Foam Board...

Decorating By Sunflower08 Updated 1 Jul 2008 , 7:05pm by cerobs

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Sunflower08 Posted 25 Jun 2008 , 6:40pm
post #1 of 37

I'm not sure if this is what some of you use but I thought this might be useful..
This is at dollartreedirect.com... Thought it was a good deal...

Product info:
Product Name: Readi-Board Foam Boards
SKU#: 809955
Product Description:
Each board begins with a 3/16" polystyrene foam core, laminated on either side with heavy Kraft paper. Perfect for matting/mounting photos and artwork, sign making, craft projects, presentations, exhibits, displays, and more! Case includes 50 - 20x30" white foam boards.
Unit Price: $1.00 Units Per Case: 50 Case Price: $50.00

36 replies
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mamacc Posted 26 Jun 2008 , 12:57am
post #2 of 37

Wow, that is a good price! I think my Michael's sells them for $3.79, and a 2-pack of Elmer's brand for $9.99.

Thanks for sharing!

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bizatchgirl Posted 26 Jun 2008 , 1:12am
post #3 of 37

Wow! I think there's a Dollartree just up the road from me. I hope they have these!

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FeGe_Cakes Posted 26 Jun 2008 , 1:18am
post #4 of 37

WARNING!!!!!! I have bought it before. It it not as sturdy as the ones you buy at Hobby Lobby or Joann's. The thickness might be similar but the strength is much weaker.

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Lady_Phoenix Posted 26 Jun 2008 , 1:23am
post #5 of 37

I have used the ones from dollar tree before and I have to agree they are not nearly as sturdy. Hobby Lobby sells a 20 x 30 foamcore board for 4,99 every day, this week they are 50% off, no coupon needed.

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Laura102777 Posted 26 Jun 2008 , 1:25am
post #6 of 37
Quote:
Originally Posted by flg22275

WARNING!!!!!! I have bought it before. It it not as sturdy as the ones you buy at Hobby Lobby or Joann's. The thickness might be similar but the strength is much weaker.




EXACTLY!! I bought some the other day, and they're just not the same. They aren't covered with the slick posterboard stuff, and even a double layer isn't as sturdy as a single layer of regular foamcore board that I've used before.

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FeGe_Cakes Posted 26 Jun 2008 , 1:55am
post #7 of 37

I learned that the hard way. I had a baby shower cake..(the green and yellow one in my photos). I put it on 2 or 3 layers of Dollartree foam core because I failed to get some from the hobby lobby before they closed. Biggest mistake. icon_mad.gif It caused my cake to crack when I lifted it. Granted it was a 2 layer 4 inch 11 x 15 cake but I won't buy it again. The cardboard cake boards are much better than the dollar tree foamcore.

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sugarflour2 Posted 26 Jun 2008 , 11:26am
post #8 of 37

Does anybody cut their foam board into circles, if so what's the trick to this? I tried and it was a mess. The edges were so jagged and pieces of foam were coming out.

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Sunflower08 Posted 30 Jun 2008 , 5:51pm
post #9 of 37

I have never used the foam board before so there for I didn't know if this was good or not.. Sorry!!

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Laura102777 Posted 30 Jun 2008 , 10:23pm
post #10 of 37
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sunflower08

I have never used the foam board before so there for I didn't know if this was good or not.. Sorry!!




Oh, no need to apologize! We're all out there looking for a good deal. I had just picked up a few of these in the Dollar Tree store a couple of weeks ago, and I got really excited when I saw them. Unfortunately, I was really disappointed when I tried them.

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Cakepro Posted 30 Jun 2008 , 10:41pm
post #11 of 37
Quote:
Originally Posted by sugarflour2

Does anybody cut their foam board into circles, if so what's the trick to this? I tried and it was a mess. The edges were so jagged and pieces of foam were coming out.




The answer is a hot knife! Michaels sells the Walnut Hollow brand. They heat up to like 1100 degrees and let me tell you, they cut through foamcore like it's butter!!

And, Michaels has a 50% off coupon this week...good through July 5th. Go getcha one! icon_smile.gif
LL

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Sugar_Plum_Fairy Posted 30 Jun 2008 , 10:44pm
post #12 of 37
Quote:
Originally Posted by sugarflour2

Does anybody cut their foam board into circles, if so what's the trick to this? I tried and it was a mess. The edges were so jagged and pieces of foam were coming out.




