# Etched acrylic decoration - how to fix? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [April 1, 2008, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/etched-acrylic-decoration-how-to-fix/443525 "2008-04-01T14:41:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![nofloyd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nofloyd/32/2870_2.png) [@nofloyd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nofloyd)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2008, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/etched-acrylic-decoration-how-to-fix/443525/1 "2008-04-01T14:41:10Z")
I bought an etched acrylic cake topper from ebay for my wedding, personalized with our names and wedding date. [http://www.effexiglas-originals.com/components/com\_virtuemart/shop\_image/product/db0f3dfeb8d8cdf12ae0e34549349655.jpg](http://www.effexiglas-originals.com/components/com_virtuemart/shop_image/product/db0f3dfeb8d8cdf12ae0e34549349655.jpg) Yes, we’re both cat people. :mad: The date is wrong, 16 instead of 18. I’ve notified the seller and am waiting for a response. It should be easy to turn the 6 into an 8. Is this something we could manage from our end and avoid the hassle of shipping it back? Anyone know how to carve into acrylic? The personalization is hand done. Any retail stores anyone knows of that does this thing? I tried the mall: Things Remembered carves metal plates. A Paradise Pen carves glass. There’s not too much time before the wedding and this blackened my mood when it arrived. It’s hard enough to get all of the planning done without things going wrong. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2008, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/etched-acrylic-decoration-how-to-fix/443525/2 "2008-04-01T14:55:46Z")
Acrylic is prone to heat up from friction when being cut or drilled, and you can ruin it quickly. I would certainly make great effort to have the seller correct it. They have the proper equipment and methods to engrave the acrylic. ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2008, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/etched-acrylic-decoration-how-to-fix/443525/3 "2008-04-01T15:23:38Z")
Second the opinion that it should be done by someone with the right experience and equipment. Call around to some of the local trophy shops to find out how much they would want to correct it. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2008, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/etched-acrylic-decoration-how-to-fix/443525/4 "2008-04-01T16:14:39Z")
They are going to have to make a new one. Turning a ‘6’ into an ‘8’ would end up looking pretty bad. ---
**Author:** ![nofloyd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nofloyd/32/2870_2.png) [@nofloyd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nofloyd)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2008, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/etched-acrylic-decoration-how-to-fix/443525/5 "2008-04-03T14:33:47Z")
Happy update: I sent the ebay seller 2 messages about the wrong date but didn’t get any response. Today, a brand new topper arrived with the correct date. I was just about to call around some trophy shops. Why wouldn’t the seller send reassuring email that she was sending out a new one? Anyway, happy happy, joy joy! ---
**Author:** ![ChiefScott](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/58f4c7/32.png) [@ChiefScott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChiefScott)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2008, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/etched-acrylic-decoration-how-to-fix/443525/6 "2008-04-03T16:05:51Z")
I _was_ gonna suggest you move your wedding date. It’s be a whole lot easier than re-etching clear plastic. Glad to hear everything worked out OK.