Glass etching with an Air Eraser

Hello all, it's Danita from danitasdesigns.blogspot.com.

I will attempt to show you how easy it is to etch glass with an air eraser. It's not hard at all, once you get the hang of it.  Below is just a few of the glasses that I did for my cousin. She and her fiance will be giving these out to the groomsmen, as gifts.

 

Here's what you need:

1. Air Compressor

2.  Air eraser

3. Aluminum Oxide

Now that you have your supplies, you will need to cut out your pattern on you Die cutting machine. I used my Cameo. I find it best to use vinyl, but some people use clear contact paper. I just can't see what I'm doing with the clear contact paper. You may be able to use a printed or solid contact paper. Play around with it and see what works for you.

 

 

Once you get the pattern cut out, you will use the negatives and apply to the glasses.

Then you wan to tape off any parts of the glass that you don't want to etch:

 

 Now here's the setup

 

You can find list of how to make this homemade cabinet here. I got this information from one of the Facebook groups I'm in.  I just decided to change it up a bit and go with the clear plastic instead of the top. I personally think you can see better through the clear plastic. I use clips to hold the plastic in place, or you can use clothes pins. Oh, and you need a face mask for sure. You do not want to breathe in the oxide! I also wear gloves, but many of my friends do not and have had no problems. I also wear goggles.

 I place foil in the bottom of the cabinet to collect my oxide for re-cycling. Yes you can re-cycle, but be weary of debris.

Then you fill up the cup on top of the eraser. This is the only frustrating part. The cup is so small, you have to keep filling it up.

I set my compressor to 75 - 80 PSI.

Then it's time to blast away!!!

It's best to do the erasing in the day time so you can "see" what you have done.

 When finished you want to wash off the excess oxide and remove the tape.

Your vinyl will still be in tack and that's okay. You will began to peel it away once you have all the oxide rinsed off.

End results:

Thanks for looking and I hope I have encouraged you to try Air Erasing, but fair warning....It is addicting!!