You will need:
· Old windows -depending on how many guests you have will determine the number of window panes you will need. We had 230 guests attend our wedding and used 3 window panes.
o Finding the window panes will be the hardest part – I suggest looking at antique shops or contacting a contractor. We got the window panes from a contractor friend of ours who was replacing windows as a job and the old ones were just going to be scrap, so he salvaged them for us.
· Two colors of paint - whatever colors you want. I chose to do blue and white because those were my wedding colors
· Painters tape
· 2 paint brushes
· Electric sander
· Fine grit sand paper
· Water-based polyurethane
Step 1: Prep your window panes. Make sure they are free from any dust or dirt by wiping them down with hot water. If the panes are covered with a shiny coat you will need to do 1 additional step before you can get started and that is sanding off any previous coating – a good way to tell if you need to sand first is to hold the panes up to a light – if the surface is glossy at all, you should run the electric sander over the painted wood part and then wipe off any dust you created.
Step 2: Tape around the edges to avoid painting on the glass
Step 3: Choose what color you want to be the secondary color (ie. You see just hints of this color) and apply that color to the wood first using the paint brush. In the picture above, I chose blue to be my secondary color. Allow the first layer of paint to dry completely.
Step 4: Apply your primary color to the wood on top of your secondary color. This is the color you want to see the most of – pictured above is white primary color. Allow your primary color to dry completely.
Step 5: Using find grit sandpaper and an electric sander gently start to sand away streaks until you see hints of your secondary color showing through. You can show as much or as little of your secondary color in this step- it just depends on how “distressed” you want the window pane to look. Feel free to use the edges of the sander to make knacks in the wood to make it look more authentic.
Step 6: Clean up the dust you created by sanding by using a vaccum cleaner. Use the small brush attachment to remove most of the dust from the window panes. After you vaccum run a damp rag or paper towel over the panes to make sure there are no remaining particles on the wood.
Step 7: Use the water based polyurethane to put a protective coat on the panes. This will give the panes a nice finished look and will make the wood a little bit more durable and a smooth feel to it. Allow to dry completely. Add a second coat if you choose.
Step 8: remove painters tape and apply your seating chart to the glass panes.
Pictured above – the seating chart was applied to the glass using a large clear sticker like this product from staples: http://www.staples.com/Avery-18665-Clear-Inkjet-Full-Sheet-Shipping-Labels-8-1-2-X/product_663672
Or you can use a paint pen and write the names and table assignments yourself….if you have a smaller wedding this is great option, but we had 230 people so we chose to have the computer print each name and apply the sticker to the window.
