Glass.

I mentioned yesterday that it has been hot, and I have been looking for non-baking things to do (in the sadly ineffective hope of keeping my house cool).

One thing I have been wanting to try for a while is etching glass. Since I have lots of time on my hands this week, it seemed like a good time to try! So I picked up some supplies at the craft store (hint to my fellow teachers... Micheal's offers 15% discounts to teachers! You have to ask for it at the check out, and sometimes they want to see some form of proof - I keep my ATA card in my wallet for such occasions... since I've never found any other use for it.)

Etching glass is very easy, since a glass etching cream does all the work for you! The most labor intensive part (for me anyways) is making the stencils out of contact paper, since I was unimpressed with all the pre-made stencils I found. Simply apply the stencil to the object to be etched, paint on the cream, wait (they recommend 60 seconds.. I advocate more like 6-10 minutes for the best image), rinse and rub! Done!

Whatever surface the cream touches will be etched, so you need to be careful when applying it. As well, the etching cream is extremely toxic and hazardous, so this activity is best not done with the kiddies. (The particular product I used, Armour Etch, is very effective, but covered in HHPS warning symbols for poison and corrosive chemicals, and the MSDS is enough to give anyone who knows how to read them the willies. You know it's good stuff when they print the Poison Control Center phone number on the bottle.)

I have since etched most of the vases in my house (they were so boring on their own) with little birds, spiced up some wine glasses for a shower gift, and made Jamie some Girl Gone Wild Docs themed mason jars!