How do I repair and hang this wall piece?

[hollylf]

Hey! any advice on how to hang this or product recommendations would be great! 

The piece is about two feet across and as you can see in the pictures is made up of five pieces. The center piece has a crack down the middle. I was instructed to repair this with plaster. My local Lowes has a Plaster of Paris. Is this plaster good to use? My plan on hanging the piece was to mount it to a piece of wood or plexiglass(?) with glue, although I'm not sure what type of glue would be best.  I also was planning on putting a satin or glossy coat over the outside pieces - any recommendations? 

Thanks! 

 

[Pres]

Holly, I really don't know what to tell you other than in my opinion you have 3 options:

• Mount the pieces on a larger board using some sort of adhesive, then mix plaster with white glue, to fill the cracks. Then use some fingernail files to sand smooth, and try very hard to repaint the cracked areas matching up the color and blending to the existing.
• Place the piece together on a board build a heavy card board fence around it, maybe even masonite, and cover with a thin coat of petroleum jelly, then pour plaster to create a mold. Recast the piece and then repaint to match.
• Toss it.

Both of the first two options are going to take a lot of time, effort and patience on your part even assuming that you have some artistic talent involved.

Good luck.

 

best,

Pres

[yappystudent]

I second the mounting to a board. Line the crack with plaster/glue, push together, wipe with damp rag. Touch up when dry with craft paint as needed to further disguise crack as needed. there may be some sanding involved to really make the line disappear. If there are visible chips missing still, try some modeler's putty, it's usually available where model paints are sold. Toilet paper mixed with craft paint makes a pretty good home made version and dries hard. Good luck. 

[hitchmss]

Third to the idea of mounting the pieces to a larger board; use a two part epoxy to bond pieces to board. Paint it prior to this if you want it painted. Forget using the plaster to fill cracks; use a knead able two part putty. This can found at craft stores or in the adhesives section at hardware stores. You knead the two parts together and then use this to fill cracks; it will air dry to a relatively indestructible material, but it can be sanded down and touched up as needed. Requires no special treatment to paint. Its gonna be a pain to get whatever material you choose into all those little cracks. Mix you material in small batches and work quickly on small areas at a time. Find some cheap modeling tools, or cut some popsicle sticks into some points/blade shapes to help you sculpt your materials into areas.