If you’re looking for a beautiful, personalised gift, choose one made from glass that has been engraved. Glass engraving is an art form that has a long history going back to Roman times.
Glass engraving techniques
In 1975, the Guild of Glass Engravers (GGE) was founded to promote the art of glass engraving. Glass engraving is an established craft that is not expensive to start, as all you need are inexpensive tools and a piece of glass. There are various ways to engrave glass.
A simple way to engrave glass is to use a tungsten carbide or diamond-tipped tool to scratch a pattern in the material. An alternative is to tap the glass with a hard, sharp-pointed tool. This makes a series of dots to form a design, and it is known as stipple engraving. Both of these techniques are highly skilled, and they are difficult to master.
Another way to engrave glass is to use a small hobby drill with a rotating burr, which cuts into the glass. If thick glass is used, the cuts can be deep, creating a three-dimensional effect.
Copper wheel engraving uses wheels of varying profiles on a machine that is similar to a lathe and is powered by an electric motor, which spins the wheel. The glass is held against the wheel to cut a pattern.
Graal is a technology that combines engraving with glass blowing. A glass bubble consisting of one or more layers of coloured glass on top of plain glass is engraved to reveal the different colours. The glass is then heated and blown to form an object.
Sandblasting uses a machine that fires fine grit at the glass under high pressure. This is mainly used for mass produced designs, rather than individual pieces.
Engraved glass gifts
If you want to give engraved glass as a present, you could purchase an engraved glass object made by hand by an artist, but this is a luxury item that is expensive. You could try to do glass engraving yourself, but it takes many hundreds of hours to become proficient in glass engraving and you may not have the aptitude for the craft.
Fortunately, there is a less expensive and easier way to obtain a personalised engraved glass gift, without sacrificing the artistic look of glass engraving. A glass engraving company will have a wide range of beautiful glass items, including awards, drinkware, vases and paperweights. Any text can be engraved on the glass in a choice of fonts. Images can also be engraved to add more impact.
Engraved glassware starts at less than £10, or you can pay much more for crystal glass. If you want an item that is more artistic looking, opt for a crystal award made with coloured glass. The price quoted for any glass item typically includes the engraved message. Preparing a custom image for engraving usually costs extra.
If you are searching for a premium-quality, personalised, artistic gift, look no further than engraved glass.
