Flock Your Box

4 Materials
Now that I have your attention, you may be asking, “What is flocking?” Flocking is the process of taking small fibers and creating a felt-like, velvety surface, often used in jewelry boxes, pen cases, or lined boxes.
Before and After Jewelry Armoire
When I refurbished my jewelry armoire, I did NOT like the original red color inside the drawers. Plus it didn’t go with the updated paint and new crystal knobs. So I selected some blue flocking materials from Woodcraft and completely changed the insides of the drawers! It is way easier than you think and the results will impress you! Here is how I did it...
Faded 80s Lady
This is the jewelry armoire before… it looks a little 80’s because it was! And somehow over the years, two of the drawer pulls had come off and gotten lost.
Supplies to flock a box
Here are the supplies I used. As you can see in this pic, the insides of the drawers were red. First I used a small vacuum attachment to clean the surface of all interior sections, making sure to get into the corners too.
Apply Undercoat Adhesive
Next, I taped off all the edges of the drawers so I wouldn’t get the adhesive where I didn’t want it. After coating the drawers with Zinsser Bulls Eye Seal Coat to prep the surface and letting it dry, I applied Donjer light blue Undercoat Adhesive to all areas I wanted to flock with a foam brush. The adhesive matches the flocking exactly to ensure a flawless look.
Cover all surfaces to be flocked
I had to make sure to get into each nook and cranny because the flocking will only stick where there is adhesive. I didn’t want any of the red to show through, so this step was critical. This drawer was the most challenging!
Shake shake shake
I created a “flocking box” to catch any excess fibers (trust me, this stuff is “fluffy light”!). With the Donjer Mini-Flocker, application is easy though. The flocking fibers go into the tube and you “shoot” them into the adhesive with this little puff sprayer. It’s kinda fun actually! One thing to remember with flocking – when you think you’ve added enough flocking material, ADD MORE! While the adhesive is wet, you really want to overcoat each area. It’s much easier to gather up excess flocking than it is to try to patch a spot you miss.
Wowzers, no more red!
After letting the adhesive dry, I shook out the excess flocking fibers into my “flocking box.” These fibers can actually be re-used so I gathered up all I could and replaced them in the bag they came in. However, I found that very little of the material came off once the adhesive soaked into it.
Professional looking job - flocking is easy!
Here’s the final product! You would never know there was previously red in the drawers of this jewelry armoire. I did this process in conjunction with a larger refurbishing of the entire jewelry armoire, which you can see by clicking the blog link below.
Suggested materials:
  • Flocking Fibers from Woodcraft   (http://www.woodcraft.com/product/16Y66/donjer-flocking-fibers-3oz-light-blue.aspx)
  • Matching Adhesive from Woodcraft   (http://www.woodcraft.com/product/17H32/donjer-undercoat-adhesive-8-oz-light-blue.aspx)
  • Donjer Mini Flocker from Woodcraft   (http://www.woodcraft.com/product/127115/donjer-mini-flocker.aspx)
See all materials
Lori Haught Harper
Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
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Frequently asked questions
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  3 questions
  • Susan Susan on May 20, 2016
    Super cool, did you paint the piece?
  • Sallie Leister Sallie Leister on May 20, 2016
    Do you find tht it sheds? Wondering if it will get fibers in prongs and small areas of your jewels? Also do you know what the flocking and adheasive is made of? Any laytex?
  • M. M.. M. M.. on May 21, 2016
    Beautiful! I didn't know that new flocking could go over old and pictured trying to scrape the old color out! How much time does the adhesive give you to shake on the fizzy powder?Thanks!
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  • Cindy Gardiner Cindy Gardiner on Jun 06, 2016
    excellent job
  • Mary Bellebuono Mary Bellebuono on Jun 15, 2016
    My husband has made wooden boxes and there is nothing on the inside, i bet this would work nicely, he did stain and varnish though You did a lovely job Lori, thank you for sharing :-)
    • Lori Haught Harper Lori Haught Harper on Jun 16, 2016
      Thanks, Mary! Your husband could still flock the insides of the boxes even with stain and varnish. The Zinsser Bulls Eye Seal Coat might be a good idea before applying the adhesive.
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