REMOVING BUBBLES ... The best way to remove little bubbles that don't press out under your vinyl, is by using a little straight pin or safety pin. Just poke a little hole, and press it smooth.
USING VINYL OUTDOORS ... If your vinyl is meant to be outdoors more than six months, such as on car windows, boats, mailboxes, and signs, we highly recommend that you use the Oracal 751 Premium Cast Vinyl. Regular Oracal 631 Vinyl states there is a 3 year outdoor usage, but it will quickly crack and fade in extreme temperatures. White exterior vinyl always looks best on car windows because it is the best seen from far distances. Be sure that you charge your customers more for exterior vinyl because it will cost more and take you a longer to weed. It is not as forgiving as regular interior vinyl.
USING TRANSFER TAPE ... We highly recommend using the Transfer Rite Ultra Transfer Tape (high tack) for all your Oracal 631 vinyl projects. If you or a customer have difficulty hanging a project using this transfer tape, there are really only two reasons why it might be difficult:
1- The vinyl is being cut too deep. The cutter blade should only lightly score the glossy side of the vinyl backing. If it cuts too deep, it will be very easy to weed, but very-very difficult to hang. Check often by lifting up letters and hanging sample words on walls where vinyl is already hung. So adjust the depth of your cutter blade to see if this resolves the problem.
2- The surface of the wall has poor tactile properties. Vinyl lettering does not adhere well to all flat and satin finishes. It is best to encourage customers to hang a couple sample letters on a new wall first, before hanging a finished design, just to see if the vinyl lettering will hang well there. It's a great way to use those letters in the designs that were "messed" up during the cutting or weeding process!
PREPARING SURFACES ... Vinyl can be used on a multitude of surfaces, provided the surface is clean, dry, and basically flat. There are some paints, glazes, wallpapers, and finishes that won't hold vinyl well, so make sure you try a sample before you begin a project. Also, remember that glass and mirrors aren't as forgiving as other surfaces, so be extra careful when you're laying the vinyl. Using a glaze or a finishing product on top of the finished vinyl gives a different look to your project, but it is not necessary.
Glass - cleaning the glass with a diluted vinegar/water mixture is better than using household products like Windex; the vinyl tends to stick better. An application fluid like Rapid Tac is preferable for high performance vinyl usage. Always make sure you wipe glass down well or dust particles will create bumps under your vinyl.
Products such as Rapid Tac and Action Tac can be sprayed on the glass beforehand; they give you the ability to adjust vinyl on glass before it sets, and the ability to press out tiny little bubbles, which naturally form between vinyl and glass. The products then dry clear.
Picture frames - to convert a favorite glass-enclosed picture frame into a see-through wall hanging, simply remove the backing and pull out the little metal holders. Then run a thin bead of clear bathroom caulk along the edge, place the glass on the adhesive, then run another thin bead of bathroom caulk on the glass, near the edge. With a wet finger, smooth the caulk and let harden, or cure, for 24-36 hours. Have the frame lay flat upside down. Then scrape off the excess caulk with a razor blade and clean the glass. The surface is now ready to apply vinyl.
SURFACE IDEAS ... Besides the finished walls of a home, vinyl can be placed on most finished woods (ie. painted, crackled, sanded, stained), cabinet doors, old windows, picture frames, glass blocks, mirrors, shadowbox pictures, tiles (even in the shower!), lockers, doors, decorative plates ... to name a few!
CLICK HERE ... to see many more ideas for using vinyl in home decor
REMOVING VINYL ... Razor blades work well for removing vinyl off glass; products like Goo-B-Gone and OOPS! help remove stubborn, sticky vinyl residue (be sure to test a small area of the surface beforehand --- they also remove paint); and, the heat of blow dryer can help soften the hard-to-remove vinyl for easier peeling.
USING THE CATALOGS ... My Vinyl Designer has compiled a high-quality, pleasantly designed, printable PDF catalog for each collection on the website. Although the pages can be compiled in any type of binding system, we like using white cardstock and top-loading sheet protectors best. We especially like using the standard white vinyl presentation folders that come with 12 attached sheet protectors because they are slim, trim, and easy to handle and store.
These catalogs are meant to offer home-based and storefront businesses more vinyl sale opportunities, as well as be a quick fingertip reference for do-it-yourselfers. When a customer expresses an interest in a particular design, you simply determine the measurements, find the cataloged ready-to-cut vector image, cut, and presto … an instant sale!
Alternatively, you may electronically offer the catalogs to your customers on blogs, web pages, and websites.. (Just review our copyrights section for the little, but very important details.)
USING WALL CREATIVITY ... Vinyl lettering adds richness, focus, and interest to your home in an endless number of ways. For walls, a vinyl lettering "stencil" can be used within a plaster for an embossed look, reversely hung with different finishes, or directly hung on a finished surface. Try using vinyl lettering on or around surfaces with a faux finish (French for fake), trompe l'oeil (an old European painting technique that implies a three-dimensional illusion), crackle, aging, stain, or paint. Not all paints have the same tactile performance, so vinyl lettering will not adhere well to every paint, glaze, and wallpaper. But give it a try on small samples. The effects are visually stunning!
RETAIL PRICING ... When running a vinyl business, be sure that you price your vinyl properly! Your vinyl and overhead costs might be low, but you need to account for all the little things and time you aren't paid for. The proper pricing allows for the all the time you spend with the customer, from start to finish, mistakes, and little upsales and bonuses you offer. All your marketing expenses also need to be considered. Also, when you undercut your prices, it damages the entire vinyl market because your customer expects the same costs elsewhere.
You will find that pricing retail vinyl is all over the board ... from people that charge by letter and square inch, to those that charge by linear foot. Personally, we discourage such pricing strategies because it causes an enormous amount of grief, frustration, and time that could be used elsewhere. So we offer these rough tips in pricing vinyl (specifically the Oracal 631 Exhibition Cal Vinyl):
1- If an order fits within a 12"x12" area, the retail cost runs $10-$15 (depending on the customization and weeding time - costs of wood, tiles, easels, etc. are added to it)
2- If an order fits within a 12"x24" area, the retail cost runs $15-$20 (depending on the customization and weeding time - costs of wood, tiles, easels, etc. are added to it)
3- If an order fits within a 24"x24" area, the retail cost runs between $20-$25 (depending on the customization and weeding time - costs of wood, tiles, easels, etc. are added to it)
4- If an order fits within a 24"x48" area, the retail cost runs $45-$50 (depending on the customization and weeding time - costs of wood, tiles, easels, etc. are added to it)
If using the Oracal 751 Premium Cast Vinyl for exterior use, your retail costs should basically double what is listed above. The vinyl costs are more, the weeding time is significantly increased because this vinyl is not as forgiving, and the overall service is much-much more because you are doing custom design work.
We cannot emphasize enough, the importance of properly pricing your retail vinyl projects! Otherwise, you will quickly burn out and become frustrated with a business that is meant to bring you an excellent income and great satisfaction, even in the remotest of geographical areas.
