Etched Mirror Ornament...From Christmas To Spring

I'm all about trying new things lately and I've been curious about etching on glass.  I found these cute mirror ornaments for $0.50 a piece at Michael's after Christmas and decided to use them to give etching a try.  I considered etching snowflakes onto the them but then decided that I was in the mood for spring...so I etched SPRING onto it instead.

Supplies
Glass or mirrored piece
Etching cream (I got mine cheap at Hobby Lobby with a 40% off coupon)
Paint brush
Stencil (I used Contact Paper but stickers or tapes would also work)
Credit card
Instructions

• Place your stencil or stickers onto your piece.  I cut mine out of Contact Paper using the Cricut.  You can easily cut your own with scissors or any craft knife.  You can also use any stickers or any other medium that masks off the positive or negative space you wish to treat.
• I used a credit card to run across my stencil to ensure that it was sufficiently stuck onto the surface.

• Apply your etching medium with a paint brush.

• The instructions on the bottle said to let the cream sit for 5 minutes.  That was not near enough time for the process to happen.  I left it on for about 30 to 45 minutes and then rinsed with water.

• Gently peel away stencil.

• I wasn't impressed with the etching upon removing the stencil.  I went online to research and found that the etching process continues a little further after the cream has been removed.  After about an hour or two the final etch looked good.  I wish they would have said that on the bottle. 
• I replaced the silver ribbon with a more spring approriate colored ribbon and it's ready to hang.

My Newest Obsession...Moss

I have found an incredible medium that I absolutely love...moss!  I was browsing the isles at my local Dollar Tree store and I found myself looking at the floral/vase section.  They had a bag of what looked like moss covered stones.  I had been brainstorming to think of how I was going to decorate my cool re-claimed greenhouse  for all of the seasons of the year.  These green moss stones got the creative juices flowing.  I bought a few bags of the faux stones (for a whopping $1 a piece) and then my obsession began.

If you follow me on my Christmas blog (The Christmas Guy) then you know that I'm the king of making a wide variety of ornaments using the plain clear glass ornaments you can purchase at many craft stores.  My moss mission began with thoughts of covering those ornaments with the moss.

My search for moss ended at Hobby Lobby where I found moss in pre-packaged sheets.  These sheets have a webbed backing that makes it super easy to attach to things.  A package of this great stuff cost $6.99 but was a deal when I used my 40% off coupon (coupons for hobby lobby can be found online weekly at www.hobbylobby.com). 

I am in love with this product.  I have intentions "mossing" anything and everything that I can get my hands on.  What until you see some of the things I have done with this moss.  I don't have pics of these ornaments in action.  I'll post those after I get all of my spring decor put up in the living room.  Stay tuned!

NOTE: While these are very spring and summer friendly, they can also easily be used in your Christmas decor.  For instance, a garden themed tree or a tree that incorporates other natural dried elements.  Don't be surprised if you see these somewhere in my trees for Christmas 2012

Supplies
Ornaments (old or new)
Moss (I buy the sheets rather than a bag of just loose moss)
Scissors
Glue gun & glue

Instructions

• Start buy cutting some random pieces from your moss sheets.

• Carefully apply glue your moss pieces.

• Apply the pieces to your ornament.  You may need to do some creative folding but you'll find that these moss sheets are very forgiving.  You'll need to start cutting specific sized pieces to fill in holes as you work your way around your ornament.  The moss is very easy to use.