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I do it all of the time. There is a new type of crafty thing I have never done and instead of testing it out I plan a big ol’ project around it with my very first use. Sometimes I have an amazingly humongous fail on my hands but sometimes when the planets perfectly align I get something like you see hanging out on my wrist up above.
Months and months ago I purchased some Easy Cast basically because I had a 40% off coupon burning a hole in my pocket. You know how sometimes you buy something and you have a little list of things it could potentially used for? I had no clue what I was going to do with it at all. Nothing. Nada. And of course I bought the biggest size they had which makes no sense since I didn’t even know how to use it!
But then one day I saw these flakes of gold leaf in a bag. I’m majorly getting into some gold bid-ness so the bag was snapped up, also with absolutely no project in mind. Finally, the pieces came together when I saw acrylic bangle molds on yet another exploration expedition of Hobby Lobby. Wham, bam, check this business out:
For this project you will need:
- Easy Cast Clear Casting Epoxy
- Resin Jewelry Reusable Plastic Bangle Mold
- Loose gold leaf flakes (got mine at Michael’s Craft Store)
- Paper cup & popsicle stick
- Fine grit sand paper
- Bowl of water
- Adequate ventilation
Read the directions on your casting stuff and mix accordingly. I used a disposable plastic cup and a wooden popsicle stick to stir well. Since I didn’t have anything to properly measure the ounces I guessed on the little dropper of hardener and then added to more drops to be safe. It could have worked out awfully but it didn’t. Get something to measure ounces so this is more scientific.
When mixed per directions, toss in some of the gold leaf and stir until well combined.
Pour directly into your mold and clean away any excess.
Place someplace nice and level and allow to cure per the directions. Do NOT touch until you are pretty darn sure this stuff has set or you WILL have fingerprints to get rid of. I put mine outside in the sun to cure and I was able to keep on keepin’ on about 12 hours after setting the mold outside.
Pop your acrylic bangle out of the mold and note that it takes some doing. At first I thought I was doing it wrong, and heck maybe I was, but you’ll really have to bend and twist that form to get the bangle to pop out. Good news is the reusable mold is still reusable – I didn’t break it!
Now this baby isn’t exactly ready to wear. You can try like I did but the jagged edges are going to mess you up big time… trust me.
Take your bangle and sand away any imperfections while under water. Go ahead and give it a go without the water if you’re curious – it will scratch the acrylic in an ugly way. Working under water is something my dad had suggested to me and the end result was a perfectly smooth surface!
So there you have an amazing and unique bracelet to wear about town! I used a pretty thick bangle mold and it’s kind of heavy but I dig it anyway. I’m thinking I might make a few more in different widths and acrylic to gold flake ratio for some fun stacking.
Please note that this resin means business and you really, really need adequate ventilation. I can often work in my office with both windows open and the fan on and have ventilation that is acceptable for working with nasty fumes. I tried in this situation and honestly, I didn’t even realize that the fumes were getting to me until I tried to stand up to take it outside to cure. It was that sounds echo type of feeling and it was awful. Though the wind was blowing well and I thought I was safe, in the future I will always work with this stuff OUTSIDE!
Happy Friday! I hope you’ll take advantage of a fine weekend for some fun times!
See where I’m linking up here!
