
Not having resin casting in my skillset, I put him off, hoping he would get interested enough in it to take it on himself. Well, that has changed.
A couple of months ago the coordinator for the Holiday Market at my co-op asked if I could come up with some sort of winter-themed mosaic piece I could make and sell during the market. I hit upon the idea of crocheting snowflakes from cotton thread. But how to incorporate them.
I had 3 ideas in mind: translucent polymer clay, gel medium or pour medium, or resin. And the experiments began.
The translucent polymer clay burnt and never cured clear enough.
The gel/pour medium idea was too flat and too plastic feeling. Just didn't make me happy.
The resin--that took several permutations, but it eventually met my expectation.
I found that I also had to color them with watered-down gesso so that they would stay white once the resin permeated the fibers.
If I incorporated beads in a snowflake, that happens in this first resin layer.
Once that layer was cured a third layer of resin is applied to the back of the flake to dome that. This third layer can be colored to enhance the overall look of standalone ornaments.
But I've started learning how to make reusable molds for cast resin. The drawer pulls still need to be replaced.
More to come.