The Ultimate Diamond Art FAQ with Links
(A continuing series of excerpts from my Amazon Kindle Book)
Previous Question Answered: Traveling with your Diamond Art
Next Question to be Answered: Sealants for Diamond Paintings
Once you’ve poked the last drill into place with that final “snap”, you’re done, right? Wait a minute! Not so fast. Now you have a work of art to deal with, and decisions need to be made. Are you going to keep it? If so, where will you put it? Are you going to frame it or store it? Are you going to give it to someone? If so, to whom, and when? Are you going to sell it? If so, for how much? And you are going to want to make sure it looks its best and the drills don’t fall off. Only you have the answers to some of those questions, but I can answer the others.
Is there some way we can keep the gems from falling off the project long after we’ve completed it?
There are diamond painting rollers, also known in the print industry as “brayers”, that are designed to apply an even pressure across finished portions of your canvas, to securely press the drills onto the canvas. This is to make sure they are firmly adhered to the surface, so they don’t fall off later. They are approximately 6 inches wide and often made of rubber or silicone. They are best used while working on your project, primarily after completing a section. Rolling improves the overall adhesion by leveling out drills that are sitting unevenly on the adhesive. This can also result in straightening the rows as the uneven drills push their way between adjacent drills, straightening those rows as well, while being pressed back down onto the canvas. Always use your roller over your standard drills first before adding any special shapes, because these will stick up above the regular ones and prevent the roller from doing its job properly. If your project uses special shapes that are smaller than the regular drills, put them on the canvas first, roll them tightly and then start adding your regular drills. Once you have the special shapes added, go over them with the roller to push them down tightly as well.
Once you have completed the painting, rolling periodically along the way, you’ll need to go over the entire canvas as a final step to verify that all is well. Put your plastic film back over it, or a piece of parchment paper, to protect the drills, and press hard while rolling. You may hear an occasional SNAP as you roll, telling you that another drill has been leveled. The snaps are more obvious with square drills, some call it a “crunch”, but round ones also snap or crunch. When you no longer hear any snaps, you’re done and all the drills are properly, and tightly adhered.
Another use of the roller tool is to go over the drills you have placed BEFORE lifting a mesh alignment tool. This presses the drills tightly down, and under, the mesh and allows you to remove the alignment tool easily without popping any drills off.
This YouTube video demonstrates how to use a diamond painting roller to ensure your drills are securely and evenly placed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZdytC1pVDM
There are many choices for large rubber rollers or brayers: https://amzn.to/4c8WGww
There’s also a tiny 2” x .5” roller, either blue or red, that screws onto the end of a pen that is perfect for small areas, such as between special shapes where the 6-inch version cannot reach. This one also has an alignment blade at the other end. https://amzn.to/4lDtm5O You can also use a cloth covered kitchen rolling pin with a piece of parchment over your canvas, so you do not damage the drills.
Previous Question Answered: Traveling with your Diamond Art
Next Question to be Answered: Sealants for Diamond Paintings
I have been doing diamond art for over 10 years. My book was published under my pen name. You can contact me through my blog here at https://ei-kan.blogspot.com if you have any additional questions to add to this section or to notify me of any dead links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualified purchases. This book is available in its entirety on Amazon Kindle and there are some discount coupon codes for up to 15% off your purchases at select websites near the end of it And yes, I earn a few pennies from a few other sites mentioned as well, but not all.
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