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How to Paint Your Own Craft Eyes

You can get craft eyes in lots of fun colors, and I show you how to use them here. But, what do you do if you want something you can’t find in a shop? Like pink eyes? Or glitter eyes? Or polka dot eyes? Hmm… those would be hard to find.

You can paint them yourself! Today, I’ll show you how to paint your own craft eyes! All you need is clear craft eyes and some paint. And since there are oh, about a thousand, colors of paint available… the possibilities are endless!

Scroll down for the video!

Glitter eyes!

Have you seen Beanie Boos? They’re a group of Beanie Babies with glitter eyes!

I’ve been getting lots of requests for glitter eyes, because you want to add this awesome touch to your own stuffed animal creations. I can’t find anywhere where they are commercially available… but, I have found the perfect glitter paint!

Glitter eyes from FreshStitches

Aren’t these amazing? And they’re even more sparkly in person!

Glamour Dust paint is fantastic!

paint square

It’s so much fun!

How to Paint Your Own Craft Eyes

Painting your own craft eyes is easy! All you need is some acrylic paint and clear craft eyes.

Paint your own craft eyes

You’ll get more details in the video below, but here are the basic steps:

  1. Apply a thin coat of acrylic paint to the back of the craft eye
  2. Allow paint to dry
  3. Repeat. I’ve applied 2-3 thin coats for maximum glitter

Video Tutorial

I filmed this tutorial before I got the fancy palettes, and I realize my thumb is often in the way… oops! But, I think you get the idea!

Isn’t that easy? And here’s the result!

Glitter eyes from FreshStitches

Of course, you don’t have to use glitter paint. Any acrylic paint will work! And you don’t have to paint them all one color. Try painting little polkadots before you lay down a solid background color. Or maybe stripes! Or a starburst effect! The only limit is your imagination!

Ombre Glitter Eyes

An ombre effect is a little more tricky than simple stripes, so here’s some more info on that.

Aren’t these amazing?

ombre glitter eyes

This ombre effect is super-easy to achieve with glitter paint because the paint is actually clear with specks of glitter. That means that one coat leaves little gaps for another color to shine through!

TUTORIAL

Here’s how to do it in three easy steps!

freshstitches ombre eye tutorial

I’m so excited about the possibilities… I’m thinking my next ones will be white and pink ombre.

glitter freshstitches

What color combinations do you think would be amazing?

Get glittery! 🙂

Here are handy links to all the posts about amigurumi eyes. . .

Return to the main table of contents for Let’s Learn to Crochet Amigurumi.

Move on to the lessons for standing legs.

Happy stitching!

5 COMMENTS

  1. What a cute and simple way to make a project stand out. Who doesn’t love glitter?

  2. Deb Cannon SAYS...

    Amieyes on Etsy sells sparkly eyes for a very reasonable price. Plus a number of other special effects. Take a look! (No not affiliated in any way, just a satisfied customer)
    https://www.etsy.com/shop/AmiEyes

    • Yes, there are a number of shops that sell hand-painted glitter eyes. This post is for folks who’d like to do it themselves… clear eyes are about 25% of the cost of finished ones. A big savings if you do a lot!
      Also, painting the eyes yourself gives you a lot of options… shops don’t always have the color you’d like available 🙂

      • Anonymous SAYS...

        I LOVE this going to try some I can vever find the colors I want

  3. Nikki SAYS...

    How can we make it water proof? so that the paint doesn’t come off.