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DCM's 6th Anniversary Raffle - winners have been selected. Stay Tuned!

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Yoc:
Thanks Astaldo, time does fly!
:)

rangerhouse:
Happy Birthday to ALL...   I will be traveling to Chicago tomorrow...  BUT..

I don't get a chance to say much these days.. .BUT I will keep scanning..

Till they're all SCANNED..

Thanks to all !!!!!!!!!!!!  for your hard works and crazy dedication..

Yoc:
Hi Gang,
The first Kracalactaka box to be completed is going to be out in the mail soon.
DCM's JimO picked the Captain Rocket option for his box and here are some pictures of what is heading his way -

Thanks to both Kracalactaka and JimO for all their support!
-Yoc

Kracalactaka:
This was a fun box to do, lots of aliens, ray guns , rocket ships and plenty of great Good Girl art.

Jim O asked me so this is how I do it:


The modge podge mafia would say you should use that or similar, but it is sooooo expensive ($8-$13 for small bottle),
it is just overpriced glue. (yes it can provide a glazed type "finish" but it is not water proof.)

I use Elmer's glue($13 gallon jugs from Lowes'/Home Depot). I pour a little into a paper bowl, then add a little
water and stir it around til it has a consistency a little thicker than latex wall paint. I use a painters chip
brush to apply the glue. I brush the glue onto the surface I want to decoupage, then carefully lay the paper down
onto it, starting from one end, pressing down as I go, doing the best I can to press out creases and bubbles
(it never comes out 100% perfect). Sometimes the edge will pop up so use a little glue on the tip of your brush's
bristles and get it under there and press it down with the heel of your hand. (Try not to rub when you do this as
it can rub the toner off the paper.)

When you are 1st starting/learning you should use smaller pieces of paper as they are easier to get the hang of.
You can build up your skills eventually to where you can do full pages at a time, but it takes a while to the hang
of it and don't be surprised when the first few times you try, it looks like doo-doo.  I suggest practicing on a
junk piece of cardboard before moving on to a piece that you will display.

Any way, wait for the glue to dry before applying poly, about an hour should do.

Onece it is dry you can start with the poly, I use two kinds, 1st is Minwax water-based polycrillic and 2nd is Minwax
fast drying clear gloss polyurethane.

Start by applying the 2-3 coats of the water-based polycryllic with a standard paint brush (waiting 15-30 min between coats).  This will create an initial (primer) coat and that seals the decoupage finish, particularly at the seams between pieces of paper. This is VERY IMPORTANT.

DO NOT just apply the (oil based) Polyurethane directly to the decoupage surface as it will get up under the paper and
create ugly discolored oil stains.

After applying the water based polycryllic and letting it dry you can apply the polyurethane. Apply in light, smooth coats with a disposable foam brush. I generally do 2 coats. I wait about at least 6 hrs between coats and once you are finally done it is best to wait 12-24 hrs before using the item (Or in my case, packing it for shipping).


EXCEPTIONS: If the comics you are dealing with are B&W (like The Walking Dead), do not use the polyurethane at all, just apply a fourth coat of water-based polycryllic using a FOAM brush for a final smooth coat. The oil based polyurethane will yellow a bit over time and while this is not really noticeable on color comics, it looks like poop on B&W comics, ditto if you are going to apply a single Colored item against a white background, the edges will be all yellowed.

OTHER IMPORTANT THINGS:

You can get multiple uses out of your water-based polycrillic & glue brushes. Just rinse them out with cold water and store them in (SEPARATE) cups partially filled with water so the bristles stay flexible.

The foam brushes are one time use, don't bother trying to clean/re-use.

DO NOT buy foam brushes at Lowes/Home Depot,etc or Sherwin Williams, etc too expensive. At Wal-mart or Meijer you can 20-25 packs for about $5 (look in the crafts dept).  At Dollar General you can find 12 packs for about $1.50 and sometimes you can find these packs in Wal-Mart's paint dept for about the same price.

THERE IS NO SUBSTITUTE for the MINWAX Water-Based Polycrillic or the MINWAX Fast-Drying Polyurethane. ONLY USE the CLEAR finishes. It is up to you whether you use Satin , Semi-gloss or Gloss finishes. Though I find that I prefer a gloss finish for the final coat(s). I have tried other products and there is nothing that comes anywhere near to working as good. Use these exact items or do not even bother trying this.

If you are using REAL COMICS, the older newsprint ones are easier to work with (less bubbling & creasing) but with practice you can make the modern, glossy comic pages look good too.

If you are using computer Print outs DO NOT use ink jet toner. You won't like what happens when wet stuff like glue and poly gets on it (the colors runs and it looks like a new baby's diaper) BEST PRACTICE is to use printouts from a Color LASER JET printer.

If you are decoupaging a finshed wood or plastic surface you need to scratch it up a bit with sand paper so the glue will a bit more to grab hold of. Also make your glue-water mix a bit thicker.


REMEMBER: This is not a fast process and there are no short cuts.    


 

Yoc:
Wow, thanks for this K.
Very good info for anyone out there thinking about trying on their own.
It sure sounds like it's not for the faint of heart.

-Yoc

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