Glass Etching Using Wax

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Glass etching using wax is another etching technique that is as easy as glass etching the glass,glass etching the mirror or even glass engraving using rotary tool and gives equally beautiful effect.

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Things You Need:

• Glass
• Paraffin Wax
• Bee Wax
• Brush
• Template/Pattern
• Hydrofluoric Acid
• Graver
• Gloves

Method:

• Wash the glass with window cleaner and dry it completely with the paper towel,then place the template under the glass.
• Melt the wax.
• Cover the glass surface with an equable thin layer of  melted wax with the brush.
• Let the coated wax dry and then begin etching the design placed under the glass with the graver.
• Make sure to remove any jewelry you are wearing on your hands,so as to avoid the unnecessary etches.
• Once the design is completely etched,make the thick and high boundaries of the glass with the bee wax,so as to avoid the flow of acid off the glass.
• Wear your gloves and pour hydrofluoric acid on the glass and let it stay for 5-6 minutes,but if the acid is quite old then let it stay for 7-8 minutes.
• When the respective time has passed,make a hole in the corner of one of the boundary of bee wax and drain all the acid.
• After all acid has drained,remove the bee wax and wash the glass with warm water,removing all the paraffin wax from the glass.
• Wash the glass properly with the dish cleaner and warm water and there you go,you have beautifully etched glass.
• If you want to change this etched glass to mirror,then give it to your glass merchant and he will get it done for you.

Glass Engraving Using Rotary Tool

  








 

Glass engraving is one of the enjoyable engraving activity that you can adopt as hobby or make money with it,it's always fun. You don't need to be good at drawing or be very artistic,if you cannot do freehand drawing, you can just trace paper patterns, photos, quotations,florals,simply anything through the glass and carry on with engraving,use it for yourself or get appreciation by giving the engraved gifts.

 Things You Need

• Glass( a glass,a vase,Picture frame etc)
• Pattern/Template
• Non Permanent Marker
• Engraving Tool(Rotary tool)
• Grinding Bits(For engraving large areas )
• Diamond Bits(For finer engraving like thin lines or final touches)
• Damp Cloth
• Glass Cleaner
• Surgical Mask
• Goggles
• Ear Plugs



Grinding bits image by:etoolshop.co.uk





Diamond bits image by:biztrademarket.com




Method

• Choose a glass object to engrave and clean it with the glass cleaner.
• Trace the template you want to engrave on the glass,either,using stencil or by sticking the tracing paper on the inner side of glass and copying the design with the non permanent marker.
• Put on your Surgical mask and goggles to protect your eyes, mouth and nose from glass dust,and earplugs to avoid the noise of rotary tool that can be distracting.
• Using the rotary tool, start engraving your glass object on the pattern you drew.
• For the wide area and broad pattern,use grinding bits and for finer lines and compact design use diamond bits.
• Glass engraving will produce glass dust so wipe the glass often with the damp cloth to clear the surface. Continue drilling and wiping repeatedly until your design is finished and the engraving is complete.
• Once your glass is engraved,clean it with the glass cleaner.



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• Always work in well ventilated area and with good lighting. 
• Before glass engraving,make sure to use surgical mask,ear plugs and goggles.
• Glass dust can even cut your hands so be careful with it,and clean it with damp cloth or paper towel.

Glass Etching and color effect



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Image by:easycraft.biz



Image by:classglassusa.com

Glass etching in itself  adds elegance to the glass,but if you are bored with the simple etching on glass,you can easily make it verstyle by adding color to it.

Image by:easycraft.biz

All the material you require is same as that we used in glass etching with the addition of  acrylic paints.

For method of etching, just simply follow the steps of glass etching,and after washing and drying the glass,cover the etched part with the masking tape and apply acrylic color to the rest of the glass.

Image by:easycraft.biz



Image by:easycraft.biz



Donot use many colors,as that would kill the etched effect,use of single color enhances the delicacy of the galss etching with colors.

Glass Etching The Mirror



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Image by:tables-mirrors.com

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 Glass etching the mirror is exactly similar to etching the glass,and the result is beautiful.With the change of saturation material you can add diversity to your work and have lots of different etched crafts.

For instructions,please follow http://living4artncraft.blogspot.com/2010/10/sophisticated-glass-etching-technique.html

Glass Etching

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crystalglassstudio.com

Glass etching means to create an art on the glass surface by applying acidic substance.

Glass etching adds elegance and sophistication to ordinary household items,that can be the effect of a clear design on a frosted background  or vice versa.The glass etching can be done on mirrors,frames,vases,glasses and even windows and make the items more appealing.





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instructables.com



Things You Need:

• Etching cream(available from major crafts stores)
• Stencil(either get one from arts n crafts store or make your own at home)
• Disposable gloves.
• Bucket of  warm water
• Safety glasses
• Glass cleaner
• Dish cleaner



Image by:
classglassusa.com

• Paper towels
• Masking tape
• Piece of Glass

Method:

1. Wash the glass with window cleaner and dry it completely with the paper towel before placing the stencil.
2. Carefully place the stencil on the glass.If you have made your own stencil then stick it to the glass with the masking tape properly,else stick the stencil to the glass with the adhesive side of the stencil  to the glass.



