Paisley... It begins!

this is coming along nicely Nick

Thanks mate.

Work has begun on the front now. Now that I've got the method down it's going a lot quicker!

Right, so I thought it'd be cool to take you guys through my fabric process if you guys wanna try the same.

Materials:
Fabric scissors
Woodglue (I used Titebond)
Découpage (I used mod podge)
A credit card/something to squeeze air out
Ironed fabric
Paintbrush to spread glue evenly

Step 1:
Rough cut your shape with a template and iron until perfectly flat (I had to use max heat on our iron)
http://i.imgur.com/ajQ49Ix.jpg?1

Step 2:
Get your prepped body and lay it on something soft (we want it to be comfortable for its make over ;))
Get all of your supplies at hand and ready to use because you need to work fast (especially as it gets warmer)
http://i.imgur.com/ziShkyv.jpg?1

Step 3:
Drape material over body and pull it taught on edges with curves to make sure you have enough give for it to lay flat. I had to cut a few reliefs in order for it to sit flat on this strat body
http://i.imgur.com/5kXbXI1.jpg?1

Step 4:
Working quickly, get a good design of glue on the work surface and spread evenly and flat
http://i.imgur.com/fI7CXjU.jpg?1

Step 5:
Stretch fabric across the cavities and surfaces TIGHTLY (no sag into cavities) and let the glue tack up enough to let it go. Make sure your fabric doesn't stick to the sides of the body. At this time it's good to squeeze out any air/bubbling that appears.

Step 6:
Coat in découpage and keep building layers (I did about 5 with 20mins in between each)

Step 7:
Get your scalpel and start cutting out cavities neatly, and run it around the outside of the body to get a nice edge
http://i.imgur.com/nASHi9B.jpg?1

Next in the process is getting the fabric flush with the sides.

Stay tuned!

Nice Nick. So looks like your doing front and back. With the sides how are you finishing, is it sand the fabric smooth and then paint burst on side and back onto fabric? Was looking at doing something similar for a young kids guitar using something like a super hero print.

Yeah mate. I'm going to put a bead of super glue along the edge and sand it flush with the rest of the sides then burst it.

That looks sick! So the mod podge gear was the business? I'm with vh, building a 3/4 when we find out the sex of the bean so I'll be stealing all your hard work and techniques.

Yeah it works great as a sealer mate. I've seen people use it as a clearcoat but I might use a proper clear on this one.

so... about to spray the burst

any advice?

I was wondering if I should do a primer of white before the pinky red or should I go straight on with the pinky red? There's a bit of sealer around which is pure white so I dont want it to affect the colour.

Hey Nicko,
I got no experience with paisley axe's but I'd probably dive straight into pinky red. Better tape off any areas you don't want that colour to.
Question how did you get the gif file to work in your avatar ?