14 Interesting Ways To Use Old Windows

One of the most common Flea Market or yard sale finds is an old window. They can be decorated and used in the garden or on the patio for a sparkly new twist!

Vintage and recycled windows can be hung on a patio wall, in an existing window or hung on a fence, especially nice in the shady parts to bring in more light. Decorations can be tile, broken plates, craft gems or even mirrors. The design is up to you!  Becky Norris is an expert in recycled and decorated garden windows. Here she gives her advice on how it’s done!

Rusty wrench

Marie Niemann described Becky’s wrench ‘n glass window, “Becky created this beautiful mosaic piece by gluing various hand cut stained glass pieces and even old tools to an old glass window. She cut the glass jars in half with her tile saw and glued them to the window to hold cut flowers. Amazing huh? We are so lucky here at FMG to have so many talented artists that not only share their unique and original work but are more than willing to explain how they do it.”

Becky Norris says, “This is an old window that I decorated with rusty wrenches as the stems, old bottles and scraps of stained glass. The old jars are perfect for holding fresh flowers. This hangs by my rusty garden.

“I used rusty wrenches which a good friend cut for me. I glued them onto the window panes, and then cut the stained glass scraps into the shapes of flower petals. I tried to use all the colors in the spectrum, red, orange, yellow, green, blue and violets. I glued the glass on the panes, and then I cut the jars in half with a tile saw and glued them on the panes. I used Dap silicone for Marine and auto on all the pieces.

“After all of the glue was dry, I painted the entire piece with an epoxy resin which took 24 hours to dry. I can now use it as a cute vase by my door and keep fresh flowers in it most of the year.

“To saw the jars in half, I have a tile saw and just lay the jar down and run it over the saw. Of course that sounds easy and it is easy, but you have to respect the saw and use safety precautions. Sometimes the jars cut and sometimes they fall apart. You never know what it might do.

I am very happy with the way this one turned out and I will enjoy it for a very long time I am sure.”

Becky’s glue is GE II Silicone for Exterior windows in CLEAR, sold under the Momentum name at Amazon or at hardware stores.

Tea party garden panel

This is Becky wall panel made from an old glass freezer door, shown here with the spring lilies in her garden. She says, “My back garden is the area where the color scheme is pink and green.”  Becky plants succulents in the tiny cups!

 

Herb garden window

“This is my newest glass on glass mosaic just finished,” Becky tells us.. This one will be going in the window in my kitchen. The three pots on the bottom are for herbs as soon as I get them filled with dirt and find some seeds this time of the year.

I will be planting chives, sage and probably rosemary, but might plant parsley instead as it grows so easily. The circles in this window are all old jar lids, some clear glass Ball and Atlas, and the white ones are Boyd’s porcelain lids. All the designs are in stained glass, even the flower pots are covered in stained glass and blue glass saucers were cut and put under the pots in case of drainage when I water the herbs.”