I haven't used it yet, but I just bought (at Michael's in the wood working section) a hot knife. It's basically an electric exacto knife. I was told by adven68 that it cuts through foam board like a hot "knife through butter". Also, I believe wgoat5 mentioned that she uses it as well (I think it was her).

Hopefully I'll get a chance to try it within the next couple of weeks or so.

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Cakepro Posted 30 Jun 2008 , 10:46pm
post #13 of 37

LOL

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Sugar_Plum_Fairy Posted 30 Jun 2008 , 10:55pm
post #14 of 37

Okay, the one I got is "Designed for Her" Creative Hotknife. It was $16.99 and I used the 40% off coupon that somebody on CC linked to to print it out. So my final cost was $10.90.

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Cakepro Posted 30 Jun 2008 , 11:01pm
post #15 of 37

Yes, it's a Walnut Hollow Creative Hot Knife.

Here's the link: http://www.michaels.com/art/online/displayProductPage?productNum=gc0421

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Sugar_Plum_Fairy Posted 30 Jun 2008 , 11:31pm
post #16 of 37
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cakepro

Yes, it's a Walnut Hollow Creative Hot Knife.

Here's the link: http://www.michaels.com/art/online/displayProductPage?productNum=gc0421




Yep, that's the one! (I looked at the model instead of the make. icon_wink.gif Small print I usually leave to my hubby. icon_biggrin.gif )

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sugarflour2 Posted 1 Jul 2008 , 12:14am
post #17 of 37

Wow thanks! I asked at the art store where I get my foam board about a cutter and they were trying to sell me some crazy looking cutters that looked rather dangerous, and were way to pricey. I'm going to Michaels this week to get this cutter.

Cakepro, thanks for the coupon.

Hey Grace, does my avatar look familiar?

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Doug Posted 1 Jul 2008 , 1:34am
post #18 of 37

hint on the dollar tree boards....

which I use almost exclusively......

must be a double layer....

BUT....

must also be GLUED together to make one solid unit.

I glue them using a Elmers Spray Adhesive (blue can, orange top) .... it allows a bit of wiggle time before setting up permanently.

Further hint ---

if you look at the boards you will note the have a curve to them sort of like this (

so put the two them together like this ( ) or )( before gluing. The natural curves then work against each other to make stronger (old trick from woodworking)

my 2 biggest gripes w/ DollarTree boards -- they are never perfectly square nor trimmed exactly the same size; always bit (1/8in or so) off AND...

yes they are about 1/16 in thinner than standard boards from the major craft stores. This is most noticeable if you warp the board in ribbon. Too see this in actuality if you squint real hard ... look at the pic of mine of the music cake I made for a fund raiser. That's 2 DollarTree Boards, glued up as stated above. No problems w/ firmness, but drat! that ribbon is sticking up above the edge a scosh.

and.....

HOT knifes rule! (tho' personally very talented w/ very sharp craft knifes too)

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Sugar_Plum_Fairy Posted 1 Jul 2008 , 5:12am
post #19 of 37
Quote:
Originally Posted by sugarflour2

Wow thanks! I asked at the art store where I get my foam board about a cutter and they were trying to sell me some crazy looking cutters that looked rather dangerous, and were way to pricey. I'm going to Michaels this week to get this cutter.

Cakepro, thanks for the coupon.

Hey Grace, does my avatar look familiar?




Just be careful whom you ask at Michael's. They were announcing the store was closing and I asked one of the employees about the hot knife and where it would be and I got, "Gee, I don't know". Luckily the next aisle I went down happened to be the correct one. icon_biggrin.gif

Yes, Pam, it looks very familiar! Nice to 'see' you here! icon_wink.gif

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sugarflour2 Posted 1 Jul 2008 , 11:06am
post #20 of 37

Oh no, Michaels closing? Do you know if it's all the Michaels, or just the one where you went? Where in the world will we go for supplies? This can't be so, first the Rag Shop, now Michaels, what's going on?

I re-read your post again Grace, and this time I think I got it right, they were closing for the night, not closing all together, right?

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danijus Posted 1 Jul 2008 , 3:07pm
post #21 of 37

Can't thank you all for the hot knife idea. I use a regular exacto and its very jagged looking and unproffesional.

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Sugar_Plum_Fairy Posted 1 Jul 2008 , 3:52pm
post #22 of 37
Quote:
Originally Posted by sugarflour2

Oh no, Michaels closing? Do you know if it's all the Michaels, or just the one where you went? Where in the world will we go for supplies? This can't be so, first the Rag Shop, now Michaels, what's going on?

I re-read your post again Grace, and this time I think I got it right, they were closing for the night, not closing all together, right?




