Selkie Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 Just thought I'd mention this for folks who are still having trouble finding paper egg cartons for their stonework. I was at the farm/feed store today getting some supplies and it dawned on me as I walked by the chick supply aisle that they stock the paper cartons there for purchase to pack your own eggs. So, bottom line, if you can't find them with eggs in them at the supermarket, check your local farm/feed supply store for them. Ready, available, and still all nice and clean !! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodentraiser Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 You aren't going to believe this, but I had about 12 egg cartons piled up in the kitchen. They fell over every time I moved my chopping block and I finally got ticked off and tossed them all out. At this time, about a month ago, I was going through about 3 dozen eggs a month, so I figured if I needed them, I'd have a stack again in no time. What I hadn't counted on was A) my desire for eggs is at an all time low, so I'm not buying them anymore and B) eggs themselves are at an all time high, so I'm not buying them anymore. Well, it'll be years before I ever get to the foundation of my house. Who knows what could happen by then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dalesq Posted June 24, 2015 Share Posted June 24, 2015 A lot of packaging is made of what I call "heavy" egg carton material. Many times these formed pieces are used to hold an item in position inside its box. I save these weirdly shaped pieces and cup them up for "stones". I recently bought something that had one of these large formed pieces; it has lots of flat areas and will be easy to get square pieces from so it could be used for brick too. I used this stuff for the stepping stones on Tudor Cottage http://www.greenleafdollhouses.com/forum/index.php?app=gallery&image=109452 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Debora59 Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 or one can just switch to mat board Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeninky Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 Don't forget one side of drink carriers can be used too! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caseymini Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 OK. I have been posting about the trays that theaters use for refreshments for months now. They are just the right weight. I manage to snag at least a couple, every time we go to the movies. The best I have found so far! poke photo to enlarge. This is a floor in progress. It's not sculpted or painted yet. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roxxie2 Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 You aren't going to believe this, but I had about 12 egg cartons piled up in the kitchen. They fell over every time I moved my chopping block and I finally got ticked off and tossed them all out Yikes!!!!!!!! LOL I wish I could say that I go to the movies, or take anything out food wise but I don't. There are no feed stores here either. I am sure you are all tired of reading that I live off the map but folks who live in regular type towns and cities just don't have an idea of how little there is near by. No Dunkin Donuts, No craft stores, nada folks!!!!!! It just makes life more interesting and challenging! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiniCrazy Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 Of course you can always make your own with some old ground up newspaper soaked in water and spread on a screen to dry. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sable Posted June 25, 2015 Share Posted June 25, 2015 Cheryl, I had accidentally printed out too many copies of my tax return and while I was hand shreading the wasted ream of paper, I just dumped the whole mess in a tub of water and the next morning it was all pulp. Let it dry for a few days and voila--egg carton paper. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiniCrazy Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 There ya go! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted June 26, 2015 Share Posted June 26, 2015 Mix the pulp with some tacky glue and press it into thin layers between waxed paper. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mollymmoore Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 Does anyone use a sealant for their egg carton work? I sometimes wonder since it's paper it could absorb moisture over time and maybe even crumble. If so, what do you use? I have some Mod Podge sealant that's acrylic based. I've also seen some krylon sealant that's used to seal charcoal drawings, I think it's less likely to yellow with time. I only have experience sealing polyurethane resin for pastel, acrylic and watercolor work, not paper. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 Isn't the pastel, acrylic and watercolor done on paper (at east some of it)? And is not your egg carton work also painted or colored with some other medium? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mollymmoore Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 I don't understand your questions. I know how to seal polyurethane resins. I don't work in paper except when I'm papering a dollhouse wall. Usually when making a piece that's intented to last long term, a sealant is placed beneath and on top pastels, watercolors or acrylics. Sometimes this is done to enhance color saturations or to keep the mediums from mixing. Othertimes it's to prevent smudging (charcoal and pastels).The sealants I'm used to using are imported from Japan, and not intended for paper. I use the scrapbook paper that's manufacured with the purpose of archiving or minigraphics wallpaper for dollhouses. My concern is sealing the paper eggcartons for the purpose of preserving it too. Humidity is a concern for me here in good old Kentucky. Eggcartons are so wonderful, perfect texture! They're just not made to last long term. Some sealants will yellow over time, some sealants aren't meant for some mediums. I'm just curious about what everyone is using, or if they're using anything. It takes forever for me to cut those little bricks, I'd hate for them to crumble off a build even if it's 20+ years in the future. