In this tutorial I’m going to explain how to transform regular highly reflective glass into matte glass.  While there are a couple of things to be aware of, I think you’ll be surprised at how quick and easy it is to do. 

Most of the time I do not frame my artwork, but the skull mask was burned onto very thin plywood.  It was too thin to use traditional picture hangers on it, so I decided to frame it.  I happened to have a frame on hand, but I hated how reflective the glass was.  Sometimes it was almost impossible to see the artwork because of the reflected light.  

Even when the artwork was viewed straight on, there was still some reflected light that I found distracting. 

I checked into replacing the glass with matte glass at a local framing shop, but I was rather surprised at how expensive it was.   Since forty dollars was a lot more than I wanted to pay for this particular piece of art, I decided I would try to make my own matte glass. 

What is the worst thing that could happen?  It doesn’t work.  

Click on the image to the left to watch a YouTube video version of the tutorial. 

SKILL LEVEL: 1

MATERIALS NEEDED:  

• Glass
• Glass cleaner
• Spray-on style of matte wood finish*

*I’m using Minwax brand, but most likely any brand will work.  

Here’s an affiliate link to Amazon for the Minwax matte finish. https://amzn.to/3JZMwRJ

The above link is a generic search. One the result displays, click on “see all buying options” to view all of the listings.

Be aware that you can purchase this product for a LOT less money in home improvement stores like Home Depot or Lowes.  All of the listed I viewed had a price of $30 or more.  Whereas the home improvement stores sell it for around $15.

SAFETY ADVICE:  For your safety, wear a mask and spray in a very well-ventilated area!

STEP 1 – PREP

I will be doing a test spray first using a very cheap frame.  I highly recommend that you do the same.  That way if you don’t like the results, you are not out much money.  

The dollar store often has cheap picture frames.  I would have gotten one from there, but I happened to have this one on hand.  

The first thing you need to do is remove the glass from the frame and thoroughly clean the front and back of the glass. 

I’m using a generic version of Windex glass cleaner. 

Make sure to dry the glass. 

 

 

Don’t touch the glass directly.  Instead, use paper towels to handle the glass.  This will keep fingerprints from appearing on the glass and help protect your hand and fingers from any sharp edges on the glass.  

STEP 2 – SPRAY

I’m covering the lower half of the glass for comparison purposes.  This was my first test of my idea, so I wanted to see how well it worked. 

I will be using Minwax polycrylic matte finish.  I’m fairly sure that any matte finish would work, but I’d recommend testing it out first. 

Start spraying before you approach the glass. 

Because I’m holding the can so close to the glass, I ended up with a very heavy layer of finish.    I’m actually surprised it didn’t start running down the glass.  I got lucky.

Spray horizontal across the glass.  Keep your arm at the same distance from the glass and move your arm at the same speed. 

Don’t spray vertically because it is difficult to maintain the same distance from the glass.

Don’t stop spraying until you have passed beyond the edge of the glass.

Do no stop or start spraying on the glass!   Starting and stopping tends to create areas of heavier spray. 

To achieve the most uniform application of finish you shouldn’t start or stop spraying on the glass.  Always start before approaching the glass, and end after moving past the glass.

Now let the finish dry before handling! 

Since I have the patience of a two-year-old, I’m using a little battery-operated fan to speed up the process.

Here’s how the glass looked after the finish dried.  The finish really defuses the glare from the lights.

Look at the difference between the regular glass (bottom) and the treated glass. 

 

I placed a reference photo from a project behind the glass.  I don’t see a loss of detail quality.  In fact, unless you look closely, it’s hard to see a difference between the treated and untreated glass.

Once I angle the image into the light it is very easy to see where the matte finish was sprayed.

I’m repeating the process on the other half of the glass. 

This time I have the can much further from the glass, so I’m getting very light layer of finish.  

Checking the results reveals that a light layer of finish reduces some of the glare, but not near as much as the heavy layer does.

