Etched Plate-Cookies for Santa

Throughout high school I worked as a waitress at a little family owned restaurant.  It was owned by a husband and wife; she did the cooking and he tended the bar.  I was the evening waitress and another lady worked lunch.

Needless to say, I spent a lot of time with the owners and they became almost like grandparents to me.  Soon after I went to college, they sold their business and retired.

I haven't seen either one of them in quite a while, so I wanted to surprise them with some Christmas cookies.  (When I waitressed for them, we often times made cookies in the evening.)

I bought a plate.

Using my Cricut, I cut out the words "Cookies for Santa."

Tip #1:  Use white contact paper, rather than vinyl; it is MUCH cheaper and still works great.
Tip #2:  You need to place your contact paper upside down on your cutting mat, so the letters are backwards.  OR  You can flip the letters using Sure Cuts a Lot and put the contact paper on the cutting mat like normal.

Using a small paintbrush, brush etching cream on the letters.  Now don't be skimpy with this stuff.  It is very expensive, but you have to use a lot.  You can reuse the extra, so don't fret.

After letting it set for 5 minutes, run the plate under the faucet and let the water wash away all the cream.  (If you want to reuse your cream, use the paintbrush to brush it off and then put it back in the container before rinsing the plate under water.)

Peel the contact paper off and use glass cleaner to clean your plate.

These photos are all awful, but it looks so much better in person.

I wanted the plate to be funny, so I didn't stop there.  I continued with my etching by crossing out "Santa" and putting "Mary Ann."

Here's how it turned out.  These photos don't do it justice, but I know she'll get a kick out of it! :)







Linked to:

Not Just a Housewife
Sugar Bee 
Bella Before and After 
New Nostalgia 
These Creative Juices
Sugar and Dots