Show and Tell: Etched Glass Tumblers

Hi everyone! Miss Abigail here. About a week ago a friend of mine gave me these "etched glass kits" and asked me if I wanted to give it a try (with warnings of "this is acid, so you'll have to be really careful and dextrous.") Judging from the cover of the kits, glass etching looked like one of the coolest and classiest crafts ever!

Fast forward to Wednesday. I opened up the kits to get the party started, and after reading through the instructions and preparing a work space (because protecting the kitchen table is always a good idea, right?) I decided to jump right in. This was going to be awesome!

Isobel was right when she said the etching cream is dangerous. The bottle says that it causes severe burns and damage and may be fatal, and according to ye olde Internet, it is on the same scale as battery acid. How fun. This is why nitrile gloves exist!

So after being warned about the dangers of glass etching cream, I started playing with different designs on the glass tumblers that came in the first kit. I ended up going with a simple double stripe design to start with.

The process of creating your design and taping it onto the glass is pretty easy. You just cut strips of vinyl tape and arrange them how you like on the glass. It's a lot like placing an adhesive stencil - except you're the one creating the stencil with strips of tape. Really, the hardest part is deciding on a design. If you're like me, you can't decide whether to go with this idea or that one. (The etching cream bottle did say "permanent," after all, in bold letters.)

So I decided on a simple newbie design and got to the real work/fun/potential finger-destroying action. I pulled on my nitrile gloves, stirred my bottle of acid cream, and started spreading it over the areas within the tape. It's crazy how similar this is to stenciling. Just think, Abby, years ago you were  a fresh-faced ten-year-old just learning how to paint within the lines. Now you've graduated to using those techniques to make classy tumblers that you can use at dinner parties, or other events that call for fancy glasses.

So after I finished with the etching cream (fingers still intact so far) I had to let it sit for about five minutes, to allow the acid to do its work. Then it was time to rinse it off, wipe away the stubborn remaining globs, dry it and peel away the tape. Aaaaand....

...Ta-da! It looked great! Now I know how one achieves that "frosted" look on a glass. After I finished the other one I put them together in their own little set.

Then I got started on the other kit, which was a pair of glass flutes in need of classy etching. I tried a much more intricate design on those (shamelessly stolen from the cover of the box, because I really liked that design and my first initial happens to be A.) They turned out really nice too, and I think they'll make great little juice glasses. So I'm pretty pleased with how things turned out, and happy that I tried something new. I think we need to go to Walmart now and get more glasses! This glass etching business is definitely something I could get used to.

Hope Chest Christmas

Miss Abigail received two major gifts for her hope chest this year for Christmas - dishes and flatware. Some months ago, Abby and I went window shopping to see if we could find dishes and silverware that she liked. The parameters were simple. She had to like the patterns (she likes classic looking patterns.) They needed to be of high quality and they needed to be affordable. We went to several stores just to look and we found a flatware pattern that she liked right away - Oneida's "Camlyn" pattern. Abigail likes the contrast between the brushed finish and the shiny. I was happy with Oneida's quality and availability. We looked and looked at dishes. Abigail wanted a neutral color and thought white would work. She liked the idea of Corelle partly because that is what is in my cupboard and because these dishes are so sturdy and lightweight. But the white is very plain and the current patterns just didn't appeal as much. Then we saw these wonderful embossed Corelle dishes in Kohl's and she thought they were just the ticket, but they are so much more expensive than the regular Corelle. We kept looking and found them in Bed, Bath and Beyond as well - equally expensive. So we've just kept looking for all these months and never found anything else that she likes as well. Earlier in December I went shopping for Christmas and lo, and behold Target had this Corelle in stock and it was on sale for a very nice price. Hooray! They also had the Onieda "Camlyn" pattern and it was also on sale. Thankfully, I've been saving money for quite some time for just this purchase and was so pleased to get both the dishes and the flatware for much less than I thought I would have to pay. Thank heaven for tender mercies.

 

These crystal tumblers were Abigail's hope chest birthday gift this year. She likes the idea of these tumblers as a kind of compromise between everyday sturdy glasses (plastic perhaps) and the fine crystal goblets she has from her grandmother. Both the embossed Corelle and the flatware are fancy enough for dressed up dinners, yet simple enough for everyday. Abigail can also buy additional patterns of Corelle from the open stock to mix and match if she wanted to create a different look or theme. The crystal tumblers really dress up the place setting.

