In case you haven't noticed it by now, whenever I need to talk about a process, offer graphic design advice, or share some sort of technical tip, I'm going to preface it with "Nerds Love".
Why am I making fun of the nerds? Because I am one. And I love the candy.
So. Tonight's lesson. (I know it's late, but come on - we're creatives!)
How to solve the "Overspray" issue.
How can you know if you actually have an overspray issue? Well, if you have sticky residue and spray paint flecks on your walls, floor, papers, fabric, desk and computer, then you have overspray gone wild.
This wouldn't be an issue if you didn't mind sticky keys from spray mount, but I'm just not that kind of girl. I love making messes, and I love when they're not permanently messy. I painted my office floor a light, mint green, because I LOVE how bright it makes the room feel! And, just like a white couch, it's SO noticeable when traces of my recent projects are all over the place.
But there's nothing I dislike more than sticky floors! I really love cheap movies, in "sticky shoe" theaters, but I really don't like sticky shoes!
AND, more importantly, I don't like sticky lungs. I'm a singer and I need these puppies to blast hot air 'till I'm dead, and inhaling spray mount is not going to benefit anyone.
What's that? Am I making this up - inhaling spray mount? To think that it could even collect enough to cause a problem? You're darn tootin'. The grossest thing I have ever seen with regards to spray mount, was the spray room in the agency where I got my professional feet on the ground. This room was dialed! It had plenty of table room, even a ventilated spray booth! The disgusting thing was, that the exhaust fan didn't pull enough of the particles out. The entire booth, edges, top, and flat area where you're supposed to put your "clean" prints -- totally covered with stalagmites and stalactites of Super 77.
Those images are forever burned in my mind.
When I was building my office, I didn't have the ability to vent outside the building, and needed to spray in the winter, when it rains! Can't go outside for that... so I put my homeless skills to the test... picked up my nearest trash: a cardboard box and a big garbage bag.
Fortunately, the bag was clear. This would come in really handy as I continued to use my overspray box.
You can see the band of clear packing tape fixing the plastic bag to the box.
Half of the bag gets taped to the top, half of the bag gets taped to the bottom.
Leave an opening so that you can reach your hand in (incubator style) and spray on top of the paper.
So there you have it. The "Overspray Box". It looks cheap, it is cheap. And it works great.
Best advice, when you finish spraying the piece, take your hand & spray can out of box, quickly bringing the two sheets of plastic together. You'll notice this becomes easier with time, because the overspray helps them stick together.
Let it chill out for a couple of minutes, the piece is still PLENTY sticky to mount to any piece of foam core or board. Best of all - the fumes and floating glue have settled, leaving your office and floor clean and stick-free!
:) You're welcome.Labels: creative, design, inventions, spray paint
