Easy Mold Making for Resin and Metal Clay - Putty!

Once you get the hang of working with resin or metal clay (both of which we'll cover in my next book, cooincidentally), I strongly recommend that you try making your own molds. It's not difficult at all when you use a silicone putty mold product, like EasyMold (the purple stuff) or Mega Mold (the blue stuff).

 

These products are packaged in two separate parts, and each part is a different color. To "activate" them, you need to mix together two equal portions of the parts. Unlike liquid products (like epoxy glue and resin), you can mix putty parts together with your fingers. You simply stick the two parts together and kneed them until their two colors blend into one.

Tip: I use a kitchen measuring spoon to measure out equal parts of putty. You can use one to scoop the putty out of the jar, and then use your finger or a butter knife to level it off.

Once the putty is mixed, you need to work relatively fast to press it onto the object you want to cast from. Putties typically have only a few minutes of working time before they start to set up.

After applying putty to your object, and doing your best to push the putty into all of the grooves and indentations, you set the putty and the object aside. EasyMold cures in about 25 minutes, and Mega Mold cures in a stunningly fast 5 minutes. Once cured, you simply flex the putty (which is now a mold) to pop out the object.

Silicone putty works best on objects that don't have extreme relief or tiny crevices, which are prone to trapping air bubbles that can wipe out detail. Spend a little time experimenting to see what you can do with it. Since it's easily portable and nonmessy to use, you can even take it with you on adventures and make molds from things you come across, with discretion of course. ;-)

To learn a lot more about making and using molds with resin, pick up a copy of The Art of Resin Jewelry by Sherri Haab. Sherri covers not only putty, but also liquid silicone pour-on and paint-on mold formulations. She also demonstrates how to create completely three-dimensional items using your molds.

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