Glass Etching Tutorial- no cutting machine needed!

As promised, I am going to share with you my version of glass etching. The first glass etching tutorial I saw was earlier this summer on Make It and Love It and it is a great tutorial with the cutest etching projects!!! Then I saw Jen's version on Tatertots and Jello, once again, a great tutorial and a cute project. If you have a cutting maching (Silhouette, Cricut, etc.) I recommend following one of those ladies to see how they made vinyl stencils for their glass etching projects. That is what I did when I made my MIL's birthday gift...

I wanted to try glass etching without using my Silhouette so that I can show you how easy it would be to do without using a cutting machine. So this is what I made.....

And this is how I made it...

What you need:
Glass object you would like to PERMANENTLY etch (mine is a fishbowl vase that I rescued from my MIL's goodwill donation box)
Painters tape or masking tape
Armour Etching Cream- I bought my bottle at Michael's but it is for sale on Walmart's site as well. I looked at AC Moore but the line they sell is more expensive and comes in two bottles that you have to mix. So, to save money and time, I recommend Armour Etch. (The price still isn't ideal but you use such a small amount per project that it will go a long way!)
Paintbrush
Scissors (to cut tape)

I used painters tape to form a stencil for the letter "E" on my glass bowl. I used scissors to trim the tape to make the right shape and size of the letter.

Once I was happy with my letter, I brushed on the etching cream. I followed the directions on the bottle for application but left it on for 15 minutes.

Once the time passed, I rinsed off the cream and made sure that it looked even across the letter (at this point, you could apply another coat and leave for another 15 minutes if you aren't happy with the first coat's results). I peeled off the painter's tape and it was complete!

I decided to glue a candle stick to the bottom of my vase to turn it into a pedestal.

And then I filled it with a dollar store vase filler. And it was complete!