| 1. Before you start with your decoupage project, | | | | good craft stores such as Christopher Freville |
| you must first decide on as to which surface you | | | | Home Crafts or Michael Sharman Hobby Stores |
| would be covering. Any kind of surface is just fit | | | | Inc. |
| for decoupage. Now you will need to decide on if | | | | 7. In case you decoupage a box, plan out on the |
| you would be doing using some picture, magazine | | | | corners first and then move inside to design |
| or some wallpaper. Whatever you select, ensure | | | | middle of the box. Also keep in mind that in case |
| that the quality is good. Especially in case of a | | | | you use the PVA gum on glass you must put in a |
| picture, you must scan it using good resolution | | | | droplet of glycerin into it. This would ensure that |
| and the take a quality print out. | | | | the glue does not dry up quickly. |
| 2. To decoupage, do not cut any picture to give it | | | | 8. If you are extending your picture, note that |
| some other layout instead tear it along the edges. | | | | you do not cut the picture, instead tear it so that |
| You can take pictures from magazines or books. | | | | it has soft and irregular edges. To give gilding a |
| You can overlap other pictures to decoupage | | | | dramatic look, you should dry the gilt and then |
| your picture. | | | | paint black Japan on and rag off. Once you put a |
| 3. It's advisable that before you actually paste the | | | | layer of sealer on to it, it is ready for decoupage |
| pictures, first put up the whole design and see if | | | | or varnish. |
| that suits your requirement. Its simple to | | | | 9. In case you are decoupage a box with fabric, |
| decoupage a picture to some utility items like | | | | you must keep the joint at the face of the box. |
| furniture, photo album, frames, Boxes, vases etc. | | | | Because, as you would open the box, the front |
| 4. To get a smooth finish when pasting the | | | | won't be visible thus, the joint would be hidden |
| pictures to any base, use an air spray. This is to | | | | and only the back side of the box would be seen. |
| ensure that no air bubbles are formed while gluing. | | | | And if you are not using any cardboard beneath |
| To accomplish this all you will require is an air | | | | the fabric layers, you must first stick the fabric |
| container. Place your picture inclined to the base | | | | pieces to the sides of the box and then paste |
| surface and spray the air on the paper from top | | | | some decorative laces or ribbons onto the top |
| to bottom. | | | | edge so that the unfinished side is not visible. |
| 5. It's important that before you decoupage, you | | | | 10. If you are using pictures for decoupage then |
| must clean the surface first. Depending on the | | | | you can use a color photocopier to get the |
| material the surface is made up of, you may | | | | desired deep black picture. And you would notice |
| need to seal it too. You can clean the dirt on the | | | | a remarkable difference between how blacks of |
| surface using a cotton brush. At times the | | | | color photocopier look and how the ones from |
| surface may require a coat of paint too. An | | | | black and white photocopier look like. But you |
| X-Acto knife or a pair of small scissors can be | | | | must remember that before rushing to the |
| used to cut the minute portions of the pattern. | | | | photocopy store, do your calculations. Like how |
| 6. You may cut a piece from some magazine | | | | much is the image to be resized? Do you need to |
| that has some text written on it. If you do not | | | | enlarge it or reduce it? You may also just need |
| want this text to be visible, just put a layer of | | | | the image to have the same size. You can |
| half gesso and half sealer, something like | | | | actually use this technique to create symmetrical |
| polyuthrane, acrylic spray, etc. Available from | | | | designs. |