how to attach a magazine clipping to a vinyl coaster

Question

I ordered cork backed coasters with what looks like vinyl top. I'd like to attach an image from a magazine but it needs to be water/heat proof. Any suggestion as who what medium I could use. I only have one spare to practice on so would need a definitive answer. Thanks so much.

Answer 1

Epoxy comes to my mind.

Pros:

• Depending on the specific product, epoxy becomes glass clear and is well suited to enclose objects like pictures.
• It can glue stuff
• It becomes very hard and stable (resistant against heat and chemicals) when it's fully cured.
• You can find many tutorials online on how to use it

Cons:

• Epoxy can be hard to work with (if you want to avoid air bubbles and smudges and a general mess)
• It can have negative effects on your health like causing allergic reactions and irritate your airways (while you're working with it. Once it's cured it has no negative health effects)
• Cured epoxy tends to accumulate micro scratches easily, especially when objects like mugs are repeatedly put on it. That will give it a matte and only semi-transparent surface over time
• Epoxy isn't very cheap, especially if you want the "crystal clear" stuff that doesn't yellow over time

However, epoxy doesn't stick well to vinyl. If you cover the coasters anyways with other pictures, I would remove the vinyl. To give the coasters a smooth surface, I would first pour a thin layer of clear epoxy and let it cure completely. Then I would pour a second layer that contains the picture on top. You could also add pigments, paints or inks to the first epoxy layer if you want to tint the background.

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The next best idea I have is laminating the entire coaster including the picture. However, that probably requires a vacuum sealing rack, which is still such a niche product that even most maker spaces / open workshops don't have one. I also don't have any first-hand experience about how heat resistant the laminating foil is.

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I thought about alternatives, but all that I could think of have at least one property that makes them unsuitable in my opinion.

• Mod Podge is not heat resistant. It becomes gummy when heated and probably sticks the coaster to the underside of the mug / glass temporarily. Very annoying.
• Clear acrylics medium is pretty much like Mod Podge. It cures water resistant, but it never becomes hard enough to not stick to mugs or glasses.
• Other glues like white glue / Elmers glue are not water resistant.
• Super glue becomes hard, but also very brittle. I suspect it would chip off after a short while of being used. It can also turn milky white while curing if there's too much moisture in the air.