There are many benefits to using bendable wood appliques in your creative projects. It’s a great choice for furniture and many other home decor items because you can easily shape them to fit most surfaces. Plus, it’s a renewable resource, making it an environmentally friendly option. If you’re looking for a versatile material that is both beautiful and sustainable, then try using bendable wood appliques! They are the perfect choice!
iFLEX WOOD PRODUCTS
In this Blog Post, I will be referring specifically to iFlex Wood Products! These wood products are heat bendable embellishments that can be treated just like real wood. They are lightweight and can be molded to any contoured surface. With the use of a good quality glue, they adhere to just about any surface! Some of these wood products are stand alone; they don’t need to bend, such as a tray. (Examples of this can be shown in the videos below).
WHAT ARE iFLEX (BENDY) WOOD PRODUCTS MADE OF?
IFlex Wood Products are essentially made of wood! They look like wood, feel like wood, and smell like wood. In fact, they can be sanded, sawed, stained, varnished, drilled, painted, distressed…you name it! Whatever you can do to wood, you can do to iFlex products! What makes it unique is when heat is introduced. Use a heat gun, or a hair dryer on these products and they become bendy, allowing you to mold it to any surface! When it cools off, it retains its shape and turns back into hard wood.
HOW DO YOU USE IT?
Using the iFlex Wood moldings is as easy as 1-2-3. They are perfect for quickly and easily enhancing your upcycled furniture and craft projects. All you need is a heat source, some good quality glue and a surface to stick your iFlex to!
FIRST, heat the moulding with a heat gun or blow dryer (no higher than 275 degrees) until it becomes flexible. This allows the decorative moulding to fit closely to your surface by increasing contact points of the glue.
NEXT, spread a thin, even layer of adhesive, such as Titebond glue, to the entire back surface. It is important to cover well so that small, detailed parts of the molding will be properly adhered to the project piece.
THIRD, Gently press the iFlex Wood embellishment to the project surface. Continue applying mild pressure until the adhesive begins to set and the iFlex Wood embellishment remains in place on its own. Press all parts of the iFlex Wood Products molding against the surface to ensure a complete bond. If needed, reapply heat intermittently to retain flexibility. Remove excess glue with a Q-tip, baby wipe or wet paint brush. That’s it! Once the glue has properly dried, the piece is ready for paint, stain or other decorative finish enhancements.
CAUTION: iFlex Wood Products are fragile and may break if not handled with care. If a break occurs, heat with heat gun or blow dryer, then apply a small amount of wood glue to the broken surfaces and press back together. Once glue has dried, gently sand if needed to smooth surface with 320 grit sandpaper, and the piece can then be used normally following the instructions above. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO BEND iFLEX WOOD PRODUCTS WITHOUT HEATING FIRST! DO NOT SUBMERGE IN WATER.
Once properly adhered, the iFlex wood moldings will stay firmly in place for decades. If for some reason you need to remove the moulding, again heat it with a heat gun or hair dryer, then slide the moulding off using a spatular or knife.
HOW TO TUTORIALS
As I mentioned above, some of the iFlex wood products are pieces that don’t need heating, such as the wooden tray! All you would need to do is paint it or stain it. For one tray, I took it a bit further and added an IOD Paint Inlay and Epoxy Resin! You can watch the process below!
There is another iFlex wooden tray that comes with a bow! For that one, I used the Painterly Florals transfer by IOD and a beautiful champagne colored glaze by Paint Couture! Check out that tutorial below!
All in all, the iFlex wood products (bendy wood) are a great way to get creative with your crafting and DIY projects. The possibilities are endless, so have some fun and experiment with what you can make! I would love to see what you come up with – share your photos on my social media pages and use the hashtag #iFlex.
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