Well the carpet turned out great. It didn't end up looking much like I intended, but the effect is just about exactly what I had wanted. That said, I'm a little worried about how well it will hold up. I tugged on a piece and it peeled right up. The glue held really well, but the spongy backing didn't. I glued the one strip back down, briefly considered peeling and regluing all of them, and decided against it.
It doesn't look like they're going to come loose unless they are deliberately peeled away. If someone wants to steal one of these carpet strips, extra silicon isn't going to stop them. Besides, it's too hot today for any serious work.
That said, today I added the first three-dimensional objects to the car. (Yes, yes, I know that carpet is a three-dimensional object. I meant that the carpet, while adding texture, doesn't add a three-dimensional effect to the decorations. Don't be obtuse.) On a recent visit to the dollar store I picked up a half-dozen plastic killer whales, in pink and blue. They were originally baby toys. Don't ask me why someone thought killer whales would be an appropriate plaything for a baby. Maybe that's why they're at the dollar store.
Anyway, I put them on the edge of the trunk, sort of swimming up the current created by the swirls of carpet. I need to head back to the dollar store and get more of them, as six clearly isn't enough.
Also I started work on the rear bumper. My intent was to use the pieces left over from the trunk to cover the bumper. That way I'd get an additional area of the car without additional measuring and cutting. However, it didn't work out as planned. The bumper is shorter than the trunk but much longer (since it wraps around). So the carpet strips didn't fit together well at all.
Maybe it was just my crankiness from the heat, but I really wasn't happy with how it looked when I taped everything up. After gluing two pieces down, I ran out of silicon. (Silly me, buying only one tube. What was I thinking?) So I quit for the day.
1 Comments
Hey, This may be too late, but E6000 which is mostly only available at art supply stores is BY FAR the best fixative EVER for art cars.
I'm on my second art car, and yeah, liquid nails will let you down, especially with heat and humidity, I (i live in Houston)
also, check out www.thistothat.com
'because people have a need to stick stuff to other stuff' ...
i like your car- hope to see it sometime in my travels ...
found you by way of the funny/strange quiz falwell/robertson/binladen- brilliant and bizarre
just the way i like it.
tankgrrl