mounting paper to wood

August 16, 2007 12:50 PM

What is the best way to mount paper to wood?

The paper would be either photo paper or canvas paper. It needs to be permanent and professional-looking, and hopefully not crazy-expensive.

posted by logic vs love to Media & Arts (11 answers total)

Assuming it's not going to be a wear surface I don't see why any standard spray adhesive would fail you here. If that has trouble penetrating the grain you could dilute wood glue with water and use a spray bottle to apply that instead. If you don't need a flat matting look you could buy some really cheap molding and basically "frame" the pieces against the backing plane.
posted by prostyle at 1:12 PM on August 16, 2007

I was hoping I could someday pull this site out of my hat:
thistothat
posted by rmless at 2:03 PM on August 16, 2007 [5 favorites]

Best answer: If you don't feel like clicking, Yamato sticking paste or 3M 77 seem to be your best bets for no wrinkles.
Spray adhesive seems like a good choice here (that's what the 3M is). I would not use wood glue diluted with water, as prostyle recommends, because your paper would wrinkle and buckle with all of that moisture. What you want is a tacky, thicker glue that you will apply in a thin layer.
posted by rmless at 2:12 PM on August 16, 2007

Why do you need to mount paper on to wood? That's kind of a vague description of your project. Isn't spray glue the obvious answer anyway?

Can you use a frame mounted to the wood that contains the paper?

What about just a piece of glass held to the wood with clips or screws sandwiching the paper between the glass and wood.

Maybe you can route out the shape of a piece of glass in the wood, put the paper inside, and then insert the glass so it is flush with the face of the wood. (ideally paper and glass are the same size)

Hanging the paper could look kind of neat to

Paper/Glue/Wood = boring

Celebrate the joint, connection, or detail (design lesson for the day)

(and points to you rmless for that site)
posted by comatose at 2:48 PM on August 16, 2007

Are you decopaging? Or...however you spell that? Craft stores have special goo just for that use. I guess this isn't really a helpful answer, but the stuff I've seen sort of looks like rubber cement w/ the little fabric ball you dip in the glue and then spread on.

Can't remember what it's called, Mod Podge maybe? Sorry..,
posted by TomMelee at 4:18 PM on August 16, 2007

découpage
posted by Dick Paris at 5:25 PM on August 16, 2007

rmless you are a GOD. I will gladly grant you my firstborn and half my kingdom for knowing about that site.
posted by nax at 5:42 PM on August 16, 2007

3M makes a photo mount spray glue that I find easier to use than regular 77 though I can't remember why now. I think it is less wetting or something.
posted by Mitheral at 10:18 PM on August 16, 2007

modge freaking podge.

Available at every craft store.
posted by letahl at 6:40 AM on August 17, 2007

Thanks, nax! I was going to use my next week's question on where to find a firstborn, but now I don't have to
posted by rmless at 8:17 AM on August 17, 2007

Did I mention that the firstborn is already 21 and saddled with college debt? But he's yours, really.
posted by nax at 3:21 PM on August 17, 2007