Do you guys have any ideas as to how to restore a cardboard box, please? It actually looks much brighter in the photograph. It is dirty and quite dull. I'm wondering if I can unfold the box, remove creases and use matt tape, on the inside, to firm up the structure of the box, before glueing it together again. After that, I'm looking to brighten the outside. Any ideas, for any of it? Ta
I've done this before and what I did was to carefully line up the pieces and put just a tiny dab of Super Glue Gel on the ends using a needle to apply and wait until it dries. This is just to keep it in place until I use Elmer's glue, or another white glue, and put that along the length on both sides and kind of force it in with my finger. Leave it alone until it dries, fold it back in place and use more Elmer's if needed. If you want to get back the color, or it's original sheen, I use a clear spray that I use in my art work, it's a satin spray fixative. But for economy sake, any clear satin spray will work, just apply very lightly from about 10 inches away. Just take your time while doing it and it should work out fine. If you don't have Super Glue Gel, regular Super Glue can work, but be careful as it dries a lot quicker and might run. Or use Elmer's by itself making sure the pieces don't move while it dries.
Nice one! The idea of the satin spray is excellent. Did you try to clean the box before you sprayed it?
I just wipe them down as I don't want to do any damage. Sometimes, if it's the flap I glue back on, I put it together as if the box were closed, then glue it. It'll help keep it's shape better. But there's also nothing wrong with adding a transparent piece of tape on the inside part to help it hold better then use the glue from the outside. After all, the tape will be hidden from view.
The few times I've had to repair boxes was at corners and folds, and it was by carefully gluing another thin piece of cardboard underneath the torn bits. Beyond that, I'm mostly clueless.
