[Jewelry making - Article 00024] - Re: [Orchid] Resin Jewelry

[Karen Christians]

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    Hi Susan! I do quite a bit of Resin Inlay, so here goes.  First I
    suggest you make up some samples of color.  Use a large piece of
    Bristol Board (heavy white paper) and 5 minute Devcon epoxy.  Take
    EQUAL amounts of the hardner and resin and mix the two together with
    a toothpick. You only need a short blob for each.  Mix it slowly, and
    try not to make bubbles. They will come, but rapid mixing will create
    more. 

    Mix in some paint pigment or enamel.  Keep loading the color until
    the resin takes about five seconds to settle.  Then you know you have
    enough.  Watch for bubbles that rise to the surface.  Get a pin ready
    and start popping the bubbles. 

    The great thing about resin inlay is that you can use anything. 
    It's a process that takes 5 minutes to learn and a lifetime of play
    and exploration. 

    After you have madea few samples, try one in a bezel cup. Solder a
    piece of bezel wire with easy solder inside the cup.  Load some
    color, stay with the five minute.  Wait until it cures.  This takes
    about 20 min to be sure. 

    Five Minute Epoxy means you have five minutes of working time.  30
    Min Epoxy, means you have 30 minutes of working time, NOT that it
    will cure in 5 or 30 minutes. 

    Very important, when packing in a bezel, try not to overload the
    expoxy.  You will spend extra time grinding the stuff down.  And it
    is EPOXY which means it is HARD. 

    Flip the piece over and start on 80 grit sandpaper, WET.  Move to
    320, 400 and 600.  For photos, you will need finer grits.  There are
    a series of very fine sandpapers used to sand scratches from plastic.
    Can't think of them off the top of my head, but they work well. 

    You will notice that when you sand down your bezel with the wire,
    you now get a nice LINE QUALITY from the silver.  By varying the with
    of your bezel and your wire, you can create shadow and depth. 

    You may get a pit while sanding.  This is normal and is created when
    a bubble was not located and popped.  Just fill it in again with the
    same color and it will blend perfectly. 

    One note on the 20 ton.  Get the bottles of epoxy, NOT THE TUBES. 
    The bottles allow equal portioning.  The tubes can get a bubble and
    dispense equally. However, you can saw them in half with a jewelers
    saw.  Have Fun! 

METALWERX 
School for the Jewelry and Metalarts
50 Guinan St.
Waltham, MA  02451
Ph:781/891-3854
FX:781/891-3857
www.metalwerx.com


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