has dried, tap or blow any loose glitter off the bead. If you decide to blow the glitter off, I highly recommend doing it outside. Otherwise you will be finding “fairy dust” in your work area indefinitely!

Seal the Glitter Disco balls with one of the varnishes from ESF. My favorite is the no-VOC version. A local decorative paint shop swears by the Marine varnish. All work well and clean up easily.

Once the sealer dries disco balls can be made into earrings (as shown) or strung to create a necklace or bracelet.

Boogie on…………