This time of year I love to make my own Christmas ornaments. I glue expensive Swarovski Crystals onto store bought ornaments, and the finished product is a work of art. Making these ornaments can be very time consuming, and I quickly learned that hot glue was not the proper product to use. The flat backed crystals seemed to stay on initially, but after a couple of weeks they would start to fall off. Swarovski Crystals are very expensive, and I need them to stay in place once they are glued on!
A friend told me about a great craft and jewelry glue called E6000. I was able to find it at both my local Michael’s and JoAnn’s craft supply stores. It is expensive, about $7 for a 3.7 ounce tube, but it’s well worth it.
Description
E6000 comes in a gray colored tube, with E6000 written vertically, in bold, along the front of the tube. It is formulated for high performance industrial requirements. The label claims that this adhesive will adhere to more surfaces that any other type of adhesive. It can be used on:
* Wood
* Glass
* Plastic
* Metal
* Ceramics
* Fiberglass
* Leather
* Vinyl
* Rubber
* Masonry
* Concrete
The front of the tube states that this adhesive is:
* Self leveling
* Waterproof
* Non-flammable
* Flexible
* Paintable
* Medium Viscosity
My Experience
All I can say is wow. This is a great adhesive! The directions say to puncture the seal in the neck of the tube, using the pointer cap. I pushed the pointer cap down just a bit too far, leaving a larger hole than I would have liked. When this tube runs out, I plan on piercing the next seal with a smaller hole.
The adhesive comes out pretty quickly, and I find it a little bit hard to work with. I usually pull out a little bit with a toothpick, then apply it to the area needing to be glued. It takes a while to firm up, in fact the tube says that it can take 24-72 hours to cure completely. The glue dries completely clear, and it is very rubbery and stretchy if you pull on any excess.
When I am working with the adhesive, it is extremely goopy and sticky, and can really make a mess, so I always cover my work area (table, counter top, etc) with a newspaper first. Once this has dried, it’s hard to remove. (The only solvent that has successfully removed it has been nail polish remover).
E6000 has worked fantastic for gluing my crystals onto my ornaments. The glue retains a little bit of give, (it’s a little flexible), which allows the crystals to remain intact even if they get bumped while I am wrapping them up for a year in storage.
The glue has an offensive odor, and you definitely want to use this in a well ventilated room. Once the glue is dry, you can remove any excess by cutting with a razor blade.
My husband brought home a bingo game ball cage, that had been split down the middle. They needed it for his work Christmas party, and he told his co-workers that I would be able to fix it. I applied the E6000 to one side, placed the two halves of the ball together, and held them together with a stretchy cord. After letting the unit set for 24 hours, I examined the ball, and it was completely solid. The E6000 did an excellent job of repairing the plastic cage.
If you need a truly industrial strength adhesive, give E6000 a try.