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in2art.com

3. Cover the rest of the glass with the masking tape so that it does not get etched.
4. Before applying etching cream to the desired portion,make sure to wear disposable gloves and eye protection as etching cream is highly caustic and can be harmful.
5. With the brush,apply a thick even coat of etching cream to the exposed glass.
6. Also make sure that etching cream is evenly spreaded on corners and edges.
7. Wait for 15-20 minutes.
8. Carefully wipe off the etching cream with paper towel after 20 minutes,and dispose the paper towel properly as etching cream is very acidic and harmful if comes in contact with the skin.
9. Remove the gloves,and wash the etched glass with warm water and dish cleaner so as to remove any residue of etching cream.
10. Remove the stencil and finally clean the glass with glass cleaner and paper towel.
11. There you go,glass etching is complete and the glass is beautifully etched.

Stencil Making.

We have done the basics of glass painting like stained glass,opaque painting,use of crystalline colors and mosaics with or without grout.Now it is time to work on glass etching techniques but before we proceed I would like you people to learn about making stencils,though you can get many from arts n crafts shop,but just think that you like some pattern and you want that as your stencil so that you can etch it on your glass or mirror.In that case, making your own stencil is the best thing especially when you cannot find the same thing from shop.

Things You Need:

• Pattern/template(you wish to make your stencil of)
• Crafts knife
• Transparent Plastic Sheet
• Thin Markers

Method:

1. Place the transparent sheet on the pattern/template you want to make stencil of.
2. Trace it out with the marker very carefully and neatly.
3. With the help of paper cutter carefully cut out the outlines of pattern so as to get your stencil.

Note:

1. If your pattern is large enough to fit on one transparent plastic sheet,then you may join the required number of sheets but slightly overlapping each other.
2. After tracing the pattern on transparent sheet,you can also color it with the colors you desire to use at later stages,so that you have clear picture of what you will get on your actual painting.
3. Don't throw the cut out pieces of the stencil,you can also use those in other glass etching techniques.

Glass Mosaic Using Grout

Image by:riversonfinemosaics

Image by:riversonfinemosaics

  

As we have done the simple mosaic without grout,now the mosaic using grout wouldn't be a great deal.We will work on glass now.

Things You Need:

• Glass(any size and shape you require)
• Cut pieces of a glass(colored or clear)
• Beads or stones(for additional touch,optional)
• Adhesive glue(you can get from any hardware store )
• Transparent color(available from arts and crafts shop)
• Thin marker(for tracing the design on the wood)
• Sanded Grout
• Acrylic Paint(any color)
• PVA wood Glue(or any glue with the same consisitency as PVA glue)
• Sponge
• Water
• tweezers



Image by:mosaicartsource.wordpress.com

• Hand gloves

Method:

1. Get your glass ready and trace the template on it,as we have been doing before, but don't outline it with the liquid lead.
2. Once you have the template on the glass,start sticking the glass mosaics and deacorative beads or stones with the adhesive glue, following the pattern of your design.
3. We are going to use grout here,so,stick the mosaics at some distance.
4. After sticking all the cut pieces of glass and decorative beads or stones,let the glue dry properly.
5. Again,if u didn't use colored  glass for mosaic,then,using transparent paints you can add color to the clear glass pieces yourself.
6. Choose the colors you want to fill in from transparent glass paints pack and adjust the consistency of paints by adding lacquer thinner.
7. When you are satisfied with the shade and consistency,paint the cut pieces of glass.
8. Let the paint dry completely.
9. Now,it is time to add grout.
10. For making the grout,take 1 cup of sanded grout and add in it,the glue and acrylic paint,just enough to make the thick consistency.
11. Mix it well,it is better to wear gloves and use your hands so that no sand is left dry and also you can feel large bits of sand and can remove them.
12. Carefully,take small amount of grout and spread on your design,adding more gradually, as you require.
13. Don't press the grout too hard else it will be shown under the mosaic.
14. Cover the whole glass with grout,if your mosaics are completely scattered,else just cover the template.  
15. Once the grouting is complete,remove the excess grout with the wet sponge,redo it till all excessive grout is removed,this will require great effort and care.
16. Please be patient and continue removing the grout with the sponge,do not put it under running water, else your grout will disappear.
17. Let it dry and the glass mosaic on glass is done.

Note:

• The enlargement of the template depends on what you plan to make and where do you want to keep it.
• For coloring the clear glass for mosaics,you can use any paint like crystalline,acrylic or transparent.
• You can use any saturation material you wish,as glass,mirror,wood.
• Incase,you are cutting the glass yourself,follow.
• Here I added a video on how to do glass mosaic using grout,it will be a great help.

