holographic fabric

[darksiren]

Hi,
so I have heard that foil and holographic fabrics don't last long, but they are so pretty! I have a couple questions:

1. I hear foil fades and holographic scrapes to silver. Is this true? if so, do you think a silver holographic tail would last longer?

2. Has anyone discovered an economic clear coating to help preserve the finish?

Looking forward to your answers!

[Merman Storm]

Yes, shiny. Must have shiny. We mers are like that. But...
I used some on a tail. I had it rub off, exposing the bare spandex, very easily. The result was black areas all over the tail.
As for coating it, I have no idea what would still allow the needed stretch. Well, silicone, but that is not economic.
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[hellocourtney]

Silicone caulking might be a better option.
I'm still playing around with it but a thin layer on each side of the fabric still gives stretch but the foil dots stay intact a lot better. I brought a tube for 14NZD so it's not too expensive, especially compared to dragonskin.

[Merman Storm]

For comparison, the trial size of dragon skin, 2 pounds, costs US$30. After exchange rates, that is about three tubes of caulk.
How many pounds do you get in one tube?

[hellocourtney]

Pounds? No idea. But it's an 80 gram tube. Also the cheapest I could find a dragonskin sample kit was 64 NZD, not including shipping (so, 42 usd).

[Merman Storm]

80 grams is 2.82 ounces. If that cost NZD 14.00, then that is NZD 4.96 per ounce.
2 pounds for NZD 64.00 is NZD 2.00 per ounce, not counting shipping, which may make the two options about the same cost.
I got my price from the smooth-on site:
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http://www.smooth-on.com/Silicone-Rubber-an/c2_1115_1129/index.html?catdepth=1

[hellocourtney]

Oops, I was looking at the wrong size on the website. I brought the 260g cartridge for 14NZD, not the 80g tube. My mistake, sorry.

[PearlieMae]

You don't want silicone caulking up against your skin for any length of time!

[Merman Storm]

OK that sounds much better. 260 grams is 9.17 ounces., for NZD 14.00: 1.53 NZD per ounce.
Using the Smooth-on site for the Dragon skin: USD 30 is NZD 45, or NZD 1.4 per ounce. Again, this is not counting shipping, which will make the dragon skin somewhat more expensive.

But for someone in the US, the dragon skin may well be cheaper than caulk.

You can cut the cost of the dragon skin in half (per ounce) by buying 16 pound kits. But then you are putting out alot of money, and its only worth it if you are doing big jobs.


You don't want silicone caulking up against your skin for any length of time!

Oh, really? Thanks, I did not know that. For me that decides the matter: go with the good stuff, and forget trying to cheap out with caulk. It might not be cheaper, and it sounds like its not a good option in any case. Plus, you get to learn about using Dragon Skin.

[xaccer2]

Pres (http://audiobookkeeper.ru/book/1387)

[xaccer2]

275 (http://cottagenet.ru/plan/175)