210 Preparing Soft Goods for Painting stretched out on. Tape the sides of the paper together, edge to edge. Once you have taped the sides together, you can flip the entire drop-size piece of paper over so that the lines of the lighter-colored masking tape are hidden underneath. A starched backdrop is a wonderful surface to use as a cartoon and to lay a scrim over. The muslin always lays flat under the scrim no matter how wet it gets and it easily pulls away from the back of the scrim when it is finished. Granted, this solution may be rather costly, but if the scrim is being painted in a shop that also fabricates soft goods, you can sew end pieces of muslin together for the scrim backing. Though a rare occurrence, multiple copies of a scrim sometimes need to be painted; a muslin scrim backing can be used several times over without having to redo the cartoon. In either case, working on paper, a drop, or directly on the deck, you can stretch the scrim over the cartoon once it has been completed and the line work has been set with ink or paint. When painting a scrim on the deck, it may be difficult to avoid blotches of paint that fill in the holes or paint that dries to the backing. A simple device called a scrim pick can be used to hook the scrim and gently pull it up and then let it snap back down so the paint drops out of the holes. To make a scrim pick, tape an open safety pin to a yardstick or drive a long finish nail through the end of a stick. the reliable force of a pneumatic gun. If the groundcloth is mounted to a frame rather than a paint deck, the frame must be very sturdy. Canvas stretches so tautly that it easily can warp or break a paint frame. If the canvas groundcloth is painted on a deck, it can be stretched and primed in a manner similar to priming a drop. The groundcloth will not need to be floated because not enough paint will seep through the heavier fabric to create problems. The cloth should be primed and painted with acrylic-, vinyl-, or latex-based paints because of the heavy use it will receive. Protein-based paints and primers, like caseins, do not hold up to foot traffic as well and break down if liquid is spilled on them. For this reason, and because the groundcloth will come in direct contact with performers, aniline dye should never be used. After the groundcloth is painted, seal it with a spray coat of clear acrylic or water-based urethane to increase its durability. Do not use a brush to apply the sealer on canvas groundcloths; brushing will trap air bubbles that will ruin the paint job because the finish will have a white or milky appearance in places when dry. Also, never put a fan on clear water-based finishes while they are drying, as cool air blowing across the finish may cause it to cloud. Preparing China Silk China silk has a tendency to bleed paint so details and line work become blotchy. One way to inhibit this is to give the silk a light spray of gum thickener, also called methocel, or Irish moss mixed into a solution of size water. Either one of these must be applied in moderation. If applied too heavily, they will stiffen the silk, compromising the quality of flow and grace. (Methocel and Irish moss are discussed in Chapter 6.) Only aniline or batik dyes should be used to paint china silk. Any paint, no matter how thin, will stiffen and flatten the finish of the silk. The dyes may be mixed into a vehicle of methocel or Irish moss to thicken them, which will reduce the problem of blotting and wicking somewhat. It may be best to dye an entire panel in a vat before it is stretched if the background color of the silk must be altered. Dye applied to china silk pretreated with flame retardant tends to bleed far less than on untreated silk. If the scrim is to be painted on the frame, it is necessary to first hang and size a full-size backing drop for the cartoon. After completing the cartoon on the backing drop, you can stretch the scrim in front of it. The backing drop also serves as a solid surface behind the scrim, which helps the scenic artist focus on the scrim itself rather than on the paint frame and the wall behind it. The backing drop can be made out of nearly any kind of light-colored fabric or even scrap fabric, because once it has served its purpose as a scrim backer, it will not be good for much else. Scrims can be painted with either dye or paint. Priming Groundcloths Groundcloths usually are constructed of the heaviest material available, which is frequently canvas duck. Care should be taken to secure groundcloths extremely well when stretching them. Canvas can generate tremendous force as it shrinks. Pneumatic staplers are preferred over handheld staple guns for mounting groundcloth because of the strength of the staple itself as well as Monk's Cloth Monk's cloth can be painted just as it is or after spraying a light coat of starch on it to help reduce wicking. However, the surface of monk's cloth can never be truly sealed.