Can you spray paint floral foam

I have to make a model for one of my assignments and I am not sure what paint I need to use on the Styrofoam balls By Emma-leigh C. I am trying to cover Styrofoam balls to make them smooth to paint on. I tried paper mache but it won't stick.

Do I have to prep the ball somehow or can you buy round balls for crafting in the various sizes available in Styrofoam? Craft stores like Hobby Lobby or Michaels should sell various sizes of styrofoam balls and maybe in the floral shop or the floral dept. Advertisement Have you thought of gluing fabric over the styrofoam to make it easier to work with? You can buy styrofoam balls; and you can also buy polystyrene balls. The polystyrene balls are not porous, so are easier to paint.

I don't know that they are available in as many sizes and styrofoam. There is a product available at the craft store made specifically to smooth the styrofoam for painting. I have tried it, and while it is OK, it doesn't leave a totally smooth surface, either. You might try gesso, available among the paints to prepare the ball. It might take several coats; but it is slightly thicker than the paint.

You should be able to work with the papier mache if your initial strips go completely around the ball. The mache will stick to itself, so the rest of the pieces you use should slightly overlap the equatorial strips.

I expect you know, but always tear your paper strips for papier mache--they'll blend better,with less visible seams. Hi the craft stores I've been to sell a styrofoam primer that you paint on first or you can use gesso that is sold with the painting supplies. Check with one of your local florist to find out what type of spray paint they use. A florist I used to deliver for made a lot of arrangements using painted styrofoam. Might have been the same paint they used to spray carnations sometimes.

I Googled 'styrofoam smoother'. Price wasn't listed. When I checked crafts on that site, directions for a pumpkin decoration suggested using white glue and tissue paper, 2 coats. Advertisement Maybe using the color tissue you need would work.

Possibly using white tissue paper and painting the design after the glue dries would be successful for your needed effect. Not sure exactly how smooth you want your styrofoam ball but what I have done in the past is one of two things. I have either rolled the ball on a hard surface with light pressure and this will give it a smooth texture.

I also have taken another piece of styrofoam and used it as sand paper and this will make it smooth however either idea will work but may make your ball somewhat smaller than you wish so with that in mind Just be sure when using either one of these ideas use a paintbrush to remove the residue and then the Gesso to seal the ball before starting your project.

Gesso is really great stuff. Let us know the solution you have found to work, it may help the rest of us. Advertisement Thank you. I need Help with this subject! And try all!

What kind of paint can you use on Styrofoam balls? By patricia shinault from Mount Airy, NC. I get my paint for Styrofoam from Hobby Lobby or my local floral shop. It does take a special paint some will melt the foam. The enamel in regular spray paint is corrosive to the styrofoam causing it to dissolve and be eaten away.

The end product looks corroded and the surface layer will be pitted. The answer is to use a latex or oil based paint applied maunally with a brush. Latex house paint is an example. Neither of these will destroy or corrode the styrofoam.

It should be noted though that latex based paints have been known to have some issues with rubber. So before you combine rubber, styrofoam, and latex paint, make sure the label indicates it is safe for both. Spray Paint Styrofoam. Your email address will not be published. Shop Shinoda's. To get better results, please enter a longer search word. Try your search again, but only use numbers and letters a-z. No special characters. Skip to content.

Tip of the Day: Can you spray paint styrofoam? Let it dry and repeat the process. It will get easier each time as it gets smoother. Water and Acrylic paints apparently work just fine here. Don't put it on too think. Much like other approaches Let dry and sand. Drywall compound would be the last choice of these options as it would be brittle. Should still work though. I am putting Geeso in this list as I think it works almost the same although I have no experience with it.

Commercial Options : There is a specific product called Foam Finish which is marketed for use with Styrofoam and related foam products. Likely there are similar products under different names. Consulting a hobby store will help you get the variants. From the container you can see it would work well in this situation and you can read more at one supplier's site. In almost all cases the key is to keep your initial coats thin and build up to strength and uniformity you desire.

All of these should get you a good working surface that you can paint whatever you want. You should be able to glue object as well to the new surface of your foam. Sign up to join this community. The best answers are voted up and rise to the top. Stack Overflow for Teams — Collaborate and share knowledge with a private group. Create a free Team What is Teams? Learn more. Paint or glue porous floral Styrofoam? Ask Question. Asked 5 years, 5 months ago. Active 5 years, 5 months ago. Viewed 5k times.

This type of foam: Is there a type of paint or primer I can apply, first, so they decorative paint and glue stick to that? Is there a certain glue I should use?