Ironing

HOW-TO IRON:

     Ok, so now you've got a design on your pegboard and you're not so sure how to properly iron it so that you get an even fuse around the edges of the beads. Don't worry it'll take some practice and experimenting to get your sprite looking the way you want it to look. 

Things you'll need:

-An Iron

-Parchment Paper

-A Design Awaiting Fusing

-A Few Minutes

     Before starting, you may be wondering what parchment paper is. It is basically a paper like wax paper that is usually used for cooking, but it doesn't have that "sticky" kind of feeling to it like wax paper does. Most perler bead bucket sets have a piece folded up which you can use, but if you need some more, go to the dollar store's kitchen department or any retail store and you'll find it. 

     When I am ironing, I first preheat my iron a little bit and set it to a low-medium level. (Everyone's iron is different. Feel the heat emitting from your iron before starting. Remember it can't be too hot or too cool-just bath water warm if you get what I'm saying...) If your iron looks like mine, (I highly doubt it since mine is ancient) I set it to around 3-4.

     Ok! So now it's time to decide. Do you want a hard fuse or a fuse like the perler bead sprites I make? A hard fuse means that you iron the beads until the hole in the perler bead is completely gone, so basically you have these little solid coloured squares just like a real sprite from a video game. I personally like the holes because it gives some more dimension to it, so I always make sure not to over-iron. 

     During ironing, I press firmly, but not too hard and move the iron in a circular motion for an even distribution of heat. You may not understand by just reading my instructions, so I suggest making a few testers, so that you can practice ironing and getting the hang of it before making the more complicated sprites.

When you are done ironing one side, you should be able to see your design bolded through the parchment paper so that you know your beads have melted slightly onto the paper. Next, you would have to flip your design over onto the other side, so that the side that isn't ironed is facing up. You'll probably need another piece of parchment paper or you could fold the remaining paper you have on the other side over. Do the exact same process   quickly and firmly, so that you don't see any sort of bending of the entire piece. If you do see it bending to one side, iron the side that is bending UPWARDS to get it flat again. I highly recommend getting something heavy to put on top of your sprite while it is cooling so that the heat can escape evenly without any bending. My Macbook does a pretty good job at that. 

     Once your sprite has cooled, you can check to see if it looks good and then display it anywhere you want! I hope that gives you an idea of how to iron your perler bead creation. If there are any question, leave a comment below and I would be glad to help. :D

-QDCrafts