I love the smooth, silky feeling of beads etched right. When I first started etching beads, I used Etch-all and a dunk in baking soda solution to neutralize the acid. Often I was left with a chalky feeling and bits of white residue. I now use milk. Any milk with fat in it will do. After you pull the beads out of the etching solution, drop them in a cup of milk. The milk will curdle, but when you rinse off your beads I think you will be pleased with the results. If they are transparants, they actually glow a bit in the light.
Please add a comment about how you etch your beads.
I was never super happy with the acid etch so I switched a few years ago to using my sandblaster to etch beads – no chemicals. At first I had grit too course and that left a rough texture on the beads so I had to buy super fine grit. Works great, smooth beads, no chemicals, no mess (I use a blast cabinet).
Something I discovered by accident with etched beads is that if you use a little scented hand lotion (I had some on my hands that hadn’t been absorbed) it will smooth the beads to a sort of mat gloss,not as dull as etched but not shiny, and the etched glass will pick up a trace of the scent (I like lavender). Try it on some experi-beads to see if you like the effect!
WOW, I’ve been doing the milk thing too, but guess what? I thought you had to rinse the etch liquid off the beads before you dipped them in milk… doh! I had wondered why I wasn’t getting the same results others were. NOW I know! Excellent tip!
I’ve never had good luck with etching creme… I much prefer to use the etching liquid. I just string my beads with some space inbetween and let them soak right in the jar, no need for clean up. Also, many people complain about etching Bullseye glass. I have never had a problem. If you’re patient and just let them sit a minute or two extra, they WILL etch! Try it… especially with the Bullseye Fuscia… mmmmmm *drool*.
I don’t suppose you can successfully etch borosilicate beads…
http://artofthefirebird.com/wordpress/2007/11/21/etching-beads/
What a great tip! I don’t etch beads often so I haven’t had the opportunity to compare both the milk results and just rinsing them off. Thanks.