Decoupage!

[ben711200]

A while ago, me and Mystery Machine went and got a new front end for my car. It comprised of a pair of rotten wings, an incomplete set of lights and a bonnet. Now that that the rotten and incomplete bits are in hand, it's time to start dicking about with aesthetics ;D

Decoupage. sticking papery stuff to things and lacquering the bejesus out of it to the extent that the papery stuff looks painted/printed on. I know there are a couple recent-ish threads that have touched on it but I want to get some opinions about how to actually go about doing it.

My initial thought was to use acrylic lacquer as a glue to stick the paper on and then put on LOADS of coats of the stuff after that, but all the arts and craft type guides say to stick with a PVA based glue then a lacquer, which I guess makes sense. Obviously it's going to need to be a bit more hard wearing being an automotive application so what do you reckon?

It's going to go on the underside of my bonnet, so rain isn't too much of a problem, but changes in temperature may need to be taken into consideration. I also need to take into account that I don't have easy access to a compressor to spray so I'll be rattle can applying the lacquer.

[will]

It's an interesting concept and has me thinking of comic books and a certain in need of make over CB500 locked to the railings outside my flat.

Loads of lacquer sounds a good bet, guess it would be worth a trial run, let us know how you get on.

[stealthstylz]

Can you not just stick it on with lacquer or spray adhesive?

Matt

[cairyhunt]

I was gonna do something like this on my golf, wanted to wallpaper the outside of the bonnet with some real chintzy curry house wallpaper. Spoke to an adhesive company near me and they said they don't know of any waterproof glue which allows 'slip' so you can move it and line it up before it sets, he said best bet was to use a strong glue (contact adhesive??) on the paper and soap up the bonnet to get the slip, water/soap mix evaporates and it sticks,

He also said to use a solid plastic roller or rolling pin to make sure its all stuck down and then water proof it.

Hope this is some help to ya ;-)

Coop

[devilishdesigner]

I think you'll find spray can laquer won't wet the paper enough to soak through completely and give a rock hard finish, that being said I've only ever experimented with PVA on the interior of my old van, on wood.

[cairyhunt]

Plus PVA is water based, the last thing you want is the pages of your fav jazz mag falling off and landing on your nice and hot engine.


I say use blue tak :-D

[sammm]

What about something like this?

www.associatedcontent.com/article/694757/outdoor_mod_podge_a_crafters_musthave.html

Its water based but evaporative curing glue and sealant combined.

Use as instructed, leave it to cure as long as you can, then go over the top with a more automotively oriented clear coat.

(it also comes in a glow in the dark formula)

[eightsix]

I think the main thing would be making sure the decoupage sticks to the bonnet first. As long as you get a good bond there then the rest should be ok? New ground for me too … planning on doing a chair with Beno comics this Christmas!

I would be inclined to use straight PVA to stick the base images down so it bonds well with the underside of the bonnet and then use the PVA & water mix adhere the upper layers. A lot of PVA coats to seat everything and then lacquer the curse word out of it. Old ladies and bored house wives seem to stick patterns to various household objects using this approach so it has to work – unsure how it will respond to heat, but what would be cool is if the paper yellows like old comics do when exposed to the sun. It would be like paper patina

I have a load of PVA from when I sealed a floor so your welcome to borrow if you want? If your in Bris anytime soon get in touch and you can come over and grab some; otherwise I can also bring it to the next play day.

[Mystery Machine]

Agreed with James, a decent PVA mix should do the job. Use it as an adhesive & paste....use neat to start with, paint on a good layer, allow to start 'curing' then apply your images. Use slightly watered down PVA as additional coats or between layers. Decent nylon roller is your friend for getting the paper nic & smooth & wrinkle free.....

Once fully dry (a good few days) you're ready for some serious laquerage. Job done.

I have just realised I've pretty much mirrored James' post, but I'll leave it up as a 'seconded' on the "How To" front ;D

[Seth]

I can't remember how I did the heater in my A35 but I think I just used watered down Copydex is which a PVA I think.

[ben711200]

Cheers guys.. The knack is going to be protecting it between the PVA stage and the 'lacquer the living christ out of it' stage, since the car is in regular use. Certainly not impossible to sort though.

