Etching glass beads

[Passionatelamper]

Hi all,
I would like to try and obtain a seaglass look on beads ...now! You use Transparent? Is there any particular way to do this?
I do have the etching fluid.
I was wanting some tips please as I love sea glass and I really thought you could melt it down but have been told that you can't.
Advice please? thank you.

[sparrow]

Hi chuck, if you type in 'etching' in the search function, you'll be bombarded with threads discussing etching in detail Happy etching!

[Lotti]

I just make a transparent bead (of what ever colour takes your fancy), kiln it, clean it and then follow the instructions on the bottle.  Make sure you wear protective clothing, the acid burns if you get it on your skin.  After the bead has been in the fluid you must put it in dilute bicarb of soda and then rise with water and make sure you clean out the hole.  You can resuse the fluid.  I poor the fluid when I am etching into an old plastic container and put the bead in with it.   Then transfer the bead to a pot with bicarb solution for a bit and then rise the bead off.  I poor the acid back into it's container and then rise the container that the bead and the acid were in with the bicarb solution and rise this out too.  Don't poor the acid down the sink as I nearly did cos I was thinking about something else the other day!  

I have probably made this sound much more complicated than it is!  Good luck, it's great fun and folks love these.

Oh yes, you can also put dark turq beads into the fluid for a short time if you get sooty marks on them and opaque colours also etch nicely, I find effetre purple is lovely etched.

[Kalorlo]

I dangle the beads on monofilament (fishing line stuff) in the bottle of etching fluid so I don't have to pour it about. I use big loose knots to make sure they're not touching, a stick to tie the monofilament to that sits across the bottle mouth, and when they're done I take them out and put the whole thing in bicarb.

[Passionatelamper]

Brill thanks honies....

[Lotti]

I dangle the beads on monofilament (fishing line stuff) in the bottle of etching fluid so I don't have to pour it about. I use big loose knots to make sure they're not touching, a stick to tie the monofilament to that sits across the bottle mouth, and when they're done I take them out and put the whole thing in bicarb.

Definately a better way of doing it, but I find my pot is a bit small, perhaps should do them in smaller batches or get a bigger pot!

[Mand]

Bicarb?  I've never rinsed my  beads off in bicarb - just removed them from the acid and put in a pot under running water all over and then through the holes.  Will my beads gradually disintegrate then if I haven't been doing this step?  Does it neutralise the dip n etch?  eeek.  Worried.  Mand x

[Madam Steph]

The bicarb neutralises the acid and makes it safer to handle and dispose of.

I made my first set of etched this week. I have a small pot of Dip n Etch and hung three at a time over the edge of the pot (it would easily have taken 4) hung on silverplated coppr wire, making sure that it was bent so that no part of the bead touched the sides or the other beads (this is to ensure even etching).

Try out one bead on its own first to make sure you dont ruin a whole set.
I had mine in a whole 15 mins, as I  was unfamiliar with the process and they didn't 'look' etched when i checked minute by minute.
The pot says for beads 1-5 mins, so I'm sure that that would be the best recommendation, as when they are wet you can't judge the etch.
I keep a small bowl of tepid water with a heaped teaspoon of bicarb (baking soda) at side of the etching pot and carefully dunk the bead (on its wire) into the  bowl of water and wiggle it about till the bubbles stop.
Then it's to the sink and beads and wire rinsed under running cold water. I then top up the bicarb bowl and carefully pour down the sink and run the tap after it.
Everything , bowl, wire and beads washed in washing up liquid and carefully dried for next time.

[dangerousbead]

I tie them loosely with cotton and dangle them directly so the pot so there's no decanting. Wiggle them about a couple of times to ensure all surfaces etch. I left some in for about three hours once and they were fine.

[Margram]

Mand, it is really important to do the bicarb bit - if any etch gets left in the bead holes it could end up on someone's neck or wrist and burn their skin. Everybody, please use goggles too

[LilLizaJane]

please use goggles too

Make sure you wear protective clothing

I'm a bit blase about all this!  Must be more careful. Although I do do the bicarb bit, and the holes.
I've left beads in the stuff for a couple of hours without doing any harm. The longer you leave them, the more pronounced the etch.

[Pat from Canvey]

was wanting some tips please as I love sea glass and I really thought you could melt it down but have been told that you can't.

Sea glass is just bottle glass that has been etched by the action of the waves on sand. You can melt it the same way you melt wine and Bombay Gin bottles but it will lose it's etched look. Pieces of glass can be put into a cold kiln and brought up to annealing temperature. Use a thick stringer to take out the glass from the kiln and melt as you would a rod, taking care not to get any of the stringer included in the bottle bead as the glasses are not compatible. Anneal and then etch to get back the sea glass look. As the bottle glass requires a lot of heat, it's best not to attempt a larger bead if you have a Hothead torch, but small beads are do able.

[Blue Box Studio]

Hi all,
I would like to try and obtain a seaglass look on beads ...now! You use Transparent? Is there any particular way to do this?
I do have the etching fluid.
I was wanting some tips please as I love sea glass and I really thought you could melt it down but have been told that you can't.
Advice please? thank you.

Yes you can, you just lose the frosting.  I'll bring you some to play with on the 7th.

[tinker]

I never knew about the bicarbonate either, they should put that on the tin!

[Passionatelamper]

Hi guys tis me 
Ok well I etched and I itched.... did 15 minutes on the transparent sea colours that I made yesterday which were lovely without etching  but did it! ok so this morning I etched did 15 minutes.
It's taken the shine off looks muted but it is still nice! Now! the thing is...I love this pitted look that you get with sea glass how do I obtain that please? I did try to melt some sea glass BANG!!!  whooo scared the pants off me...did it the 2nd time but it just took ages and besides...it went smooth on me well I can do that with Transparent. SO! the thing is! the pitted look! and I hear about sand blasting do I put them in sand dune and blow them up? lols... Sorry! Help please from all you incredibly clever peoples? 
Oh! I was just thinking could I tumble them in something gritty?