Tanaira VS Resin

Well HELLO! Have you missed me? I wrote my last blog in July, and since then I've been just chilling and taking a break from making stuff. HA! Says me NEVER! There is always something going on around here. Since then I have made my costume for Miami Carnival, transformed myself into Storm from the Xmen for Halloween, made some earrings, a necklace, and I just finished my 2017 Christmas wreathe. This year's theme was Purple Rain. 

 I have also spent quite a bit of time working on my 2017 Fall Collection which you will see in an upcoming blog. In addition to all that I just mentioned, I decided to try my talents at Epoxy Resin. My friend Sarah has a birthday coming up, and she makes WONDERFUL cakes. Not only are they delicious, but they are works of art. Here is a recent one of a Unicorn.

I got the bright idea that it would be fun to make her a cake stand. I've been meaning to give resin a try for awhile, but just haven't come up with the perfect project. I follow this guy on YouTube who makes all kinds of things using resin, and has definitely opened my mind to the possibilities. One of the coolest projects was a cake stand using Oreos. I figured this was as good a time as any to give it a try.

Now before I embark on the cake stand, I needed to do some pre-project analysis. Being that I had never used resin before, I did a few test projects before the real thing. I started with a kit from Hobby Lobby and some resin molds.

I chose a collection of small pieces and a bracelet. From what I've seen on YouTube, you're suppose to add various things to the mold, add the resin, and then let it harden. I dug around my bead and jewelry stash, and pulled out a few things I thought would work. 

I mixed the Resin per the directions, a 1 to 1 ratio of both Resin and Hardner. Now because I am lazy and didn't have a proper measuring container yet, I eyeballed it using 2 plastic cups and mixed the contents together. This is not recommended, but since it was just a test it was okay this one time.  

Then I poured the mixture into my molds and waited. The box said let the resin set for 24 hours minimum. I was definitely tempted to remove them earlier, but I held out. When I released them from the mold this is what I was left with. 

After I removed all of the pieces, I was happy with the results. I headed to Amazon to order more resin. I also needed to decide what I wanted to put in the cake stand. Sarah is a snazzy girl, and deserves snazzy things. I wanted to test out a few ideas first. I did 2 tests using picture frames. I got the frames from my stash, and turned them upside down. Then I added hot glue all the way around the glass to seal the edges. 

For the first one I used acrylic paint. I filled the frame about half way with resin, and then added drops of paint. Then I used a toothpick to drag it around creating a cool design. For the second one I used some random scrabble pieces, poured in the acrylic, and then added glitter. 

 

The results were mixed. The one with the paint came out great. I've used that technique before with other things, and I always like the way it looks. The scrabble pieces not so much. For one, the scrabble pieces did not stay put. I read later that it is advised to glue down smaller items as they have a tendency to shift in the liquid if there is ample space around them. Also the fine glitter wasn't that exciting. It looked pretty in theory, but was actually quite dull. However, I decided I didn't want to use either one of those ideas, and came up with a new one.

Before I started I had to get a silicone cake mold. For this project I needed something at least 11". The best material to use for releasing resin is silicone. Surprisingly anything over 10" is hard to come by. So once again I was back in the test phase. Something that I had seen a few crafters do was use packing tape. I bought a $1 cake plate from Walmart and covered the inside with clear Packing Tape.

I filled the pan with colored marbles. These were in my craft stash. I have had these forever, and just haven't found the perfect project to use them with.

I mixed up my resin and poured it over the marbles. Then I waited 24 hours.

Once it was dry, I peeled up the tape, and tried to pry the plate out. I worked for about 5 mins with no end in sight. It was not budging. Then I got an idea. I just so happen to have a Dremel saw with a blade for cutting metal. Frickin EUREKA! I was going to cut it free. I went out in the garage, grabbed some safety goggles, and got to cutting. It worked. I cut right through the side of the pan, and that was all I needed. 

From there I was able to pry the plate from the pan.

Pretty neat huh. Now I will say good thing for the test, because the tape was not the best release agent. It was way too difficult to remove. Note to self, let's not use this in real life. That means I needed to get a silicone mold. I got online, and good old amazon did not let me down. I found a 12" silicone Pizza Pan. I also decided to invest in a heat gun to get rid of the air bubbles. I tried my trusty blow dryer in the test, but the air had too much force and moved the resin instead of heating it. 

