How's this done?

[David de Oliveira]

Hello everyone,
I came across an old glass sign in Lisbon with a very interessing effect. It is like water droplets. Can anyone tell me how is this done?
Cheers

[Danny Baronian]

Hi David,


the image you've posted is too soft to be certain, but I'd guess it's been acid etched.


A quick search on this forum for acid etching and embossing gives this result:


viewtopic.php?f=2&t=2785&p=13560&hilit= ... ing#p13560

[David de Oliveira]

Thank you Danny!

[Danny Baronian]

Hi David,


looking over my response the url I posted, really didn't address the technique you were asking about. The url I posted previously included sand blasting, acid etching and acid embossing with little info re etching.


The following lists information on acid etching.


Mica for acid etching:


viewtopic.php?f=2&t=3887&p=21459&hilit= ... ing#p21459


Methods of acid etching a project by Larry White:


viewtopic.php?f=2&t=3360&p=18389&hilit= ... ing#p18389

For more information, do a search on the forum for acid, HF, etching and embossing.

[John Smith]

please be aware that Hydrofluoric Acid that is commonly used in acid etching
is a SEVERE carcinogen - it is readily absorbed through the skin and goes directly
to the bone to cause bone cancer. very dangerous stuff if not used correctly.
I learned acid etching from Rick Glawson "way back when" and you can get some
awesome results in glasswork.

[Doug Bernhardt]

All the advice re; safety is well worth regarding. All that said there are remarkable results available with mixed techniques....for instance acid etching chipped areas etc. This could easily be one of these techniques but the image as mentioned is far to difficult to make out. Good luck at working this out and would love to see more sharper images of the project.