Want to decorate a glass surface but prefer a medium that’s a little less messy than window paints? Check out window markers: Always handheld and rarely drippy, they’re a great option for small to midsize glass designs that involve detail work. They’re also cleanable across the board, making them perfect for displays that change daily. Here are our five favorites.
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Toru Window Glass Markers
This isn’t your usual high-school-graduation or coffee-shop-decor window marker: Toru’s glass markers are made of a waxy, crayonlike material that gets worn down with use and replenished by a twistable bottom. Their similarity to oil pastels is precisely what allows great variation in your window art. The Toru markers can be mixed with water for a more jewel-like sheen and opacity, and once your work dries you can layer other colors over it. These are still just as washable as any other window marker: To clean your surface, simply use soap and water. At a 24 count, the sheer number of colors in this pack is unparalleled.
Buy: Toru Window Glass Markers $15.90
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Unique Window Marker
Like the Toru set, Unique’s Window Markers aren’t strictly markers: They’re actually window paints in a markerlike utensil for ease of use. Besides that surface similarity, Unique’s window marker is the polar opposite of Toru’s . . . which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. They’re sold in just three declarative hues (red, white, and blue) and are among the bigger and wider-tipped markers on our list. Where Toru’s markers excel at window art, Unique’s are the best and boldest for window messaging. Pick up a few of these for your car windows when graduation or a wedding is right around the corner!
ANOTHER GOOD CHOICE
Expo Neon™ Window Dry-Erase Marker
The colors of this set are its greatest attribute. Expo’s neon window markers are bold but not excessively bright; they’ll be most eye-popping against a darker interior, as when used on a car windshield or bar window. Be sure to write or decorate where no one will mess with it: Unlike the Toru and Unique markers, the marks these make can just be rubbed away without soap and water, and they’re not waterproof. (That said, while the markers come off easily from glass surfaces, they tend to stain other materials.)
ARTISTS’ CHOICE
Crayola Crystal Effects Window Markers
Crayola isn’t just for kids anymore. With this marker line, Crayola facilitates affordable yet astonishing art experiments for anyone who wants to spice up a few windows. Use these markers to decorate a glass surface, then apply heat; Crayola recommends a hair dryer. (If the sun heats the surface over the course of a day, that will work too.) In a few short minutes, what you’ve drawn will take on a gemlike appearance as it dries. The Crystal Effects line comes in eight soothing pastels—not the boldest colors in the world, but what they lack in vibrancy is more than made up for by the intricate crystal effect. (Just be sure not to leave the markers uncapped too long: The ink crystallizes with extended exposure to air and heat, meaning you could return to a nib that looks like a geode if you’re not careful.) As with just about everything Crayola creates, these markers are totally washable.
Buy: Crayola Crystal Effects Window Markers $5.38
PROFESSIONALS’ CHOICE
Pentel Wet Erase Chalk Markers
This window marker brand is beloved by many, and it’s easy to see why: Pentel’s colors are rich and bold, and each marker (or set) comes in either a chisel or jumbo point size. You can create window art that mixes bold strokes with detail work without having to mix brands or hues. Pentel’s 4-piece sets come in the three primary colors plus white, or the three secondary colors plus black. If you need a quick replacement or just need one color, you can buy each marker individually too.
Source: artnews.com