Today is a very special day because we have a new blogger joining our team!  We are very excited to have a very dear friend Kylie.  So please join with me in welcoming her to our blog and you can look forward to learning more about her in the upcoming weeks.

Good Morning! Can you believe Mother’s Day is just around the corner (May 11!)? I’m one of those people who like to scheme up gift ideas in advance, just to make sure I’m prepared to get the perfect gift for that special person. The other day I saw some etched wine glasses, and wondered if I could attempt to make some. I thought that an etched vase or jar could make the perfect Mother’s Day gift.
So, I began searching on the internet and Pinterest, finding inspiration and researching different ways to make my own etched glass. I found a lot of pictures and ideas, the options are endless! Here are some of the ideas I found:

I found a tutorial on Martha Stewart.com {here} but it didn’t provide a lot of detail.
It took me awhile to figure out exactly how to do this. I recommend planning out what you want to etch (monogram, shape, etc.) as well as what you want to etch on. This makes a trip to the craft store a whole lot easier. (trust me, I’m speaking from experience) haha 🙂

Supplies needed:

– Glass object (vase, mason jar, etc.)
– Etching Cream, I used Armour Etch, I got mine at Hobby Lobby
– Painter’s Tape
– Stencils, stickers*
– Foam paint brush
– Wood craft stick
– Temporary Spray Glue
*Using a Cricut to cut out designs on contact paper would have made getting any design I wanted a lot easier, it was hard finding stickers and stencils in shapes or letters that I wanted. 

*Warning: Be VERY careful with the etching cream, keep away from all children and animals, and protect yourself! Use gloves, and do not let the cream touch you, ever.

I’m going to show 2 different ways to etch letters

Option #1
Step 1

Clean your glass surface and prep your stencil. Also, make sure to protect yourself (gloves) and your workspace with newspaper or cardboard.

I cut out the specific stencil I wanted (using “C” for my last name), sprayed the back of the stencil with temporary glue, and centered it onto the front of the glass vase.

Step 2
Apply the Armour etch directly onto the surface of the glass.

I found the best process is to apply the cream with the wooden craft stick, and then smooth out with a foam paint brush. The brush ensures that the cream is evenly distributed.

Here’s a close-up of the cream on the surface

Step 3
Let the etching cream sit on the glass for at least 10 minutes. Most directions I found said only 5, but this was not long enough.
After the 10 minutes, rinse or sponge the cream off in warm water, but don’t remove the stencil yet. (Warning: this stuff is serious, please be careful! and do not rinse off in a porcelain sink, apparently the cream can etch the porcelain)
After trial-and-error, I realized that a second coat would help to intensify the etching. The etching in my first attempt, was really light and uneven. So next, re-apply another layer of cream and leave for 5-10 minutes. Then, rinse off cream and remove stencil.

Step 4
Thoroughly clean the glass surface, and you are finished! Ta-Da! 🙂

I love the cursive monogram

Option #2
I wanted to show you all another technique you can use to get the reverse effect.

I wanted to etch “laundry” onto the jar I use to hold my laundry detergent. For this, I wanted to get the reverse effect, with only the background (not the letters) etched. I used stickers and painter’s tape for this process.

First, clean your glass surface. Next, tape off the top portion of your glass, this will mark the beginning of the area being etched. Next, I put another piece of tape down to guide the placement of my letters. This helped to make sure the stickers were all lined up evenly.

When the letters are applied and lined up, remove the piece of tape below them. Place another piece of tape to mark off the bottom space of the etching area. And then apply pieces of tape on the sides, so that you have the whole area marked off. Make sure the tape and stickers are securely attached to the glass, so that cream won’t seep underneath.

Next, apply the etching cream. Be careful, because the jar can roll. And also, watch out for dripping. A few minutes into my drying process I realized a little bit of cream was dripping down the side of the jar! Oh well, it was a small enough drip that it’s hardly noticeable.

I would recommend waiting 10 minutes after applying the first layer of cream, and then after rinsing that off, add another layer and wait 5-10.
Clean glass completely and you are finished!

Once you try it and practice a bit, you get the hang of it. Now, I want to etch every piece of glass I own! haha

Here are my finished pieces:

How cute is the mustache??

Here they are!

I can’t wait to make one for my mom! I featured this DIY on my Mother’s Day Gift Giving Guide on my personal blog. You can see the whole gift guide {here}.

Until next time… Happy Tuesday Everyone!