Glass Etching

tedh

SPFG, Supreme Picture Framing God
Joined
Mar 13, 2002
Posts
12,608
Loc
Eastern Ontario
Business
Canal Gallery
Didn’t find anything on a search, so: has anyone etched captions or anything on the glazing of a frame job? A colleague has a Cricut machine, and it looks like this could be a profitable add-on.
 
I used to do glass etching as a hobby.
I've etched on framed mirrors and played around with etching framing glass.

Here's on example...
Post in thread 'Favorite Designs' https://www.thegrumble.com/threads/favorite-designs.84786/post-1102552 Favorite Designs

I hadn't introduced it as an option to offer customers.
The method I used (acid etching paste) requires a fair bit of time to create and setup the"resist" (a layer of vinyl to protect the rest of the glass from exposure to acid).
And you need a workspace with the ability to wash the glass with plenty of running water. My shop doesn't have a large utility sink or bath tub, or even a water hose outside.

I believe there are other methods, but I hadn't looked into them.
 
We used to have a device that looked like a stereo speaker, but contained what was essentially a sandblaster. It worked well, but you had to make sure the glass was pressed firmly against the foam rubber top surface or grit escaped and was a real mess. I would think a Cricut would be just the thing for making a mask.
 
Using cricut vinyl to make stencils works really well. My brother was co-managing a liquor store for a few years and he would use a cricut and etching cream to decorate drinking glasses which sold well. Words turn out well because they are very linear and the cream doesn't work great when there is a large surface area to etch so avoid large open shapes.
 
My staffer etches names on glasses at a local bar/brewery, so she’s really good at it. I think we’ll try it out on a sample, see if it sells, and get back to y’all. $$$!
 
I have with the etching cream and some free-hand calligraphy to mixed results (mostly my ineptness).
I have had glass etched for a corporation (Logo) by a local Awards & Trophy business using a self contained sand blaster and that worked much better.
I think the logos were etched backwards on the inside of the glass, which I thought made them show up better. Something to consider in your experiments.
 
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