Applying it
“I found using a small sponge brush worked best to apply it.
I used the sponge brush so I could throw it away when done. I applied 1 coat. Let it dry. Then applied another coat. Let that dry. Then applied as needed. Held up well. Only had to touch up once in the 3 months we had it.
I also did multiple coats about 3 and it lasted for months without peeling.”
“We used glitter in our mod podge, love that stuff!”
“I ruined my pants doing my daughters band because I spilled some on me…but boy does that stuff work. I never had a sticker peel or come off.”
A customer used epoxy resin
“I taped off with frog tape and newspaper then spray painted with two coats of silver acrylic (30 min dying time per coat) then coated in epoxy resin and dried overnight. I then added the decals and coated those in another layer of epoxy to make them permanent. In the end I found epoxy to be a better protector than modge podge, but it’s tricky to use as it thickens very quickly, so you have to work fast if you want to avoid getting streaks and you need to leave it overnight to harden properly. I didn’t have time to practice, but my advice to others is to have a couple of goes at using epoxy on an old bowling ball or skate helmet before applying it to the baby helmet, and make sure you have plenty of brushes and mixing pots and at least 2 x 25g tubes of Gorilla 5 min Epoxy Glue available per coat.”
Removing it
“I removed the mod podge. It just peels right off!”
“I just lifted it up with my nails and peeled it off. Wiped it over and its ready to reapply. But it lasted months without any problems and bub constantly rubs her head on the carpet. Lol. Only a tiny section had to be re-mod podged.”
“I removed it with no problem. I then decided I wanted to keep them as a keepsake so I put them on scrapbook paper and put mod podge over that and it worked great!”
“You can peel it off or use rubbing alcohol. It makes it bubble up.”
“I changed the decals two times while my little man wore his helmet. I only did one coat of Mod Podge and never really needed to retouch the decals – the sides of the helmet probably could’ve used a touch up, but I just let it go. When I was ready to change the decals, I peeled them off by hand but had to scrub the helmet with a washcloth to get rid of the Mod Podge residue. You definitely need to make sure that you get all of the old Mod Podge off before putting the new decals on!”
Cleaning it
“I used rubbing alcohol on the inside and just plain water on the outside”
“As an Orthotist I recommend rubbing alcohol in a spray bottle. Spray inside helmet, let sit a few moments & then wipe dry w/ a paper towel.
We never allow or promote the use of heat ( blow dryer or hot water) on our helmets as it can warp the plastic & loosen the glue.”
“Our orthotist told us to use rubbing alcohol. I use cotton pads and wipe out the inside. If the outside of the helmet gets dirty, I use either rubbing alcohol or water. Make sure that both the helmet and your child’s hair is dry before you put the helmet back on. Sometimes, if I am in a rush to get it back on, I will blow dry my daughter’s hair and the inside of her helmet. But never use warm/hot air. My dryer has a cold button which I use. Also, make sure when you are cleaning the inside of the helmet that you don’t scrub it too hard. I don’t know about all of them, but my orthotist uses the stains and discolouration to see where the pressure points are. If you scrub it too hard, they will have a difficult time trying to figure out where/how much to file down at fittings. I thought it was gross to have a discoloured helmet, but if you are using rubbing alcohol, it will kill all the germs (it also gets rid of the smell!). I was also told, that if you notice your child is sweating a lot, you can blow into the top of the helmet to get some cold air venting through!”
“^^^i always thought the same thing about my sons helmet. It was stained on the inside after a few days and we couldn’t get them cleaned off. But the rubbing alcohol with a soft bristle toothbrush took the smell away.”
“I use a bowl to put soap and water in and use a small soft brush to scrub the inside. I get a wash cloth and wipe out the band a few times rinsing the rag each wipe. Then spray with rubbing alcohol water mix. And again wipe out several times to get out any residue [and] dry for hour. Sometimes I use hair dryer on low or cool to dry any added foam padding.”
“Sponge brush for applying the modge podge worked really well. I did a thin coat, let it dry 15 minutes and then did another coat. Only reason I had to reapply was accidentally cleaning the helmet with ribbon alcohol and it bubbled the original modge podge a bit.”
“My son had the STARlight band, but my orthotist just told us to wipe the inside of the helmet with a damp cloth, so I never actually used much water when cleaning it. The outside of the helmet was exposed to a little water from time to time though, and it did cause the Mod Podge to streak. I just put on another coat of Mod Podge, but once it streaks, it never looks quite as nice!”
“We have a Hanger band, too. We sprayed alcohol on the band in the beginning before the decals, but had the same trouble the first time we used alcohol with the decals. Did another coat of Mod Podge after that and from then on, have been spraying a paper towel, wiping the inside of the band, and just rinsing the whole thing with water. The outside of the band doesn’t get dirty, so it’s much easier that way. Screw a sprayer onto the bottle of alcohol…it’s SO much easier!”