So, there are two very big items crossed of the list. I'm pleased to have that purchase made.

Afternoon Tea - A Birthday Party for Miss Abigail

Miss Abigail and I hosted an afternoon tea for our club ladies in honor of Abigail's birthday. It was so fun and turned out so well. Of course, not being a tea drinker myself, I enlisted the help of our good friend Isobel, who handled the all important tea. Isobel brewed several kinds, including a local herbal tea. Abigail and I had only to make the sandwiches and goodies. There was an important reason why I wanted to host the tea. Long-time readers might remember that one of our good friends gave Abigail a beautiful tea set for her hope chest. Three years have gone by and we have never "baptized" the tea set. There seems to be so many rules about having a tea, but the one very important lesson that I've learned from being with friends over tea is that it really, truly isn't about the tea. It is, above all, completely about the friends. But the rest of it is kind of fun too.

I really wanted Miss Abigail to learn what was involved in hosting a tea party, in particular one that includes those who don't drink tea as well as those who do. Pat's gift of the tea set was such a sincere wish for Abigail to enjoy this kind of party that I wanted to help Abigail get past that first intimidating experience. I don't want the tea set to languish in her hope chest as a sort of "sacred object," too pretty and so intimidating to actually use. Plus, I thought it would be nice to attach a memory to it as well. Now when she uses the set again, she will remember as well the wonderful women who have taught her to enjoy taking tea. It was a fabulous day and we all had a lovely time. We only wished for Pat to be there too. Alas.

White Bird Serving Dishes

These pretty serving pieces were my gift to Miss Abigail for her sixteenth birthday. She helped me pick them out and I am glad she chose plain white. Such a nuetral color will make them versatile. We were thinking how pretty they would be on a "tea" table, or even on a mantle or lamp table with shells.

A Peek Inside - Autumn Plate Chargers

These pretty autumn plate chargers were a happy find for Miss Abigail's hope chest. I was in Walmart a couple of days before Thanksgiving and saw them for a terrific price. Abigail loves to set a pretty table and I knew she would like to have these in her stash. So I purchased a set of six.

I was quite amazed at the difference these chargers made on the table. The food looked like it was styled for a magazine and we felt very elegant this year! We'll continue to use them occasionally and make happy memories for her hope chest.

A Peek Inside - Turkey Salt & Pepper Shakers

The hope chest is a wonderful place to gather and treasure heirlooms. I don’t have a lot of heirlooms from previous generations to pass on to my children. In spite of this, with some foresight and planning, I can create an heirloom. An heirloom is simply an object of special value, passed from one generation to another. These objects don’t necessarily need to be valuable in a monetary way, just made special somehow through loving memories and sentimental feelings.

Miss Abigail loves Thanksgiving. She loves to decorate the house and set the table with our fancy dishes. We often have company to dinner and she loves being with friends and family. I’m sure she will have many happy memories of Thanksgiving. So, I want to collect a few things to send into her future home, to strengthen these memories. I bought these simple, vintage-looking salt and pepper shakers. I’ll use them at Thanksgiving for the remaining years that Abigail is at home, and then put them in the hope chest. An almost instant heirloom.

A Peek Inside - Tea Set

Last week, Miss Abigail was very happily surprised with a wonderful gift for her hope chest. In honor of many happy days spent together enjoying tea and company, Pat Humme, one of Abigail's special Stanley Ladies, presented her with a full china tea set, including several serving pieces and cups for eight. "Every young lady needs a tea set," Pat said, "especially Abigail." Pat also included a lovely cutwork tablecloth and eight matching embroidered napkins. It is a magnificent gift and much appreciated. Abigail is now cheerfully planning tea parties and will be a most elegant hostess, thanks to Pat.

Of course Pat knows that neither Miss Abigail nor I drink traditional green tea. Our Mormon friends might well blink their eyes. But the ladies have taught us that having tea together is more about enjoying company (and chocolate and biscuits) anyway. Hot cocoa, herbal tea, mulled cider, tart lemonade or memorable root beer floats are usually on the table for us. Pat is moving to Missouri to be close to her family there and we will miss her painfully, especially on Tuesdays and always at tea time.