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Read MoreUsing UTEE in my plastic molds
Right after I started making molds, I had a few questions asking me whether UTEE (or ultra thick embossing enamel) would work in the molds. I had plenty of UTEE but no way to melt it and pour as I did not own a melting pot used with UTEE. I was going to purchase one but right about that time, Ranger discontinued it to come out with a new style which was eventually released. I purchased it last month...
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Read MoreNew Resin Molds Added to the Store!!
Well the long awaited Day of the Day Sugar Skull and the 35 mm Camera with Bezel Resin Molds have been finally added to the store. In addition to those, there are two Decoden style cabochon molds of a pretty little rose and a kawaii style hard candy. My favorite has to be the camera bezel. There is just so much you can do with bezels and I really like how it will look as a pendant with jump rings on...
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Read MoreYoutube 1,000 Subscriber Giveaway
Well it’s been a long time coming but I finally reached 1,000 subscribers on Youtube about 2-3 weeks ago.. And it’s only taken 2 years 2 months, LOL.. Like most YTers, mine was a steady 1-2 subscribers at a time, so its taken a while. I always think it is interesting to hear other’s Youtube stories and why they started making videos, so I thought I would write out mine. When I...
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Read MoreNew Jewelry and New Molds just added!
I haven’t quite had time for much other than molds and playing catchup. Now that I am out of classes for four months, I am trying to catch up with months worth of etsy listings. I don’t know about y’all but I don’t feel like I can really make new resin pieces until I finish with the ones I have already made. I have a good sized bin full of really nice pieces just waiting for...
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Read Morenew Handmade Molds Available for Sale
New molds for resin, polymer clay, plaster, and other casted materials are now available in my store. Just click the shop tab above. All my molds are made right here in my studio one-by-one with the same easy release plastic that the major brands use. I have started off with 8 designs including some Kawaii style bows great for Decoden and hair jewelry, reversible Cameo frame setting and a beveled...
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Read MoreLampwork Glass Beads
As some of you know I make lampwork glass beads. It hasn’t really been anything I have spoken of in my blog since I restarted it but it is and has been a major part of my life. I made my first bead in 2004 and had quite a successful (in my opinion at least) bead business up until about October 2009. Truthfully, I made the mistake of taking wholesale orders and reorders of previously made...
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Read MoreHandpouring Your Own Silicone Molds
Premade purchased molds are wonderful. I absolutely love them but what if you have a hand-shaped item or something with tremendous detail that is all your own? Mold putty is wonderful but it has its downfalls. It doesn’t get into crevices well and doesn’t show high detail. The only option is to move on to liquid silicone. There are a lot of them out there. I started pouring my own...
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Read MoreQuickly glossing of those sanded resin edges!
I first want to start off by saying that the only way to truly have a long lasting finished surface for your resin piece is to use nothing but hand polishing your piece or re-glossing it with resin. While using items like Triple Thick or Glossy Accents will last for quite some time, because they are a softer material they wear off or get dinged. Using the earlier methods, like those tables at...
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Most Recent Articles
Using UTEE in my plastic molds
Right after I started making molds, I had a few questions asking me whether UTEE (or ultra thick embossing enamel) would work in the molds. I had plenty of UTEE but no way to melt it and pour as I did not own a melting pot used with UTEE. I was going to purchase one but right about that time, Ranger discontinued it to come out with a new style which was eventually released. I purchased it last month and finally arrived a few days ago.
I am glad to report, that UTEE does indeed work in my plastic molds that I have available for sale. The pieces you are seeing were made with clear embossing enamel and antique copper Pearl Ex mica powder using my rose cabochon and hard candy mold. The rose mold was made with my thickest plastic and the candy mold was made with a slightly thinner plastic and both worked out perfect.
UTEE with molds is a perfect way to create quick embellishments for jewelry, scrapbook projects, or any altered art. One of the best things about it, unlike resin, is if you don’t like your pour, pop it back into the melting pot, remelt it, and pour again. I created a video that I am embedding below but as you will see in the video, I did not mix the powder as thoroughly as needed and also the camera impeded my pouring a bit. Off camera, I threw the pieces back in and remade them. This time, the powders mixed all the way and I filled the cavities fully creating the pieces you see. They harden quickly and are really light weight.
A tip or two -
- When you start pouring, don’t stop. The UTEE hardens quite quickly and will cause crease lines in your piece which I show below. Its better to over pour a bit and trim than to stop and get an ugly crease line.
- Do not use any colorants that will react with heat. You will see in my video that I tried some white ink which reacted with heat and caused it to cook. Avoid these as it leave a residue.
- After your finished or if you need to change colors, let your pan cool and any UTEE left in the pan will harden and you can remove it to keep for another time.
Below you can see the video to see the process. Super easy!
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New Resin Molds Added to the Store!!
Well the long awaited Day of the Day Sugar Skull and the 35 mm Camera with Bezel Resin Molds have been finally added to the store. In addition to those, there are two Decoden style cabochon molds of a pretty little rose and a kawaii style hard candy. My favorite has to be the camera bezel. There is just so much you can do with bezels and I really like how it will look as a pendant with jump rings on each corner. I look forward to seeing what y’all do with the molds.
Below is the video showing the molds and info in living color plus a preview of molds to come…
Review of Martha Stewart Clay and Silicone Molds
I was very excited when I discovered the newly released Martha Stewart Molds and Clay. I love Martha and her products. She may be a bit on the pricier side but most of her products are of good quality. These molds are no different. She released two kits, 3 mold selections, and one alpha based mold. The kits comes with a package of white air-dry clay, four basic colors, floral wire and tape, two wooden tools, and four molds. The mold selections come with four molds. The designs are perfect sized for jewelry pieces and accents. They are very much like the Wilton Fondant push molds as far as quality. No ragged edges or bubbles in the mold and a very compressed silicone material. What I fell in love with were the little frames. I can do so much with them. My only complaint about the molds are some are a bit thin in the middle. I will definitely be purchasing more of her molds in the future.
On the other hand, I will not be purchasing her air-dry clay. I have never used air-dry clay before but I can’t imagine she wouldn’t be happy with the effect herself and would have been much better off with a clay more similar to polymer clay. The clay right out of the package is very similar in texture to what I remember cold porcelain and is very lightweight. It is very moist and colors mix beautifully in it. The problems begin when it starts to dry. As your rolling it into a ball and you are not releasing the moisture from the clay, it begins to crack and never really gets into a smooth, consistent ball. As it dries, it becomes very porous and cracks. It does not dry hard and is very flexible. If you have ever used bouncy putty, this clay dries very similar to this. I am not a fan.
This would not be a clay I would use for any jewelry purpose. The only use I could see it possibly for is scrapbooking, mostly because of its lightweight aspects. I could see it being painted and used in mini-books and such. I have recorded two videos, so you can see the molds up close and person.
Thumbs-up Molds! Thumbs-down Clay!
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