ACOT Message Board

The rub on craze seems to have ended, I still like them very much.  I have bunches of them, an entire drawerful, and I went to use one the other night and for the life of me could not get it to work.  I don't know the brand name, I know some have always worked better than others.  I double checked to make sure I had removed the little backing sheet that comes with them.  Do rub ons go "bad"?  Any solution if they do?  Thanks!

OH, I am not sure Sorry I am not help. . I have several too.  Great Question. I will have to follow this post.

Sadly I think they do go "bad"....I have a ton too and when I go to use them I always test them first on scrap paper as some work and some don't. Doodlebug is the one company that I have noticed they seem to work regardless how old but that is strictly their mini alphas...I don't know about the rest of their rub ons. Curious to see what others say!

 

suslvgeo wrote:Sadly I think they do go "bad"....I have a ton too and when I go to use them I always test them first on scrap paper as some work and some don't. Doodlebug is the one company that I have noticed they seem to work regardless how old but that is strictly their mini alphas...I don't know about the rest of their rub ons. Curious to see what others say!


 

Same here Sus regarding the Doodlebug. I have never had a problem with theirs no matter how old. I have a collection of those mini alphas and still use them without a problem. But other companies I have had trouble with. I have some old Heidi Grace ones that are just awful.

I have found some rub ons that have worn out their welcome in my scrap room too   Usually they are off-brands.  I rarely use rub ons too, they seem to be one of those embellishments I go to when I can't find anything else or need "something" and feel desperate!  What can we do?

I've read that heating up the rub-on with a heat tool, hair dryer or even your breath can revive old ones. Not too much heat though or the plastic will curl.  I haven't tried it myself but some people seem to have success?

It all depends on brand. I know Basic Grey rub ons, no matter how old they are, tend to still work. Same thing with The Paper Company. Off brands - like The Paper Studio by Hobby Lobby, hardly ever work, even NEW!

I still have a bunch of rubons too! Some I've pulled out and they no longer rub off the paper. I have a bunch of the Making Memories alpha ones that I should give a try.

I like rub ons and still use them in cards, but I have never used them as a focal point, more likely background interest. But yes, I've found some that don't hold up well to use after time. Doodle Bug is good, as mentioned, I also always had good luck with the BoBunny rubons. Glitz? Never good even the first time around in my experience.

I have some rubons as well, but I don't use them very often because I apparently have never been very good with them.  That is interesting to know about the heat tool!

I've not noticed that they go bad. I've had some that didn't work at all or very well from the beginning and just never bought them again. The ones I have now and still use and work great are Moxxie brand. Not sure about any others.

Great thread to follow. Thanks for all the info!

my Fancy Pants and Maya Road ones all come off on the backing paper or tear.  My Doodlebug are great.

I had some that were old and they didn't work. I stopped using them about a year ago. I didn't see any that interested me.