A painted window does more than a poster ever will. People slow down, look twice and walk in. The good news: you don't need to be an artist. With a printed template and the right markers, anyone can paint a Christmas window in an afternoon.
This guide walks you through it step by step, for shop fronts, cafés, classrooms and your own front window.
What you need
- A template. Print one of ours, or grab the free Christmas beetle at the end of this guide.
- Markers for glass. uni Chalk Markers are the easiest on windows: bright, and they wipe off with a damp cloth. POSCA PC-8K (broad chisel) fills big shapes fast, and PC-5M (medium bullet) does outlines and details.
- Glass cleaner, a lint-free cloth and masking tape.
- Paper towel and cotton buds for quick fixes.
Step 1: Clean the glass properly
Paint only sticks well to clean glass. Wash the inside of the window, dry it fully and wipe off any streaks. Grease from fingers is the most common reason paint goes patchy.
Step 2: Print at the right size
Print at 100% (Actual size), never "fit to page". As a rough guide:
- Home window: A3, or two A4 pages taped together.
- Classroom or small shop window: four A4 pages taped together (about A2).
- Shop window: an A0 print from a print shop. A wreath at A0 is about 75 cm wide, which reads well from across the street.
Step 3: Tape the template to the outside
Tape the printout to the outside of the glass, printed side facing in, so you can see the lines from inside. You paint from inside, where it's protected from rain and passers-by.
Painting words? Use a mirrored lettering sheet. Painted on the inside, it reads the right way round from the street. All our lettering comes in a normal and a mirrored version.
Step 4: Trace the outlines first
Shake your marker well and prime the tip on scrap paper until the paint flows. Trace every outline with a medium tip. White outlines look sharp in daylight and still show up at night against a dark shop.
Work from top to bottom so your hand doesn't smudge wet paint, and let the outlines dry for about 10 minutes before you fill.
Step 5: Fill in the colour
Use a broad chisel tip for big areas and keep your strokes going in one direction. Don't go back over a half-dry patch, as that lifts the paint. If an area looks thin once it's dry, add a second coat.
Stick to a small palette. Eight to ten colours look planned; twenty look busy. Our Aussie Christmas window art comes with a colour guide listing the exact POSCA colours we used.
Step 6: Tidy up
Once it's dry, take the template off the outside. Clean up wobbly edges with a damp cotton bud. A few imperfections are fine: from the street, nobody sees them.
Taking it off again
uni Chalk Markers wipe off with a damp cloth. POSCA is a paint marker, so it is longer-lasting on glass. Always test both on a small corner of your window first, especially on tinted or coated glass, before you paint the whole design.
Free Christmas beetle to try
Have a go before you commit to a whole window. Download our Christmas beetle template, print it on A4 and paint it on a small window or a glass door.
Download the free Christmas beetle (PDF)
Want the whole window done?
Our Aussie Christmas window art templates have everything for a full window: a wreath with a kookaburra and koala, a bush garland for the top of the glass, "Merry Christmas" lettering (normal and mirrored) and six single motifs. Print at A3, A4 or A0, or get the set with all 10 POSCA markers included.
Quick questions
Can I paint on the outside of the glass?
You can, but weather and cleaning will wear it. Inside is better for anything that needs to last the whole season.
Chalk markers or POSCA?
Chalk markers are the easiest to remove and look bright on glass. POSCA gives stronger, more opaque colour. Plenty of people outline in one and fill in the other.
How long does a window take?
A wreath at A3 takes about an hour. A full shop window with garland, wreath and lettering is an afternoon.