Correct, they were closing for the night. icon_wink.gif Who knows, maybe she was a new employee, but when I worked in retail if I didn't know I would usually ask a fellow employee if they knew this way I could actually help a customer. Maybe I'm just getting old. lol

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Cakepro Posted 1 Jul 2008 , 4:08pm
post #23 of 37
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sugar_Plum_Fairy


Yep, that's the one! (I looked at the model instead of the make. icon_wink.gif Small print I usually leave to my hubby. icon_biggrin.gif )




Haha, me too, which is why I wandered around the store for 45 minutes looking in every single department for a 'creative knife' before I realized that there's a whole Walnut Hollow section. DOH!!!!!!!! icon_redface.gif Sometimes I can't see the forest for the trees. LOL

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Laura102777 Posted 1 Jul 2008 , 5:18pm
post #24 of 37
Quote:
Originally Posted by Doug

hint on the dollar tree boards....

which I use almost exclusively......

must be a double layer....

BUT....

must also be GLUED together to make one solid unit.

I glue them using a Elmers Spray Adhesive (blue can, orange top) .... it allows a bit of wiggle time before setting up permanently.

Further hint ---

if you look at the boards you will note the have a curve to them sort of like this (

so put the two them together like this ( ) or )( before gluing. The natural curves then work against each other to make stronger (old trick from woodworking)

my 2 biggest gripes w/ DollarTree boards -- they are never perfectly square nor trimmed exactly the same size; always bit (1/8in or so) off AND...

yes they are about 1/16 in thinner than standard boards from the major craft stores. This is most noticeable if you warp the board in ribbon. Too see this in actuality if you squint real hard ... look at the pic of mine of the music cake I made for a fund raiser. That's 2 DollarTree Boards, glued up as stated above. No problems w/ firmness, but drat! that ribbon is sticking up above the edge a scosh.

and.....

HOT knifes rule! (tho' personally very talented w/ very sharp craft knifes too)




Well, now THAT'S something I wouldn't have thought of. I taped two together, but I can see how that didn't help bond them together for strength like gluing them would. I'll have to give that a try. It sure would be nice to be able to get them for $1 regularly. I don't live in a town with a craft shop, so I don't always get in on the big sales at Michaels or Hobby Lobby, etc. It's nice to be able to know I can stock up at a low price whenever I get a chance to go. Thanks for the tip, Doug!

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Sugar_Plum_Fairy Posted 1 Jul 2008 , 5:18pm
post #25 of 37
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cakepro

Quote:
Originally Posted by Sugar_Plum_Fairy


Yep, that's the one! (I looked at the model instead of the make. icon_wink.gif Small print I usually leave to my hubby. icon_biggrin.gif )



Haha, me too, which is why I wandered around the store for 45 minutes looking in every single department for a 'creative knife' before I realized that there's a whole Walnut Hollow section. DOH!!!!!!!! icon_redface.gif Sometimes I can't see the forest for the trees. LOL




LOL It's nice to be in good company!

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cerobs Posted 1 Jul 2008 , 5:33pm
post #26 of 37

Ladies where can I buy a large wooden dowel at?

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Cakepro Posted 1 Jul 2008 , 5:39pm
post #27 of 37

Home Depot, Lowe's, Hobby Lobby, Michaels, and any number of other craft stores.

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darandon Posted 1 Jul 2008 , 5:48pm
post #28 of 37
Quote:
Originally Posted by Sugar_Plum_Fairy

Quote:
Originally Posted by sugarflour2

Does anybody cut their foam board into circles, if so what's the trick to this? I tried and it was a mess. The edges were so jagged and pieces of foam were coming out.



I haven't used it yet, but I just bought (at Michael's in the wood working section) a hot knife. It's basically an electric exacto knife. I was told by adven68 that it cuts through foam board like a hot "knife through butter". Also, I believe wgoat5 mentioned that she uses it as well (I think it was her).

Hopefully I'll get a chance to try it within the next couple of weeks or so.




I got that knife at Michaels and I love it. I bought it to carve the foam pumpkins at halloween and it works perfect for those and just slides through foam board.

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cerobs Posted 1 Jul 2008 , 6:04pm
post #29 of 37

are we talking about the one that sharon use in her dvd?

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Cakepro Posted 1 Jul 2008 , 6:09pm
post #30 of 37

Sharon uses a regular X-Acto knife in her DVD. I told her about the hot knife once and she said she was too lazy to get it out and wait for it to heat up. LOL

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