Arts, Games, Toys :: Arts and Crafts |
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Decollage, Decoupage - Water-based Methods |
| Too many people give up on collage and decoupage because of wrinkled paper, bleeding inks, and other failures. Here are some tips for success in this delightful art form. |
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1 - Soak papers before gluing down - this will expand the fibers so that they won't wrinkle as they expand later. Use 1/2 milk glue or, preferably, carpenter's glue (more water resistant and faster drying) and 1/2 water. The thiicker the paper the longer it takes to relax the fibers. Test all your papers - some metallics, etc., will never cooperate with the collage artist! Prepare surface - sand if necessary, use a primer if the surface is finished with an oil-based paint or varnish. If it isn't smooth, glue a layer of plain paper or chipboard or cardstock down first.
2. It is best to lay the center of your soaked paper item down first, and smooth with your hands very gently outward from the center. Stubborn bubbles can be slit with a razor before the paper is quite dry. It is usually best to let one layer dry before pasting down the next.
3. For a softer, blended edge, tear the paper around the design. If you tear the excess away from you, no edge will show. If you tear away the excess toward you, a 'halo' of white will be left around the picture you will be using - which can provide a separation from the background where desirable. Decide in advance whether you want such a halo or not.
4. If a hard edge is wanted, cut the picture out with a scissors. Another way to separate a picture from its background is to paste it over a layer of plain or colored paper cut or torn larger than the item you wish to use.
5.. To decoupage plastic surfaces, coat with a primer like Kilz first - water based is preferable.
6. If lettering or a bad crop mars you picture, you can always use other pictures to cover it.
7. Color Xeroxed copies are waterproof and acid free - and you can reduce or enlarge them to the size you want. This will allow you to use even pictures printed on a non-waterproof ink jet print for decoupage. May also be a good idea for stiff calendar paper, which is often lacquered and does not soak of glue well.
8. If you want to turn a picture into a transparency for the purpose of decoupage, coat it with five coats of acrylic finish - preferably matte or satin. Then soak away the paper - a transparent layer of color will be left on the acrylic coat. I recommend using color xerox for this purpose. This is the only sort of decoupage for surfaces that may be exposed to heat - use one of the craft paints that tolerates great heat. If you don't want the picture to be transparent, paint it on the back with white paint. Transparencies are great on glass.
9. Color Xerox copies allow you to use multiples of the same image - and to resize them as you like. This also allows you to use your own photographs in a decollage. In my experience, good color xerox copies make the best transparencies.
10. A mix of wallpapers or gift wrap can be a good start for a decollage project. Test the wallpaper first to see if you can glue paper onto it with milk or carpenter's glue. Wallpaper is also very think, requires longer soaking, and if it is layered, the edges will be more prominent. Gift wrap, on the other hand, can be very fragile and must be s
oaked with care - you might want to put it on the surface and wet it with a brush full of water, then let it expand before gluing down. It is easier to handle in small pieces. Both wallpaper and gift wrap present marvelous design opportunities.
11. Smooth fabric (nothing with a nap) can be incorporated into a design, too. Even a torn edge can be decorative. Net and tulle can be used, even though they are textured. Tissue paper can be used to soften hard edges or bright colors - or to make a little fog.
12. Chipboard - type cardboard makes a good backing. Once saturated with layers of glue and paper, it becomes quite rigid and strong. At one time, papier mache furniture was made that way. Corrugated cardboard bends and creases quite a lot and may show age early because of that, though it certainly has many decorative and practical applications.
13. Very thick papers can be separated into layers. Use a fingernail or razor to separate the layers at the edge on a corner, then roll the thinnest layer around a pencil, rolling it up and separating the layers as you do.
14. Colored tissue paper is not water-fast or light-fast - best to use either very good tissue (always test it first) or paint the tissue yourself.
15. flower catalogs are fabulous - check first to see that they wont get so transparent that text or other pictures on the reverse will show through. If they do, consider making color copies of the flowers. Rather than copying a whole page, cut the flowers out and put them on standard sized paper with rubber cement or double-sided tape - that way you eliminate the print and other unwanted stuff. If you only have half a flower, use it at an edge, or overlap it with another flower.
17. For a large picture or a mural, you may find it useful to make a sky collage background first. Plan it for the smoothest transitions in color and character. If there are words on your pictures, or the edges are too abrupt, they can be covered with other bits of sky, with trees, or with any object or character you care to introduce - balloons, birds, flying saucers, flying tigers. You can also do grass , forest, and city backgrounds this way.
18. Decollage delights in the unexpected and improbable. You can make your own mermaids, angels, fairies, chimeras and all manner of fabulous creatures. Your dog can live happily under water among fish and flowers, and your cat can chase dragons through a garden of seashells.
19. Decollage can be repaired or improved later with new layers of paper, blue and finish.
20. When your work is done, you need to think about protecting it. A coat or two of water based acrylic finish (I prefer low gloss, but on furniture, gloss is good) will be enough sometimes. If this is a picture, matte and frame it. Sometimes you will want to depart from water-based media in order to protect your work. If it needs to be water resistant or alcohol resistant, use an oil-based bar-top finish or poured resin. If it will be outside, several coats of spar varnish would be the best.
Article Source: www.activehowto.com
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Posted 2006-02-16 00:00:00 By Adrien Rain Burke
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