Last week I wrote about using clear nail polish for paper quilled jewelry. Â This week I want to address another frequent question I get which is whether you can use spray acrylic sealer for paper quilled jewelry. Â This is known by several names such as spray lacquer, spray varnish, spray sealant, shellac spray, etc. Â You can see some examples here
The first thing to note is that there are some spray sealants that are meant for things like wood furniture, and there are others that are specific to crafts and used for paper, paintings, etc.
The simple answer is that yes, you can use these craft sprays for your paper quilling, but it is not always the best choice.  Here are some things to keep  in mind when deciding whether or not to use spray sealant:
- Spray sealants are best for larger projects. Â The spray allows you to cover a wide area.
- Spray sealants have to be used in a ventilated (usually outside) area. Â Since the spray tends to float around and get on other things, you need to be careful. Â Don’t use in a place with a fan going or it’ll blow it all over. Â Most of them are aerosol and have fumes.
- If you use spray sealant for paper quilled jewelry, it is best to do it on many pieces at a time so you don’t waste your time or product. Â When you are using it for small projects like jewelry a lot gets wasted.
- It is tricky to fully cover the paper quilled jewelry with spray sealant as you have to spray all around the edges and inside the coils. Â Then of course you have to flip it over and do the other side. Â You have to apply the sealant in several coats to make sure the coils don’t get undone and to make sure all surfaces are covered. Â This means you have to repeat your application process several times of the course of a day or two.
PROS
- Yes, there is actually a benefit to using spray sealants! Â The benefit is that most of them dry quickly, like in 20 minutes. Â Liquid sealants that you dip into or paint on can take hours to dry.
As you can see, spray sealant is not always the best choice for paper quilled jewelry.  It gets wasted and it is time consuming to apply (but it dries quickly!).  However, it is a great choice for a large paper quilled picture that you want to protect!  It would also work quite well on something like a jewelry box that has been decorated with paper quilling.
If you already have some around the house and are used to using it, you can certainly give it a try with your jewelry. Â However, if you do not have any and have never used it before, I’d suggest going with something to paint onto your jewelry.
You can click HERE to check out all of the other posts I have about sealants. Â I have a lot more planned for the coming weeks/months as well.
Sometimes I talk about sealants in the individual posts about the jewelry I have made. Â You can view all of the jewelry posts HERE.
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Hey Honey, I know we have talked a ton about what a glue freak I am. I recently bought a pump spray by “E6000” there is no smell and safe to use indoor. On the back it lists “crafts” as the first “great for use on” column and then “paper” is the first “use on” category. I haven’t had excessive time to try this out but so far it has been nice alternative to aerosol, especially the ability to use it inside. It is a wet spray so it takes a little bit to dry but so far I like it. Let me know if you have any thoughts on it’s use or if you want to know more. Happy sealing!!!!
Sounds neat, thanks for sharing 🙂 as a spray, I’m guessing it works best for larger applications like gluing layers of paper together for card making or something? Let me know if you ever try it as a sealant. Some adhesives do well in double duty like that, others don’t
Hey Honey. I actually was using the spray on the canvas while gluing large quilled pieces down on to the board.
In one trial, I sprayed the canvas as I was attaching quilled pieces and I was not protective of other pieces I had already glued. So I deliberately was allowing the same spray to go on top of all of the other secured pieces. I was happy with how the paper looked so I did seal a small picture with the spray. It hardened and looked nice. It was a lot of finger pumping to get it covered but I could go in at different angles and I was able to make sure everything was covered even in between the negative spaces of pinched pieces.
My plan is to try it again and if I am happy with that I will use it on a large piece.
The best thing about it is that you can use it inside, there isn’t a smell and that is a huge perk for me.
So in the end it seems to be multi-purposeful.
Kristen
http://www.GetYourRollOnQuilling.com
sounds cool, thanks for giving your feedback of how it worked as a spray sealant! I’ll have to pick some up on my next round of new-product-to-try shopping!
Hi,
Thank you so much, I loved the article and the helpful tips. I was searching and searching for an article like this. I am new at this, but love making quilling earrings. Can you please suggest any websites that provide details on making quilling jewellery.
Thank you for the comment 🙂 I’m glad you found the post helpful. I started this blog as I have been practicing making paper quilled jewelry for years and have found that others want more information about the topic and there are no other blogs that specialize in it. So here it is! You can find more tutorials here: http://www.honeysquilling.com/free-paper-quilling-tutorials/ and more posts with tips about paper quilled jewelry making here: http://www.honeysquilling.com/make-paper-quilled-jewelry/
Hi Honey !
I am working since 2 year with quilling papers and collage with rolling papers but i never used spray to protect them the dimensions of work are 60x70cm
What spray do you suggest me to use?
I am not sure, I don’t use sprays with jewelry and I haven’t done any mosaics for spraying. There are some good ones by krylon and mod podge that you can check out. You can choose if you want a glossy, matte, or satin finish.
Hi Honey,
I’m doing origami work, and I was wondering if you have any ideas on how to make the paper water proof before I start folding? Currently I used nail polish but I’m not too sure if that is the best way, but I could definitely fold the paper after that into the shape I want. I’ve never used the spray sealant even though I know it exist, and I think it makes the paper too hard to fold after. If you have any ideas, it would be great!
Thank you.
Hi 🙂 The only times I have used sealant for origami was after it was already folded. I’m surprised the nail polish worked, I would have thought it would crack. Sorry I don’t have any specific advice for this, since I haven’t tried it myself. Trial and error I guess!
I have been in a position where I needed to seal my paper before I quilled with it. PPA and mod podge satin worked but the mod podge was really tacky. The ppa was a little bit tacky but manageable and I had a few cracks here and there easy enough to use for quilling. I’m not sure about origami.