I first met "etchall Barbee" at the Arts & Crafts trade show in the early 90's. I also loved decorative painting and fell in love with the idea of being able to paint on an etched glass surface. The prep work was so much easier and a lot faster than sanding and sealing wood....... Since that time, I've created a number of etched glass pieces, so I thought I'd share a variety of ideas and techniques to inspire and encourage your itch to etch..... Most of them have been featured here on my blog, so if you'd like detailed, step by step instructions, enter "etched glass" in the search bar and they should come up. Let's go!
1. Let's start with some dip'n etch projects that are quick and easy.
I love colored glass, so I picked up some colored glass pieces from the dollar store and even found a couple on the clearance shelf at my local supermarket. You can also find them at your local craft store, but make sure you have a coupon..... The challenge with some colored glass pieces is that it isn't colored glass at all. More often than not, it's clear glass with a colored coating on the outside - can't be etched - on the outside, but you can etch the inside! You can tell if it's coated by looking at the bottom. If the glass is color coated, the bottom will be clear. If it's colored glass, the bottom will be colored too - like a wine bottle.
Check out these glass pieces before and after etching them on the inside. Always wash and dry glass pieces thoroughly first, then simply fill with dip'n etch liquid. Leave for 15 minutes, then pour the dip'n etch back into the container. Quick'n EZPZ....
And these were decorated with beads... The mason jar is colored glass, so it can be etched on the inside or the outside, or both.
This painted vase was also etched on the inside, I simply filled it to the brim with dip'n etch.
The pieces below were etched on the outside by immersing in a plastic container that was just a little larger than the pieces. The heart shaped bottle looks like sea glass. I etched the milk bottle so I could paint the cherries on it.
The mason jars were also immersed in a container of dip'n etch. (I used an empty soda bottle a little larger than the mason jar for this.) The designs were created using a star punch and strips of etchmask™ used for creating your own stencils. For the votives and wine bottle, I used Peel Off star stickers. The light comes from a light stick in the wine bottle.
Here are some more etched bottles using dip'n etch. They each have an LED tea light under their hat.
And here's a glass plate I etched so I could paint it with regular acrylic paint. This is just one of the projects featured in my book, Garden of Glassware, a decorative painting book by Leisure Arts.
2. These projects were etched with etching cream.
I designed and cut my own stencils for these using etchmask and my Cricut Explore.
I etched the candlestick bases with star stickers (negative etch) then placed a small, multi colored LED tea light under the base of the candlestick. I loved how the stars reflected on the wall. You can see the base design on the second photo. The top is a light shade kit, also from etchall.
The feathery look on the painted plate and the rim of the cookie plate was created by using a sea sponge to dab the etching cream onto the surface.
And here's etching on china. The pig was placed in dip'n etch and the letter M was etched onto the center of the plate with cream then enhanced with gold rub'n buff. The Aloha sign is etched slate. The lantern has a different design etched on each side of each piece of glass which gave it a dimensional effect.
I used the same layering technique for the winter frame. 4
individual designs were etched on both sides of 2 pieces of glass which
were then layered in a float frame......
I hope you enjoyed this round up of etched designs and will try some etching yourself. You'll be amazed how professional your projects will look - perfect for your own home, or to give as a gift. Don't forget to use the code on the Designer Crafts blog for a special discount. Enjoy!
Y'all come back now............
Yours truly,
Julie :)
KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON CRAFTING!
