Some of the patterns were a bit off, and i felt like the green was a bit too light, but no biggie. Board is a quality board that connects with other perler boards if you have some of the clear or yellow ones at home. Could have been more patterns, but i think they wanted to provide enough beads for all the patterns, so I get that. I haven't finished them all, but I've moved on to other projects.
For most ppl, i think a clear board would be preferred so they can place it over the pattern (which is scaled to actual size, so easy to do) but the blue boards are more durable, so it's a bit of a toss up.
TIPS FOR NOOBS:
tweezers are optional. i find that the older (and more arthritic) i get, i like them more and more, but didn't when i was younger.
Picking thru the multi-color bag for the last of whatever accent color is always a pain. I find it easier to just take 30-45 mins to give them a basic sorting while i watch watch TV or something beforehand. saves the headaches later.
Don't be afraid to make changes/alterations to the pattern when you are making the design. The colors arent affected by the heat when fusing, so you can have a pretty good idea of what the finished product is going to look like before you iron. Don't be afraid to mix it up and try different things when you're placing the beads. Until you iron, you can always change it back to the original design.
IRONING:
You can iron you designs (the first side) directly on the blue board provided in this kit, but you may want to take some precautions to ensure that you don't warp the board over time and your design comes out nice.
1. Don't use high heat. My iron goes from 1-7 (7 being for cotton garments) and I put my dial right between the 3 and the 4, so like "half-heat"
2. Use the butcher paper in the kit, or ACTUAL butcher paper from the store for an even, "eggshell" type finish. Don't use wax paper. It will make a mess. If you're set on a glossy finish, you can get special ironing paper that gives a glossy finish, and it's inexpensive, but the sheet of butcher paper that comes with the kit is fine and you can use it over and over, until it gets holes. (you don't want the iron to come into direct contact with the beads, even in the smallest of areas, or beads will fuse to the iron... learn from my mistakes lol)
3... and this is important... DO NOT APPLY DOWARD PRESSURE WHILE IRONING! I know it's tempting, and it feels like you're gonna speed up the process by pressing down... and you will... but it will also make the indentations in your final project and make the ironing in general super uneven. The weight of the iron itself is enough. Just gently "float" it along the surface, keeping it flat, all the way to the edges.
4. Move in SLOW even circles, to avoid the hot-spots on your iron heating unevenly. Make sure you go all the way to the edges. "Float" the circles around your work so that the edge of the iron is going past the edge of the project as you circle, while still keeping it nice and flat (easier to do when u follow #4, and you're not pressing down)
5. (optional) You see the beads starting to melt, I like to take a little break for the work to all cool down to avoid any areas becoming "overcooked," but this is just me being a perfectionist. If you want to just get er done, you can keep going till it's fully fused. If you are a perfectionist like me and you want to take a break, just make sure to put something flat and heavy like a big book on it while it cools, so it doesn't begin to warp and pop off the pegs.
6. With the butcher paper, it's not super easy to see, but once the beads start to look more like bold O's, and you can see them all thru the paper (including the ones on the edge, look closely to make sure all the O's are touching their neighbors. When they are all touching, they are fused. Sometimes I like to take a break and check back after they have cooled a little bit, but you do run the risk of the paper lifting when you do that, so just be careful. PLEASE NOTE: you don't need to melt the beads until the holes fill in. As long as they have melted enough on the very top so that they are touching all their neighbors, that's fully fused. If you want melt it more, that's fine, it won't hurt the beads, but do make sure to place something heavy on your board right away after removing the beads, so as not to warp it, as this does add extra heat.
7. Double check that all of the beads around the edges are fused to their neighbors. Once you flip your work, it's easy to replace a bead or two in the middle of your work, but trying to get the edges to line up again is impossible, so make sure they are staying in place before you move on.
8. Once you have the first side fused, place something flat and heavy , like a big book, on the whole thing (including the board and the butcher paper) for 3-5 min. If you have asbestos fingers, you can skip this step for your project, but you will want to place a book or something on the board itself while it cools to avoid warping from the residual heat.
9. Once you have the first side fused, GENTLY peel back the butcher paper. If a bead or two comes loose, you can replace the butcher paper and iron it again. The beads will not be harmed by re-heating as many times as you want/need. If you have an extra sheet of butcher paper, you can leave the top sheet in place, which is my preferred method, and then I can re-iron the front easily if I decide to, but if you're just using the paper in the kit, that works fine, you will just have to peel it off between sides.
10. Once you've checked that your front side is fully fused, place a piece of cardboard or something similar over your work, and then flip if over while supporting the board with your hand. then slide your work to the ironing surface and lift the plate away. This should keep your design intact while it's in the somewhat delicate state of being fused on only one side.
11. Put something heavy, like a big book, on your plate while it cools to avoid warping.
12. Place the butcher paper of the back of your work (now on top) and repeat the ironing/fusing process. You can make the project 2-sided by carefully ironing on low heat like before, or, if you want to make your design super durable, you can crank the heat up on your iron and fuse the back until all of the beads are completely melted into the surrounding beads. I personally don't like the "overcooked" style, but if the project is for a child, you might want them to be a bit more durable.
13. Lastly, and I know I've said this a ton already, but always put something flat and heavy, like a book, on both your project and the pegboard while they cool to avoid warping. It doesn't have to be an encyclopedia, just a little bit of pressure will do it, but skipping that will result in warping. Maybe not the first time, but, over time it will happen.
Ok, hope that helps, :)
Jennifer White
Jocelyn