WoodUbend Mouldings are, unquestionably, a very innovative product and, once you’ve got the know how, they’re super simple to use. I understand though, for the uninitiated, they may seem a little daunting – don’t fret though – just keep in mind a few things and you’ll be creating some seriously cool projects in no time.
Heat is your friend
As the saying goes, there are many ways to skin a cat, (why’d you’d want to entertain yourself with such a macabre pass time I’m not sure) there are also many ways to heat your mouldings. A heat gun is my preferred method of warming, though this isn’t without its peril, so if you’re uncomfortable using one, then you can always use a hair dryer or even a griddle. I wrote another blog post a while back about how best to go about heating your mouldings, take a look here.
The mouldings, in their cool state act completely like wood, they can be sanded, stained, painted, drilled, etc…warm them up though and the fun starts, you can bend them, slice them even stretch them or cut them with scissors!
Any way you look at it, to get the most out of your mouldings, you’re going to want to get used to warming them, even if you’re not bending them around a surface. The surface you’re adhering to is unlikely to be completely flat and the back of the moulding certainly won’t be. As heating the moulding makes it flexible, this means that you’re going to get a better contact with the surface when you’re glueing it down.
Indeed, warming your moulding helps the glue work much better too, a warm moulding will soak up some of the glue and this really helps the moulding to grip to the surface.
Speaking of glue…
Wood glue, wood glue, wood glue
I really can’t stress this enough, I’ve seen people use super glue, PVA, No More Nails, you name it, i’ve seen it. To really stick these mouldings down, you need a good quality, flexible wood glue. I often use Titebond Quick & Thick, it’s quick acting and a good, thick glue – as the name would suggest. Using something else, certainly an inflexible glue could result in your mouldings just popping off down the line. This is because as the expand and contract with the ambient temperature (as all wood does) the glue is not flexible to move with it and will fail. Not something you want…especially if you’re flipping furniture, there’s a good chance you’ll be fielding some angry calls.
When applying your glue, it’s fine (and often easier) to cover the substrate, rather than your mouldings, in the glue. If you elect to apply your glue straight on the back of the mouldings, ensure you have coated the whole back of the moulding – none of this a dab here and there. Nope! You want the whole back of the moulding covered.
Now, when actually sticking it to the surface, you’re going to want to give it another blast with the heat – at this point, you may notice some glue leaking out of the sides. Don’t panic! This is a good thing, this means it is working and the moulding is really squeezing onto the surface. Just wipe the excess away with a wet paint brush, baby wipe or cotton bud and you’re good to go.
Pre-painting your mouldings
This is one of the questions I am asked a lot, can you pre-paint WoodUbend Mouldings? The answer is, yes with an if. WoodUbend Mouldings can be pre-painted before heating and bending as long as you are using a flexible medium. As a general rule of thumb, acrylic paint is flexible, this means when it dries you can still heat and bend your moulding without any cracking occurring. Dixie Belle Paint plays really well with WoodUbend, they are flexible and can be used to pre-paint your mouldings too!
If you’re looking to add a bit of Posh Chalk to your projects, go right on ahead, the pastes and patinas can be used on the mouldings before use and if you use a flexible sealer like the Posh Chalk Infusor, then you can pre-paint until your heart’s content with the pigments as well.