To remedy this I applied another light layer of finish.

 

 

That worked great.  Now both halves of the glass are matte.

When angled, you can see a line between the two different application styles.  That line is much harder to see when looking straight on.   

Let’s face it, in a real application no one would mask off half of the glass.

Here’s a before and after comparison photo.  The matte wood finish really reduces the highly reflectiveness of the glass.

FRAMED GLASS                

Since my test glass worked out, I’m ready to apply the finish on my framed artwork. 

I’m leaving the frame on because finishing nails were used to secure the backing to the frame.   The frame was a tabletop style of frame, so Todd came up with this modification to turn it into a frame that could hang on the wall.

I had cleaned the glass before I framed the artwork, so I only had to re-clean the front of the glass.  

I’m using a low-tack artist tape and paper to mask off the frame.  

I first apply a piece of tape making sure it, and then place the paper under the tape.

Afterwards, I press the tape down onto the paper securing it in place.

I did have to apply little pieces of tape to protect the corners.

Here’s how the frame looked once I was done.

Next, I started applying the matte wood finish.  

I chose to apply two light layers of finish versus one heavy layer.  I did this because light layers are less likely to pool or run down the glass. 

This particular finish is visible while it is wet.  The darker the background is, the easier it is to see where the finish as been applied.   

Here’s a close-up of the wet finish.  It has a slight blue hue to it.

This might be something that happens with all spray on finishes, but I don’t know that for sure.

Once the finish dries, it is no longer visible.

After the finish was dry, I removed the tape and paper masking. 

Here’s how the artwork looks angled towards the light. 

Here’s a composite photo showing how the frame looked before and after the matte finish was applied.   

I’m pleased with the results

THINGS TO BE AWARE OF

There are some things to be aware of.  First off, the finish is not permanently adhered to the glass.  I could scratch if off with a fingernail.

It was super easy to remove it using a sharp metal knife.

Here’s a close-up of the damage. 

 

The second thing to be aware of is that only the treated side of the glass is non-glare.

The backside of the glass is still regular highly reflected glass. 

This is the same piece of glass I was holding in the previous image, but I flipped it over.  

When you place the glass back in the frame, make sure the treated side is facing the viewer. 

You do not need to treat both sides of the glass.

The treated glass dulls down the intensity of the colors.  The left side of the photo is covered with the glass, and the right side is glass-free.  The right side looks more vibrant to me.

If there is a gap between the artwork and the glass, there can be a slight softening of the details.  In this photo I’ve got picture matting between the treated glass and the image.  The owl doesn’t look as crisp.

 

 

When I move the glass to the left, it is easier to compare the detail loss.

Keep in mind that unless everyone can compare the image with and without treated glass, they might not be able to tell there is a slight loss of detail.

For example, my framed Ford Buick artwork looks pretty good with treated glass.

I can angle the artwork into the light, and I can still see the artwork.

 

 

Here’s how the artwork looks without the treated glass. 

Could I leave the glass off of the artwork?  With the Ford Buick yes, and I did, but I couldn’t do that with the skull mask.  

The reason is that the glass is helping keep the skull mask artwork in place.   The skull mask is glued to the wooden backer, but it kept fall off.  Todd and I tried several different types of glue, but nothing worked.  I ended up using a hot glue gun to create a “lip” for the board to rest on.  This kept it centered on the backer, and the glass kept it from falling out.

IN CONCLUSION

I hope that you will agree that this was a very easy way to transform regular glass into matte or non-reflective glass.  For me, the great thing was that I already had everything on hand, so this was a very inexpensive process.   Even if I had to buy everything, it would still cost less that what a piece of non-glare glass from the framers cost.  

I will admit that I’m not super happy with the slight loss of crisp detail, but I prefer that over reflected light interfering with viewing the artwork.  

Until the next blog,

Brenda

Sept 26, 2020

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