Using Spirit Gum

This thread is archived.

  • I used spirit gum at the Chicago comic con last year for the first time, on my red hood face mask, which it seemed like it worked out pretty well, but as the day went on, I could feel it falling off because of the sweat and stuff like that. What would be a better way to make it stay on my face? be it putting the spirit gum on a specific way or some other method.

    When I did use the spirit gum I would put it all over the mask and on my face where the mask was going to be. I just have two simple questions about spirit gum itself. Do you wait till the adhesive itself is dry on both the mask and my face before pressing it on or do you put it on while it is still wet? and is putting the spirit gum on both surfaces the best method of using it? Thank you.

  • Well, from personal experience I only apply it on one surface and put it on immediately. Some people sweat more than others though so you may just have to hold onto a little bottle and re-apply it throughout the day.

  • Usually with spirit gum, you paint it on to either surface and then wait about 30 seconds for some of the solvent to evaporate and the gum to 'tack up' before applying it.

    If you're adhering a large piece, and if you expect to sweat a fair amount, you might want to look into heavier-duty prosthetic adhesive. [URL="http://www.learnmakeupeffects.com/sticky-situations-the-zen-of-prosthetic-adhesives-removers/"]http://www.learnmakeupeffects.com/sticky-situations-the-zen-of-prosthetic-adhesives-removers/[/URL] seems to have a good overview, but is aimed at special effects prosthetics.

  • [QUOTE=PsychoPsally;5012373]Well, from personal experience I only apply it on one surface and put it on immediately. Some people sweat more than others though so you may just have to hold onto a little bottle and re-apply it throughout the day.[/QUOTE]

    Thank you for the input. I never thought about carrying a bottle with me, but I guess that wouldn't hurt.

  • When I cosplayed as Zelda and Malon, I had to wear elf ears. My coworker told me to use glue for fake eyelashes. She said it was better than spirit gum. I did once a test at home with spirit gum and glue. The spirit gum wasn't holding on more then a few minutes because of the wig while the glue was doing fine.

    I don't know if it will work on a mask, but if you want to try the glue for fake eyelashes, do some tests at home first.

  • No problem :)

  • double post

  • Whenever I've used Spirit Gum I've always been given the instructions to wait a little bit (seconds to minutes) for it to get tacky before pressing the object on. I'd attached a clay prop gem with it and while it held decently at the beginning of the day it did start to crack and peel as the day wore on, and I had to reapply it multiple times. It also started to get a little uncomfortable/itchy the longer I wore it and kept applying it. There's other options but I haven't used anything but Spirit Gum so far.

  • You should wait 30 seconds or so for the spirit gum to get tacky before you stick it to yourself, and press and hold it for about a minute afterwards. In my experience, this gets the best hold. Spirit gum shouldn't come off with sweat alone, but if you are using it with a heavy prosthetics or something like a mask, there sheer weight of it can pull it off of your skin. In that case, bringing a bottle with you to reapply throughout the day is definitely a good idea, but it would be better in the long run to look into a stronger cosmetic adhesive.

    Also, less is more. I've seen some people over-saturate their prosthetics with spirit gum, and it is actually counter productive. You only need to brush it on lightly and it should stick just fine. This of course, depends on the weight. The heavier the thing you are trying to stick, the more of a chance you have of it falling off. No amount of spirit gum will solve that, unfortunately.

  • The mask isn't that big but I still had issues with it staying on. Thanks everyone for the advice. Last question do you put the adhesive on both your skin and the mask or is just on the mask enough, cause I don't want to over do it. Thanks again!

    [IMG]https://www.instagram.com/p/55IdEWKlbP/?taken-by=mercwithmouth89[/IMG]