How to Preserve or Protect Art Projects Using Chalk
Protect all your hard piece of work and preserve chalkboard drawings to make them permanent!
Who wants to preserve chalkboard drawings and acquire how to preserve chalk art? I am kind of ridiculously excited about today's postal service, friends. I did a ton of research and experimentation on this and I'm so happy with the results.
It answers a question that I call up a lot of people have but there just wasn't a proficient definitive answer out there…until now!
And that question is, "Cassie, I spent a ton of time on this chalkboard drawing that I take hanging in my kitchen and I would be heartbroken if someone smudged it or erased it and I had to start over, is there any style to preserve my chalkboard cartoon and make information technology permanent?
Tin I learn how to make chalk stay un-smudged? Well yes! Now at that place is!
Chalkboard drawings take been trendy for quite a while at present and I personally don't meet them going anywhere soon precisely because they're flexible and fun and you can change them up.
That might kind of brand you lot wonder why this post on how to preserve chalkboard drawings is even necessary if the whole point of chalkboards is that you can erase them.
Well, imagine you made a chalkboard seating chart for your wedding and you spent hours and hours on it and you desire to save it every bit a memento.
Or suppose you fabricated one of these cute 4th of July chalkboard stars; it's star shaped and has reddish, white, and bluish accents, I call back the likelihood that I'll e'er want to write anything besides, "Happy 4th of July" on it are fairly low. Or even something like my front door welcome chalkboard. Information technology turned out super cute and I don't really want to redo information technology.
Well, y'all say, "Why don't you just apply 1 of those chalk markers, Cass?" (You lot can call me Cass, we're friends!)
Ugh. Well, the answer is that while they don't smudge off, they also DON'T Await LIKE CHALK. I mean too being white. They don't have the same texture as real chalk at all. Then they're fine if y'all similar them, simply information technology'southward a different look. And it'due south not chalky.
What nosotros want is to effigy out how to how to seal chalk art and how to seal chalk writing!
And so, hither's what I tried and tested and what I came up with to preserve and protect those beautiful chalkboard drawings you lot spent hours on! Let me know if you try it!
Protect and Preserve Chalkboard Drawings
I knew I definitely wanted to use some kind of spray when I figured out how to preserve chalk fine art considering anything you brush onto a surface would surely disturb and smudge your hard work. So I bought or got out the post-obit things to try:
Workable Fixatif
Acrylic Articulate Coat
Mod Podge Matte
Hairspray
And the results were surprising!
I could go along about this for an hour but I'll endeavour to keep it brief.
First up was the workable fixative which is what we used in art class in college. It protects drawings from smudging too much but you lot can still draw on top of it.
Unfortunately, while it reduced chalk smudging, it still smudged. Then I kept going.
Next I tried the Acrylic Articulate Coat. Disaster. Avoid. It ate away at the chalk AND made the chalkboard shiny. No cheers.
Moving on, matte spray Modernistic Podge? How did I not know such a affair existed?! My chief objection to Mod Podge has ever been the brush strokes so a spray formula is crawly.
I will definitely be using this for other projects in the future. That beingness said, it was ok, just information technology left the chalk spotty and it also smudged. 
And the results are in…hither's what to use to protect and preserve chalkboard drawings…
The winner, ding ding ding! Hairspray! I idea of trying this when I remembered that nosotros would sometimes use hairspray on drawings in college when we ran out of fixative.
And hairspray has the added bonus of existence cheap, something you might already have at home and information technology's not toxic so y'all can spray it inside!
Want to know how to make your chalk drawings permanent? Ok, here'due south how you do information technology…
Commencement, it's of import to know that non all hairspray is created equal. I tried several dissimilar brands.
This ane was my favorite only I also had success with Pantene Booze Free "Air Spray". However this was a total disaster.
So, I believe that your hairspray needs to be:
- -Aerosol
- -The first or second ingredient should be water, not alcohol. Alcohol gratis is great.
- -Gratis of silicones (that includes ingredients similar dimethicone or trimethicone)
*I obviously didn't endeavour every brand of hairspray out there but this is my best gauge every bit to what made the expert ones work. If you lot're using a different brand, endeavor it out on a sample drawing commencement! *
To make your chalk drawings permanent, lay your chalkboard out and advisedly spray with a Thin even glaze of hairspray from AT To the lowest degree x inches away.
Brand sure you entirely encompass the surface. The aerosol is of import considering it sprays small fifty-fifty droplets.
A pump bottle will exist less fifty-fifty and more likely to drip or leave marks. You actually actually really don't want drips or large droplets of hairspray.
Secondly, DON'T PANIC at first. It will probably look like the chalk is disappearing considering the hairspray makes it moisture. But seriously, don't freak out.
Look ten-15 minutes for the hairspray to fully dry and during that time, do not bear upon your chalkboard. You'll be amazed to see your cartoon re-appear as the hairspray dries!
When the hairspray is completely dry out, your drawing is protected.
Yet with all of the methods that I tried, the protective sprays pretty much obliterated the whitish smudgy background that we all love about chalkboards.
To bring that smudgy background back, rub the side of a piece of chalk all over your chalkboard and rub it in with a tissue.
That will give the background that nice chalky smudgy texture just information technology won't disturb your original drawing.
And that's it! You lot're done!
What if you desire to learn how to preserve chalk art but still take and part of it erase-able?
Draw the permanent part first, follow this method to protect it and so proceed to describe on the residue of the chalkboard similar you usually would right on top of the hairspray! That part will still erase similar normal!
(A annotation, if anyone'south curious since nosotros're using a h2o-based hairspray, I tried wiping it off with a damp rag. With a bit of vigorous scrubbing, the cartoon was fainter but it did not come off immediately, so this method is not easily reversible.)
Active Time 15 minutes
Total Time fifteen minutes
Difficulty Piece of cake
Estimated Price $3
Instructions
Tips & Tricks for preserving chalkboard drawings
- Do a test run with a mini chalkboard to make sure it works for you lot
- Make sure to choose an aerosol spray, non a pump
- The showtime ingredient of your spray should be water, not alcohol
- Spray according to directions, at least half-dozen inches abroad and with calorie-free even coats
- Don't panic if the chalk fades temporarily when it's wet
- If you desire to raise the smudgy background, wait until the spray is dry and then rub the side of a piece of chalk over the entire thing and smudge with a cloth or paper towel.
If you liked this, you may also similar some of my other posts…
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Welcome to Little Red Window! I'm Cassie and I'1000 a old architect with degrees in architecture, preservation, art and art history who's never met a arts and crafts or knitting projection I didn't like!
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