Cheers for the offer James, but I'll probably buy a 5 litre tub of the stuff so I don't run out halfway through.

interestingly, I assumed all of the 'depth' would come from the lacquer, but from what most of you are saying, it sounds like I'm using PVA as much for that purpose as to use as a glue. Fortunately the paper I'm using is quite thick so will be ideal for a fat fingered beginner..

And so the process will be.. Straight PVA on bonnet, Paper, roll flat, More (slightly watered down) PVA, allow to dry, cure with engine heat, lacquer, lacquer, lacquer and lacquer some more.

Thanks again guys, I'll get pics up in my readers rides thread as I do it

[ben711200]

Dec 17, 2009 11:55:14 GMT Seth said:

I can't remember how I did the heater in my A35 but I think I just used watered down Copydex is which a PVA I think.

I had to quote this separately because it looks painfully cool

[eightsix]

I would say you could probably hit it in 1 go, maybe over a weekend. Prep the bonnet in advance (clean, free from oil etc), get the images cut and ready and plan out roughly how you want the images to be laid out.

Then take the bonnet off, quick wipe down with thinners, hit the base covering with a strong PVA mix, then get some decent heat on it so it dries quickly, when tacky I would then apply the upper images. Good soaking in PVA, and then dry. Apply a good few coats of PVA and allow to dry between each one and then dry out properly. Following day, hit it with laquer, as the cover is getting tacky hit it again, rinse and repeat – with some heat the lacquer should dry quite quickly.

I did a test run a while back on a spray can and the paper dried quite quickly in a warmish kitchen.

[joethefish]

Sounds like a plan to me Ben.. let me know when you start as I'm doing some too and more than willing to come give you a hand. What images you thinking of.. Jazz mags FTW!

[ben711200]

Dec 17, 2009 13:20:37 GMT joethefish said:

Sounds like a plan to me Ben.. let me know when you start as I'm doing some too and more than willing to come give you a hand. What images you thinking of.. Jazz mags FTW!

You know that Haynes you gave me with the car? It's been chopped about in preparation..

Oh christ, I still have your tools. We'll have to sort something out about that.

[JohnnySomersett]

There is a way to transfer the print from the paper onto the surface (like chips in old newspaper), but you have to laser-copy the page into reverse first. the chemicals are a strange mix... and its something ive been working on.

I havent QUITE got the technique perfected - or the combination of chemicals - but I'm nearly there.

You thought about waterslide decal paper? Thats essentially what I'm trying to get but without the coating.

[screech]

epoxy resin or a polyester resin intended for wet layup of composites.

[ben711200]

Dec 17, 2009 17:34:11 GMT JohnnySomersett said:

There is a way to transfer the print from the paper onto the surface (like chips in old newspaper), but you have to laser-copy the page into reverse first. the chemicals are a strange mix... and its something ive been working on.

I havent QUITE got the technique perfected - or the combination of chemicals - but I'm nearly there.

You thought about waterslide decal paper? Thats essentially what I'm trying to get but without the coating.

It used to be possible to to 'lift' an image from magazines with cellulose lacquer, as well, so says my dad who did stuff like that involving jazz mags and motorbike fuel tanks ;D I don't know what sort of ink it needs to be to do it. I'd imagine the use of safer more environmentally friendly inks and water based rattle cans has stopped it being done so much.

I like the idea of the waterslide stuff, but it's going to have to be heavily lacquered anyway and I intend on total coverage, so I may as well go for decoupage instead.

epoxy resin or a polyester resin intended for wet layup of composites.

I like that idea. I'll have a read up on those

[ben711200]

I found a little bottle of PVA in the cupboard so I'm having a quick play on my magazine trunk. It's big, made of steel and lined with Sri Lankan newspapers from when it was called Ceylon with headlines like 'British Troops Pull Out Of Persia'. Late 40s or early 50s off the top of my head, and sort of decoupaged in itself because I splashed around a load of varnish to preserve the newspaper..

Anyway, my little play with some PVA, a couple magazine pics and a sticker that was already there but peeling...


I'll keep you updated

[Mystery Machine]

Use a spare page or two from a Haynes manual. Magazine paper is thinner but also 'coated' so will glue differently to the standard paper type used in the Haynes manual.

When we decorated the snug at A52, modern magazines went on differently to older magazines which went differently to newspaper type paper etc....

To get the best results, try to use the same materials that you'll use on the final day-koo-pagge ;D