Glass Etching and Permanent Wine Charms

Here's a little project I did back around Christmas time. Matt and I drew my parents names for the gift exchange, which pretty much meant that I did all the shopping for both of them. Took a good deal of brainstorming to get that together, especially since I tend to be a picky gift giver. I got to thinking that they tend to host a lot of family get-togethers at their house. All of which involves vast quantities of margaritas, beer, and wine coolers. Once the good times start to roll, one tends to forget which glass is theirs and where they put it down last. We like to share a meal, but not the germs, thus the problem. Wine charms would be one solution. But seeing as how the players don't change, why not make something a little more permanent like etched monograms on drinking glasses? Perfect.

 Here's what you want to do. Buy a couple cases of drinking glasses. You can get a dozen for a ten spot at Target.  Cut letters out with your electronic die cut machine of choice with vinyl. I went ahead and cut boxes around them as well, so my stencils would be easy to work with. Place negatives on your glasses.










Spread glass etching cream evenly just on the stencil part. I found mine at Michael's back in the glass painting section. Used a coupon and got it for around $7.

Wait 2 minutes (wow...faster than I thought) and rinse off cream. Remove the stencil and you have a nice monogram. Cheers!











On the whole, this was a much simpler project than what I had originally thought. Not a lot of effort with a whole lot of WOW at the end. I highly recommend adding this to your crafty arsenal. I really need some of these for my house. Players do tend to change however, depending on who we have over. Will either do a whole alphabet set with extras (seeing as I have a hutch to fill, might look cool) or go with numbers. Hmmmm. Might be a fun project this weekend.



Tips for working with glass etching cream:

1. It is an acid. It will irritate your skin and ruin surfaces. Handle very carefully and cover your work surface.

2. If you wear eyeglasses, I recommend wearing a pair of safety goggles over them. All it takes is a little cream to splash on your lenses when you go to rinse and they are ruined. Ask Matt.

3. Buy a couple extra glasses. You are going to have some rejects. OK if it is just for you, but not so much if they are a gift.