I recently published a brand new Fluid Art courses and one of my driving factors - resin mistakes I hear new students make time after time. "My resin is sticky, gooey, I have bubbles in my resin, I've found hair or lint in my resin, it's uneven ....the list goes on.
Resin really isn't as scary as it may seem the first few times around. But let me share with you the top 6 resin mistakes that I see new students make.
Mistake #1 - Not mixing resin properly
I know this may sound silly, but when you are mixing your resin read your directions and double check. There are a ton of different kinds of resin and correctly mixing YOUR resin can be very different than others. If you get your ratio incorrect your resin will not harden correctly and can leave sticky or gooey uncured resin on your art piece.
Mistake #2 - Pouring your Resin in a dusty environment
Dust particles and hair can be found everywhere. Even if you think that your place is clean a few strays can ruin an art piece. It's important to clean the area in advance to pouring to give dust time to resettle. A great tip is to use a light spritz of water around the area before pouring. It will keep the dust settled.
Mistake #3 - Checking too often
We cover curing resin for a reason and that's to not allow dust or hair to settle on our pieces. If you continue to lift your box or cover it will allow those air borne particles to get in even after you have spent hours cleaning or dusting prior.
Mistake #4 - Not using a Torch to remove bubbles
Yes, you can use heat guns and blow dryers to pop bubbles in your resin, but many will cause airflow, which can cause dust and hair to fly around. If you use a torch gun those particles will burn right off, and the torch will not blow little Un-happy surprises in there.
Mistake #5 - Not Leveling your art piece prior to added resin.
If your art is not level your resin will not be level. Take the time to make sure that your area AND your art is level.
Mistake #6 - Tossing your project away
You have done everything right, but your piece still managed to get air bubbles trapped or gooey resin that didn't cure. Don't toss it. Take a fine grit sandpaper and gently rough up your entire piece. If it's gooey, remove that first then sand. Once your piece is lightly sanded you can add a new coat of resin right on top. Make sure to re-resin the entire piece so that it will stay even, remember that most resin is self leveling.
If you are excited to give try resin or had a terrible experience your first time - there are a number of wonderful
Online Art courses out there!
My dear artist friend
Jane Monteith has her new
Alcohol Ink Project book out and you can take
Jane's online courses here or click her photo below!
One of my favorite resin brands to use in my courses is
Art Resin and they have a bunch of
great video's on their website too. I like this brand because it has a little longer cure time and I do not notice much smell.
So now that your know what not to do - give it a try and remember practice makes perfect and it sure is fun to practice!!
Happy Painting,
Kellie X