With all of the materials in hand it was time to get started. My plan was to layer large gold glitter pieces and black glass. I mixed a little bit of resin, and poured a thin layer into the pan. Then I sprinkled gold glitter on top, and I let it dry.

 Well once it dried I wasn't feeling it. The glitter just wasn't that brilliant. Which I shouldn't be surprised by because it's the same feeling I got from the test. However, these glitter pieces were larger so I thought it would show up more. I was quite underwhelmed. So, plan B. 

I started by adding a thin barrier layer of resin into the pan, and letting that dry. For the fun I added black and gold glass. The black piece of glass I had in my craft stash from an old project. For the gold piece, I spray painted 2 pieces of picture glass. 

 Then I put them in a box, and took a hammer to them to make smaller pieces. 

For the first layer I used larger pieces. I added them in the mold, and poured a second layer of resin making sure that each piece was covered completely. I let it dry overnight. 

Well I woke up the next morning, and much to my surprise it was cloudy. All of the tests I did came out clear like glass. I left it alone thinking it would get better, but no. It wasn't terrible cloudy, but cloudy enough for it to bother me. I decided to start over. I wanted perfection. I removed the mold and started over.

Sarah's Amazing Cake Stand: Take 2

I started by doing some research. I had never had the resin turn out cloudy before. I saw 3 things that could be a problem. 1)Make sure the area is free of dust particles. 2)Be diligent about post air bubbles. Make sure to watch the mold for at least 30 mins prior to the pour to get any surprise bubbles that form after. 3)The most important was temperature. The directions said that resin works best in a room with temps from 72-80. The first time around I was working in my office. It is a lot warmer in there. This time I had moved into the garage, and it was definitely not that in there. This made total sense. When I poured the mixture I noticed how slow it was moving. So, this time around I set up a heater in my office to warm up the room and get it to the proper temperature. I repeated step one, and added a thin base layer. The warm environment definitely made a difference. The resin was a lot smoother, mixed, and poured better. Once that was dry I did the second layer. Luckily I had enough large glass pieces left. I laid the pieces in the design I wanted. 

I did notice that there was dust. It made sense considering I sprayed and broke the pieces in the garage. I wiped each piece with a microfiber cloth to remove any dust before placing it in the pan. Then I mixed a second batch of resin and poured it over the glass. 

I came back to check it out the next day, and it was much clearer. Warming the room definitely made a difference. For the top layer I used smaller glass pieces. Now I would love to say that their placement was completely random, but I think you all know me better than that. Let's just say they were strategically placed in an unplanned manner. 😃 The smaller pieces were a little more difficult to keep free of dust. I wiped the area and pieces best I could. 

I poured the third and final layer, and then let it dry. Being the final layer, I let the entire piece dry for several days before releasing it from the mold. 

While I waited I worked on the base for the stand. I found this cool cube looking piece at Target. 

I painted the entire piece black. Then I used my gold Oil-Based Sharpie markers to freehand a design.

After a few days I released the resin from mold.

With all of the parts complete, I put everything together. I grabbed some Gorilla Glue Epoxy, and mixed a small batch together.

I turned the resin disk over, and used my dry erase marker to mark where the base was going to sit. Then I applied glue to the under side making sure to only place glue where there were glass pieces. The goal was to not have any glue visible from the top. 

I turned the cake stand over and placed a weight on top. I left it overnight to dry. 

When all was said and done, this is what the finish product looked like.

Sarah absolutely LOVED it! Frankly so do I. I almost want one for myself. If I can find a reason, it will happen. This project took me about 6 weeks to complete from the first test to when I gift wrapped this for her. This included all of the test projects, waiting for Amazon, and dry time between layers. It was all worth it though. I think had I not taken my time, and tested things first I would have made more costly mistakes.  Now that I have the knowledge and the tools this should go a lot more smoothly the next time. Sarah thinks I should make custom ones and sell them. We'll see. I got a lot of good compliments when I posted it on Instagram. However, I like custom work better. So, if you know anyone who wants a custom cake stand let me know. Most of all I am glad to now know how to use resin. I can see the potential for a few future projects I have in mind. Some artwork or maybe a furniture piece. I have plans. 

Until then...It's on to the next project