Make it Monday-How to Etch like a Pro

After a series of failed attempts at etching, I finally figured out something that worked. I’ve tried the ooey, gooey paint on method of etching with nasty chemicals and it barely worked. After reading the label carefully, it said some glass doesn’t etch properly, however I tried and tried to only get a result that looked like a dirty glass. I was not a happy girl. I forgot it, and like always, was on to the next project.

While talking to another mom about class projects, I learned of a better solution. A Dremel! Now why didn’t I think of this sooner? I have a Dremel that is cordless and I use it for polishing soldered pendants, but haven’t used it on glass before. After doing some online searches I found an attachment that sounded like it would work. Attachment #107 fit the bill.  Off to the hardware store I went.

I came home and quickly strong armed the plastic case to release the attachment.  I plucked the funny looking attachment into the drill and hunted down something glass, a recycled jar. I started by making cross hatches into the shape of circles. After it was done, the vase looked awesome, and the process was simple. No waiting, no chemicals down the drain…it was so very easy peasey. It was after this first piece that I caught the etching craze. I hunted down any hard surface I could etch. Nothing escaped my wrath. Terra cotta check, glass, check, back yard rocks, check…I even etched the surface of a brick.

My head swims with etching possibilities. You try it and share with me the projects you make. If you got an etch, you gotta scratch it.