Okay, you've received your apeelz from that helpful UPS person and you're ready to dive in and start applying them. Note -- reviewing the instructions first will make your application experience much more pleasurable! Yeah, we don't like reading instructions either, but proper handling of wet adhesive film can be difficult if you're not prepared. Read on for our handy-dandy application guide.

Don't want to read it online? Want to print out a copy for reference when you are actually applying apeelz (we highly recommend this)? Download a PDF of the Step-by-Step Application Instructions.

apeelz Step-by-Step Application Instructions

Now, let's get started.

1. Make sure your notebook is clean, dry and dust/dirt free. Clean with a product like Windex and a lint free cloth. We cannot stress enough how important it is that the surface of the computer be dirt and lint free. And, make sure no liquid gets inside of your Mac!
2. (Option A) Take the cookie sheet thing and put enough water in it to cover the entire sheet of apeelz. Add a couple of drops of liquid dish soap per cup of water* and spread it around until the soap dissolves. (Option B) Using the same soap to water ratio, mix the two in a clean spray bottle. The water should feel slightly slick when you rub your fingers together. Also, use a little extra soap if you are applying apeelz to an iBook or MacBook.

   *The soap is to allow the peelz film to slide around while being positioned on your Mac's surface. If you feel incredibly confident that you can lay it down perfect the first time, you can skip the soap. But we really, really suggest using soap and water.

3. Using a finger nail, start peeling the apeelz from the backing, carefully peeling off the desired piece by the smallest amount of the corner that you feel you have a comfortable grip on. Completely remove the entire piece from its backing making sure that the edges do not touch (once a sticky part attaches to another sticky part of the piece, it's pretty much toast).
4. (Option A) Lay the peeled piece (without the backing) in the container of prepared water, making sure that the entire piece is wet. Pull the piece out and hold vertically, allowing the water to drip off until it stops dripping (you want the peelz piece wet enough to slide but not so wet that it slips around freely and allows water to pour into your Mac). (Option B) Using a spray bottle, squirt a small amount of the same water/soap mixture on to the piece, making sure to get complete coverage.
5. Lay the apeelz piece on your Mac starting with one edge and place in a rolling manner, align one edge and then slide the film until all edges line up. Once aligned, hold the film firmly in place, take a paper towel or soft absorbent cloth and rub (in a squeegee-like fashion) from the center outward in all directions to remove any bubbles and excess water. Keep rubbing until there are no bubbles and no more water can be removed. Make minor edge alignment changes if needed. By the way, no need to rush: the beauty of wet application is that it gives you plenty of time to get things right. When you are done with this step, your peelz should look smooth and glossy and might have tiny rainbow patterns under the film. As the film dries, this pattern will disappear. Allow apeelz to dry for at least a half an hour or so before applying the next piece.

   Note: Sometimes the edges of larger apeelz pieces (like top or bottom covers) won't completely lay down. This is common. Should the edges not stick, just allow them to dry for a little while after you have rubbed out all of the bubbles and water. Once they have dried a bit, they'll stick down just fine.

6. The process is the same piece-after-piece. As noted, it's a good idea to start small and work your way up to the larger pieces. In our opinion, the last piece you should do is the top cover. The longer you allow each piece applied to dry, the easier the next piece will be to apply. Once completely dry, apeelz will stay very securely in place until, as mentioned, you peel them off.

To remove, lift up enough of a corner to get a good grip with a finger nail and peel off very slowly. If pulled off to quickly, you may notice a bit of residue is left. Any mild solvent (Goo Gone® is perfect) will remove it and after that there will be no sign that you ever had apeelz applied (except that it will have fewer nicks and scratches, of course).

Alright, now for the disclaimer: we at apeelz have spent a great deal of time applying film to Macs to make sure that the process described in the step-by-step guide works well and without damage to your computer. However, we cannot control the care or expertise with which other people apply apeelz. Therefore, be advised that apeelz and its parent company takes no responsibility for any damage that may occur during the application process and that by applying any apeelz product, the person doing the actual application takes full responsibility.

Seriously, if you're not sure about doing this, ask someone who is. We love apeelz and we want you to love them too. But the last thing we need is a bunch of people pissed off at us because it was harder than they thought or because their apeelz didn't go on right.