You now how it is… standing outside someone’s door after you ring the doorbell and there’s a window right by your face. Do you peak inside to see if they’re home?
We have windows that wrap around our entire front door and I don’t like knowing that anyone could be peaking in at any moment. I didn’t want to cover the windows with curtains or blinds because I wanted to preserve how much of the natural light comes inside.
I researched different options to help with our window problem and I found Gallery Glass!
I like that we can still look outside the same…
….and that it simply gives a distorted view. Now people can’t see so much detail when they look inside (*a’hem* like people walking around in their underwear) 😁
An important fact you might like to know is that you CAN remove it if you decide to later down the road. I used a razor to score the edges around my window then used another flat razor to help scrap off parts that were being stubborn. It came off in large sections for the most part.
I used a toothpick to ‘scratch’ the mixture while it was freshly wet for my first attempt at doing this – it turned out to not be as perfect as I would like because it didn’t look authentic. I also didn’t like how distorted it made everything when we looked outside.
This picture shows you what our original window looks like (left), what the ‘toothpick scratching’ window looks like (middle) and what the window looks like where I rubbed back & forth using my fingers (right).
I’m really happy with how it turned out! It was fast & easy and I like that it’s simpler to the eyes than the toothpick version.
It took me about 20 minutes to finish both windows on each side of our door (including clean-up) and I used 1-1/4 bottles.
PREPARATION: Clean your windows and make sure they’re dry. Move rugs and other items away from the area you’re working on. If you want you can use masking tape and drop cloth to protect the surrounding areas.
I have hardwood floor so I just made sure to clean up as soon as I was done before it dried. This stuff is similar to Elmer’s glue but more runny. It drips really easy so be prepared. I worked as fast as I could possibly go and the mess shows for it. If you’re messy and slow it will be harder to clean up after it has time to dry.
My method: Work in sections; I did half of each window at a time, dividing over the pane line. Hold the bottle upside down and squeeze liquid onto window in a zigzag fashion.
Before it has time to drip much I rubbed it around quickly to fill in the empty areas. To give a more even coverage I did swirls to distribute the liquid evenly across. Lastly I swished back and forth with my 2 fingers.
This is what it looks like at this stage.
I used an art brush to drag down the side of my window edge to clean up whatever excess build-up I had on the sides. Once my brush was full I wiped it onto a paper towel and continued.
Wipe-up any drips, splatters, runs, etc with a wet towel.
I used an oscillating fan to speed up the drying process.
I took pictures about every hour for you to see what it looks like as it dries. It dried clear within 4 hours which was pretty fast (if you have thicker coverage it will be more). The bottle says it dries in 8 hours and fully cures in 7 days.
There you have it! I hope this helped!
Before & after pictures.
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Some questions you might have:
Is it durable? Yes! It will stay put unless you work hard to peel it off.
How do you clean it? I’ve used Windex and it doesn’t affect it at all.
Can it be used outdoors? I’m not sure. It seems hardy and will stand up to Windex but I don’t know how it would do outdoors with constant moisture and temperature fluctuations.
Can you remove it? Yes! It’s fairly easy with razor blades.
What does it feel like? It feels smooth like glass but will have ridges of texture from your design.
Does it smell? When it’s wet it smells but once dry it has no odor.
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