Paint mercury glass votives

In a well-ventilated area, lay a glass jar on its side on newspaper and spray with a fine mist of water to form droplets.

Spraying the glass with water before applying spray paint creates a pretty frosted, weathered effect reminiscent of mercury glass. Immediately spray over the droplets with silver spray paint. Leave to dry while you start on more jars. Rotate the jars, repeating the process until all of the jars are painted. Leave to dry completely. Wind and knot string around the rims, and raffia around the middles, decorating with heather.

You will need:

• Jam jars
• Newspaper
• Plastic water sprayer - or use a gardening mister
• Metallic silver spray paint - we used PlastiKote, £6.99 for 400ml
• Twine - 3 spools for £4 at Nutscene
• Tea lights - £1.99 from H&M

Styling tips We displayed our mercury glass votives on a pretty vintage cruet - try Summerill & Bishop or browse antiques shops - displayed here on a vintage white linen tablecloth from Selvedge. The elegant Silver Duck decanter is from Mia Fleur and if you want to enhance your homemade creations with the real thing, try Not On The High Street where there is a great collection of antique silver glass votives with candles.

(Play it safe - never leave burning candles unattended.)

Looking for more creative ideas? You can find them here

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