Using a Silhouette machine, you can create a stencil and apply glass-etching cream to a glass surface to create a custom glass-etched design. It may sound a bit daunting, but the process is fairly simple. Just follow along to see how it’s done.

Supplies Needed:

1. Open the design in Silhouette Studio®. Make sure you have plenty of room on the sides of your design to protect the surrounding glass. (If you don’t, you can place painters tape around the outside of the vinyl to prevent any etching cream from getting onto the glass.)

2. Place the stencil vinyl onto your cutting mat, and load the cutting mat into your Silhouette. Select “Vinyl, Glossy” from the material drop-down menu in the Send panel, adjust the blade to the suggested settings (unless you use an AutoBlade), and click Send.

3. With the Silhouette hook tool, carefully remove THE DESIGN from the vinyl so that you create a stencil with the remaining negative space. This is a little tricky because it’s different from what you do with regular vinyl. Just think of it as the etching cream, not the stencil, is what’s creating your design. So be sure to remove the actual design.

4. Apply transfer tape over your design and use the scraper to remove any bubbles. Remove the vinyl backing. Make sure all the pieces of the stencil adhere to the transfer tape.

5. Apply the adhesive side of the vinyl to clean, dry glass. Smooth the vinyl over the glass with the scraper tool to remove any bubbles.

6. Once the vinyl is really secure, peel away the transfer tape. Make sure all the pieces of the stencil remain on the glass.

 


7. Using a cotton swab or the scraper tool, apply a thick and even layer of etching cream to the exposed glass. Let the cream set for 30–60 seconds. Wear protective gloves when working with glass etching cream and don’t get it in your eyes! Carefully scrape the remaining cream back into the bottle. Wipe away any residual etching cream away with a paper towel and wash the glass thoroughly.

8. Peel the vinyl off the surface of the glass. Remove any fingerprints with glass cleaner.