Do you know what coatings are available for vinyl? I need to paint some leather for the costume. I tried googling but all I found was regular spray paint and stuff specifically for car seats, very expensive and not in a wide variety of colors
hello!
A lot depends on what you’re painting on the vinyl and how the vinyl will be used.
If you are working with vinyl fabric and want to completely change the color: You may be out of luck, but you can try synthetic fabric dyes. I know these will stain clear vinyl and some leather, so it might be worth a try.
If you are painting a design that needs to be painted or are changing the color of your shoes: Angelus Leather Paint is the brand of choice.
If you are painting shoes that are not too curved (so there are more shoes than boots): you might have luck with Design Master Colortool Spray. This is a spray paint that works on both real and artificial flowers, so it’s soft and can be used on fabric. Some cosplayers have had luck using this on shoes, although I don’t know if I’d test my luck on something as flexy/squishy as boots.
If you need large geometric designs or anything else with hard edges and solid colors: heat transfer vinyl will be your friend! Be very careful with the heat and use a pressing cloth. If you just need a one-off design and can have good control with scissors and/or a craft knife, you don’t need a fancy die-cutting machine to use it either. If making multiple designs or very delicate designs, you may need a machine (or borrow a friend’s).
Good luck! I hope this helps :]
—Fabrickind / Q&A Staff / Twitter
