Glass etching question

Margie Gresham
by Margie Gresham
I just cut 8 letters from contact paper BUT did them backwards, I left the solid letter and have already put them on my glasses.
#1-any suggestion on how to design the rest of the area so I do not have to recut them?
#2-I could not locate any etching cream so I am going to try the spray from Wal Mart. is that a bad idea?
  6 answers
  • Julie McGuffee Julie McGuffee on Dec 10, 2016

    If you want a permanent etch, use etchall® etching creme. It's creamy, doesn't smell and it's re-usable. You can find it at www.etchall.com. Not sure why you cut the letters out backwards. If you etch the outside of the glass, the letters will be the right way round.

  • Margie Gresham Margie Gresham on Dec 12, 2016

    I cut the B out and left the B as is on the glass. It would had been a lot easier to cut the inside of the B out and left the B area to be etched is what I am trying to say. Dumb mistake but done. thanks for your time.

  • Tinydancer Tinydancer on Dec 13, 2016

    There are no dumb mistakes. Actually, it sounds like a mistake I might have made. Merry Christmas!! Celebrate The Son!


  • Larry Chura Larry Chura on Dec 13, 2016

    There are basically three ways to etch glass. 1) chemically 2) sand blast 3) scratch. Chemically is the easiest and can leave the sharpest lines. Scratching, leaves a textured feel and look while sand blast can leave a semi faded look. You can not undo any of these but you can mix them to make a dimensional look. Reversing the letters is an old problem that every one has been dealing with forever. With the chemical method, I have always liked the cream that I brush on. I also like to put contact paper on the glass and draw the shape that I want. I then cut it out with an E-xacto knife. in the past I got a three hinged glass frame. I drew a picture of a beach scene on it that stretched over the three glass panes. This allowed me to cover long waves that were breaking. It came out okay. Good luck, it should come out killer.

  • Julie McGuffee Julie McGuffee on Dec 14, 2016

    I have some step by step tutorials on my blog, Life in the Craft Lane @ www.juliemcguffee.blogspot.com for both etching with cream and liquid. Put "glass etching" in the search box and you'll see a few to look at. I bet you'll do great.!