When the resin bug strikes, you just want to get right into the casting. But if your moulds are grubby, you'll have to clean them first. So here's a really smart tip for keeping your silicone moulds in tip-top shape and always ready to go. When you're working with resin, it's important that all your equipment is clean so that you don't risk ruining your casts with contaminants. Clean cups, clean stir sticks and a clean workspace are all important. But what about your moulds? How do you clean glitter, mica powders and general specks of fluff and dust from silicone? Resin is like glue and anything that is in the mould when you pour the resin in will become part of the resin when you demould it. But cleaning moulds is EASY when you know this trick, even if your moulds looks as dirty as this! The front of this mould is just as bad. Just take a piece of sticky tape and place it on the surface. Rub your finger across the tape..... And then remove it. And voilà! All the sp......

Shopping for men's gifts is one of the hardest shopping assignments there is. But when my twin nephews celebrated a milestone birthday recently, I knew exactly what to give them: a set of resin coasters featuring some of their favourite alcoholic beverages. They were a huge hit! If you find yourself with that male gift shopping dilemma (and with Christmas fast approaching, who doesn't?), then why not consider making your own set of coasters to give to the beer loving men in your life. If you're the hands-on type of person who would like to make your own mancave coasters, you can now buy the Beer Bottle Cap Resin Coaster kit and have the fun of doing it yourself.  Or if you want a set but don't want to make your own, I'll make them for you! Just send me an email . So here's what you get in the kit: a handmade flexible silicone mould (for easy demoulding) bottle caps to get you started self adhesive surface protectors for the back of the coaster complete instruct......

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......

Shy and retiring types, this post is not for you. I have new ring moulds and I got a chance to play with one of them on the weekend. Take a look at these fabulous retro rings. Great Turquoise Retro Wedge These knuckle dusters are perfect for extroverts and those wanting to make a statement. Wear one of these big, bold beauties and it will get noticed. The great Turquoise Retro Wedge is a swirling ocean of blues, greens and turquoise. The Superman angle! Another colour, another angle..... Charcoal Slate The marbling is very fine in this one and it looks like slate..... Lots of lovely swirly white marbling through this last one. It looks like it could have been carved from a chunk of marble rather than cast from liquid resin. White Marble This ring mould will be added to the selection of moulds available for use in the Resin Bangle and Ring workshop so lucky students can make one of their own. Or, if you prefer to have you own, the mould can be purchased at the workshop. 'Til next......

Ahoy me maties..... there's something a bit fishy going on today! Starfishy, to be precise! One of the items I had to prepare for the Glass House resin workshop kits this weekend is a batch of polymer clay starfish. It's really hard to come by the real thing these days so a while back I made a mould of a tiny little starfish and began casting my own. Actually, it was a two step process - I didn't really like the original starfish shape. It was too rigid and a bit too small. So I cast a starfish from that mould and then set about manipulating it into a slightly larger, and much more interesting starfish. I turned this one into the mould I use for these great little starfish. But it's a fiddly little piece to get out of the mould so today I want to show you not only how to get it out but also how to give it a bit more personality before baking it. I use beige and white Sculpey mixed together in roughly equal quantities and then pinch off small balls. Roll the ball into a ......