Tutorial Tuesday - Making Magnets

Hey there folks... long time no blog! 

Today is indeed Tutorial Tuesday and I'm going to attempt to show you how I make my large glass magnets. Of course the same basic procedure works for smaller sizes as well (which in fact may be easier). So here goes: 

You are going to want to have the following MATERIALS: 

• Hard drying glue such as Diamond Glaze (the only one I trust)
• Glass tiles (make sure one side is flat) 
• Paper or photo images
• A craft knife (sharp)
• Magnets (try to match your size to your glass tiles) 

You can probably find all these supplies at your local craft store. Sometimes I find the Diamond Glaze at Joann's, sometimes I have to go to an art supply store. I generally find the magnets at Joann's as well. The glass tiles should also be available in all sorts of sizes and shapes on Etsy (often called cabochons). 

As for images, I most often use my own photographs and they work well with the Diamond Glaze but not with other glues I have tried. So now that you have your materials, here we go: 

1. Choose your image. I'm cutting mine down to fit my glass but you can also print out an images the size of your glass.

2. I cut out part of my 4"x6" image to the same dimensions as my glass piece. You can also print them to be the size you need. 

3. Next I trim the image with a straight edge and my knife or with a good cutting board. Make it just slightly smaller all around than your glass. I also like to (on square and rectangular magnets) trim the corners just a tiny tiny bit. 

4. Put an even covering of glue over the entire flat side of the glass and be sure to go all the way to the edges. You want to be sure to fill it in and try to pop any air bubbles you can. 

5. Press the glass down on top of the images, pressing firmly to squeeze out air bubbles. Flip over and let dry for a couple of hours or all day or night if you have the time. 

 6. Once dry, take your knife and carefully cut off any glue residue left around the edges and along the back. 

7. Seal the back along the edges where you can still see glass and then fill in the rest of the back with a nice thick coat of the glue. Then carefully place your magnet (or magnets) and push down firmly until they set. 

8. Let dry for several hours again or overnight. 

9. Then clean up residual glue from the glass and you've got a magnet! 

Another great tutorial showing smaller magnets can be found OH My! Handmade Goodness. You can find their glass magnet tutorial here. You should check it out!

Happy making! Feel free to share your magnets with me and if you don't feel like making your own, you can order one from me in the Mama Picture This Etsy Shop here. 

Mama Zuzi