Of all the craft and cosplay supplies in my home, I probably turn to Mod Podge the most. Sometimes called modge podge, the useful material is a decoupage medium. It’s a glue, sealer, and finish combo that can be used for more than decoupage. It’s available in multiple formulas and finishes and even comes in sheer colors that allow you to add transparent hues to your work. Mod Podge works on a variety of surfaces, and even though I use it regularly, my container of Mod Podge has lasted for a long time. As mentioned, it’s useful for more than just decoupage. Here are five ways you can use Mod Podge in cosplay:
Photo via Aicosu
Armor – Mod Podge comes in incredibly handy when you’re using craft foam to make armor. Turning foam into armor is a topic I’ve touched on many times because I never cease to be impressed by how an inexpensive piece of foam can be turned into something that looks really close to leather or metal. The Skyrim Nightingale Armor pictured above? Foam. Sheila of Aicosu Cosplay made it from craft foam. She cut out pattern pieces, added the detailing with hot glue, and sealed the craft foam with Mod Podge before panting. Read about the painting process at Tumblr.
Decoupage – I know, it’s a stretch to use Mod Podge for its primary purpose. Turn to Mod Podge anytime you need to apply paper to a hard surface. It works best on smaller areas, but if you work carefully and slowly, you could use Mod Podge to say, cover a shield with a printed Captain America shield pattern. I like using Mod Podge because it’s less intimidating to me than spray adhesive but if you go that route, you can seal the paper with Mod Podge aerosol sealer.
Sealing props – If you’ve spent any amount of time working on a prop and painting it to look just right, you’ll want to protect that work. Especially if you’ve gone to the trouble of weathering and aging something to make it look screen accurate. To ensure the finish won’t chip or peel when you take the prop out and about and/or store it, seal it with Mod Podge. The various formulas mean you can brush or spray it on and do so with a gloss or matte finish. Once you’ve applied the sealant, be sure to let the prop or accessory fully dry before handling.
Photo via Project Cosplay
Smoothing Worbla – Worbla is a versatile material that’s become a popular with cosplayers, but it does have disadvantages. The texture is one of those disadvantages. Project Cosplay conducted a “Making Worbla Smooth” test and experimented with a couple of methods to even out the surface of Worbla. As you can see in the above photo, they had success with a combo of Gesso and Mod Podge spray. One layer of Mod Podge acrylic sealant goes over Worbla and eight layers of Gesso. It was finished with a single layer of gold metallic paint. Get more details at Project Cosplay.
Glitter protection – Glitter is a challenging material to work with. I happen to be a big fan, but every time I use glitter, I end up getting it on items that don’t need to be sprinkled with glitter. When you use it in cosplay – whether it’s on sparkly fairy wings, on jewels, or on a crown – use Mod Podge to seal it up. You don’t want to have to worry about leaving a trail of glitter behind on your companions or unsuspecting passersby. The spray-on Mod Podge would work best here. If you do decide to brush it on, make sure you extract the Mod Podge from the bottle first so you don’t have to dip a brush covered in glitter in your Mod Podge bottle. Avoid glitter contamination!
