The Perfect Handmade Gift for the Geek in Your Life Remember that iconic 70s and 80s arcade game, Space Invaders? For those of us old enough to remember, this project is a fun throwback to your teenage years. This resin Space Invaders coaster would make a great gift for the geeky person on your gift list. This project is a variation of the Tetris coaster tutorial at Resin Obsession .  Supply list  Epoxy Casting resin Bright green pigment   Black pigment   Silicone trivet with square holes   Square silicone coaster mould  - mine measures  9.7cm (3 7/8")  Packing tape  BBQ torch   or gas lighter   S cissors or utility knife Plastic measuring cups Wooden stir sticks  Toothpick Gloves Work out the volume of your mould by filling it with rice and tipping it into a measuring cup. Mix enough resin to two thirds fill the mould. Mix it well and then divide it between two cups. Colour one green and the other black. Pour the black resin i......

Since decorating my studio in black and white earlier this year, I've been on the lookout for a white crocheted doiley to turn into a resin coaster. In keeping with my theme, I wanted to embed the doiley in clear resin and then fill the back of the mould with black resin. But when I stumbled across a black doiley, I got so excited - this would add such an unexpected twist to the project! Sadly, that black doiley was just a little bit too big for my coaster mould. I was disappointed to abandon the idea of a black-on-white coaster and continued my search for a smaller white doiley. But last week, I came across a black die-cut pvc coaster and the idea was reborn! So instead of using a white doiley on black resin, I'm using a black doiley on white resin.... cool! Here's how this project took shape. This is what I used ( to shop for any of these products, just click on the item ): EasyCast epoxy resin Castin'Craft White Pigment Square silicone coaster mould or plastic moul......

Have you ever had that uneasy feeling when you realise you've taken on more projects than you can comfortably juggle? I have so many projects on the go in the studio at the moment that my workspace is overflowing with works in progress. And some of these projects just shouldn't be worked on at the same time. I mean, glitter and resin are normally a great combination but when you are making man cave resin coasters, hot pink glitter is not the choice material to have floating around the studio! Of course, it isn't helping that I'm flitting backwards and forwards between the girly project in one corner of my studio and the mancave project in the other. But I'm on a very tight time frame to meet a commission deadline and have to squeeze it all in so I am painstakingly removing these pesky specks one by one. What was I thinking working on these two projects at the same time? The good news is that apart from the stray glitter, the man cave project is going really well! H......

Now that my silicone coaster mould is cured I'm all set to cast the first Man Cave resin coaster - the gifts my son is giving to his mates for Christmas. Beer bottle caps would have to be THE perfect item to embed in coasters for guys in their early 20s (or maybe any age!). My son has been collecting bottle caps for this project for months and I've been busting to get started on it. So whilst the silicone mould was curing, I began by preparing the bottle caps. I started by filling them with resin. I'm so glad I did this before setting the caps into the resin because a few bubbles got caught around the rubber lining of each cap and it was easier to pop them before they were set into the coaster mould rather than after. It also made them heavy enough so they didn't float to the surface when I filled the mould. As soon as the silicone was cured I was able to start pouring resin into the mould - just a shallow layer to begin with. Once this was at the soft cure stage, ......

My son has put in a special order for some personalised gifts to give to his friends for Christmas. They are all in their early 20s and enjoy having a quiet drink together so we decided that resin drink coasters would make a great gift. No problems, I thought. But before that can happen, I need a mould so today I finally had reason to do something I've wanted to do for a long time: create a silicone coaster mould.   To make the mould making process easier, I invested in a mould box and I've got to say that this is simply the best investment I've made in quite a while. All you have to do is clamp the four walls together, putty the gaps so the silicone can't leak out and your mould box is ready to use. After securing my master to the bottom of the mould, I mixed and poured the silicone around it and then waited for it to cure..... too easy! The plan is to make several of these moulds so that I can cast a whole set of coasters at a time but unfortunately, to get the mo......