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 I was curious because I mainly use the media you mentioned (pastels, acrylic & watercolors) on paper. I have used a clear-drying aerosol acrylic sealer on the pastels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mollymmoore Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 Yeah, acrylic sealer is great on pastels. It keeps the pastels from dusting away. Do you put anything on the egg cartons to seal them for moisture? This is what I'm curious to know. I've done some egg carton brick test strips on brown craft paper. I just glued them on, let the glue dry and painted them. Boy, oh! Those little egg carton bricks wicked up the moisture of the paint (Gouache). It made me concerned that if it will do that, maybe it would be good to seal the eggcarton material with something, then paint them. Then just seal again for the sake of the paint. I just don't know which product since I'm sealing to prevent moisture absorbsion. These poor old egg cartons are meant to last just a month or two and then become trash or recycled. I would want to do whatever I can to keep them nice if I stuck them on a dollhouse I worked months or years to complete. Not to mention the monetary investment that ultimately goes into a complete build. Oh, and I don't plan to use gouache for my project, but I was willing to waste it for the experiment. I'm probably going to use some liquitex soft body acrylic. I've almost quit using craft acrylics except for Folk Art for certain things. That's a whole other story! I've learned so much about paint since I started doing faceups on dolls. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 I haven't used egg carton I use sandpaper for bricks and spackling compound for everything else. I rarely use acrylic craft paint, I prefer the acrylics that come in tubes and mix my own colors. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathieB Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 Maybe not flood the egg carton bits but use a couple or three thin coats? The first coat would pretty much seal it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mollymmoore Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 Are you saying just to use paint and avoid any sort of sealant? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 I think most folks seal their egg carton bricks and stones before grouting them, since otherwise wiping off the excess grout with damp rag could mess up the paper mache. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathieB Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 I think most folks seal their egg carton bricks and stones before grouting them, since otherwise wiping off the excess grout with damp rag could mess up the paper mache. I don't grout egg carton stone walls at all. If you look at stone walls, not many of them show the mortar between the stones except maybe for those made of round river rock, which need googobs of mortar to hold them in place. Once painted, the lack of mortar (which in many cases in real life is the same color as the stones) is not an issue. I've not done any egg carton bricks, but I don't think I'd grout them, either. I'd start with a grout-colored painted surface, or I might put down a thin layer of Spackle or joint compound/wallboard mud and press the bricks into it (using glue to adhere to the damp base). With a slightly thicker layer of the compound, it would be possible to press down on the bricks to get a squooshed-up line of grout for the kind of wall where the mortar oozes between the bricks. (And I'd probably do this on thin card templates so a to be able to work on them flat on the work surface, not try to attach them to a vertical wall.) Remember, folks, we aren't trying to recreate real life methods. We work with smoke and mirrors. Any method that looks like the real thing is acceptable. And any method that creates as many problem as this grouting of egg cartons seems to just isn't worth wrestling with in my book. There's always another way --- that's been proven here time and time again. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 I don't grout, either, but I remember the posts from those who do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiniCrazy Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 I used grout on my bricks for the foundation. If I had it to do over again I wouldn't have used it. Even though I sprayed them with acrylic clear they still started to fall apart while wiping the grout away. If you look in my gallery I think there are before and after pictures. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havanaholly Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 Cheryl, what did you use to seal with? Has anyone used lacquer as a sealant? Success? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiniCrazy Posted July 11, 2015 Share Posted July 11, 2015 Holly, I used krylon clear acrylic spray. I think my problems was not enough of it. I didn't want to spray the bricks after gluing them to the foundation for fear that the grout wouldn't stick in the crevices because of the acrylic. I used the sticky side of contact paper and stuck each brick to it so I could lay it out in the yard to spray it with color and follow with the clear. I didn't want to go too heavy for fear they wouldn't come off the contact paper afterward. So I think that left them a little unprotected on the sides mostly. Oh well lessons learned right? I think any medium will work fine but it needs to be enough to really seal it from the moisture of the grout. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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