Mosaic Without Grout

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Glass mosaic is done by adhering the cut or broken glass pieces to any other glass,mirror,wood,or even to a lampshade or vase. Lets make it simple and work on a piece of wood,once you know the tricks then you can apply the same method to any saturation material you want.

Things You Need:

• A piece of wood(any size and shape you require)
• Cut pieces of a glass(colored or clear)
• Adhesive glue(you can get from any hardware store )
• Transparent paints(available from arts and crafts shop)
• Thin marker/Lead pencil(for tracing the design on the wood)
• Liquid lead(available from arts and crafts shop)

Method:

1. Get your wood  ready and trace the template on it,as we have been doing before, but dont outline it with the liquid lead.
2. Once you have the template on the wood,start sticking the glass mosaics with the adhesive glue, following the pattern of your design.
3. We are not using grout here,so,while sticking the mosaics,keep in mind,lesser the gaps between the mosaics sticked,the better it is,as it will make your work look neat and ofcourse will require less effort in filling those gaps at later stages.



Image by:theageofelegance

4. After sticking all the cut pieces of glass,fill in the gaps between the pieces neatly with lead.
5. Let it dry and then start outlining the design with liquid lead.
6. Let the lead dry completely for about 2 hours.
7. Again,if u didn't use colored  glass for mosaic,then,using transparent paints you can add color to the clear glass pieces yourself.
8. Choose the colors you want to fill in from transparent glass paints pack and adjust the consistency of paints by adding lacquer thinner.
9. When you are satisfied with the shade and consistency,paint the cut pieces of glass.
10. Let the paint dry completely first and then reapply the lead and let it dry for 2 hours.
11. Now your mosaic work is ready to be used as per your desire.

Note:

• It is not necessary that you use finely cut pieces of glass,you can even use any broken glass for the purpose.
• The enlargement of the template depends on what you plan to make and where do you want to keep it.
• For coloring the clear glass for mosaics,you can use any paint like crystalline,acrylic or transparent.
• Incase,you are cutting the glass yourself,this would be helpful:

• The following video will show you how to glue the mosaics to the wood,however in this video the lady will be using grout ,so she is giving enough space between the pieces,but as we are working without grout,so remember,lesser the spacing between two mosaics sticked the better it is.

Get you back with mosaic using grout....Have fun.

Making An Opaque Glass Painiting.

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Opaque paints are mostly used for making conventional paintings like figures and still life as against stained glass which is more appropriate for making lamp shades and sun catchers,due to fact that transparent paints used for stained glass has property of reflecting light which is not in the opaque colors.

Image by:everything-stained-glass

Here I will tell you how to work with opaque paints but the fun part is that we do not necessarily need opaque colors ,we can do our job even with the transparent colors and have the same opaque effect.Interseting ...isn't it???

Things You Need:

• Glass (any size and thickness you wish)
• Craft knife(for cutting leads)
• Liquid lead(available in bottles and tubes from arts and crafts shop)
• Opaque glass paints or Transparent glass paints(available in variety of brands and shades from arts and crafts shop)
• Thin marker(for tracing the design on the glass)
• Paint brushes of various sizes.

Method:

1. Get your template and glass ready as done earlier while making stained glass .
2. Trace the design and outline it in one of the two ways: either in one step with liquid lead or first copying the design on glass with trace paper and then making the outlines with the liquid lead. For details and video tutorials please follow the outlining techniques done in stained glass earlier.
3. After the outlines of the design are completely dry, it’s time to fill in the colors but here the method is bit different.
4. If you have opaque paints with you,then simply start painting as done before but not the overflow as in stained glass.All we want is nice and completely filled template.
5. But if you don't have opaque paints and can't even get some then don't think that you can't make  opaque glass painting,stop feeling low and start working with transparent colors.YES,with some mixing of transparent colors and little effort ,you can have a beautiful opaque painting in front of you.
6. If you remember, we mixed the transparent colors with lacquer thinner for making the stained glass,but now here we are going to use tansparent colors,but we will not make their consistency thin by mixing it with the thinner,rather we will make the desired color opaque.
7. A transparent paint can be made opaque by adding white paint to it,but please make sure to use white paint that belongs to the transparent paint box.
8. As per your convenience, you can either first make all your required opaque paints by mixing of the transparent colors with white and then do all filling of color in your design,or do it gradually.
9. I recommend to move step by step,first add some white paint to some part of  the portion of your design you are working on,then take another brush and add your desired paint to the same portion but at some distance to the white color added,carefully begin mixing the two colors.
10. If your template is floral,then shading effect will enhance its beauty,so slow and careful  mixing of the two colors will make it easy for you to give the shading effect and the variation of lighter and darker shade.
11. But if you want to have filling of single color then simply go on with the mixing and adding colors.
12. After your design is completely painted and dried,reapply the lead and again let it dry.
13. Remember that this glass painting will not be displayed with the painted side at front,rather it will be in the reverse direction.