Making A Bracelet Anyone Will Want to Wear

Who’s ready to try a bracelet making project that you can wear in only a couple of hours?

Then you’re in the right place.

Resin supplies list:

Quick-curing polyurethane resin
Alcohol ink
Silicone Hot Mat
Sulfur free soft plasticine
Basic clay tools
Craft heat tool
Metal cuff blank
Eight to ten 1 ounce graduated measuring cups
2 oz graduated measuring cup
Eight to ten 3 ml transfer pipettes
Stir sticks
Wet/dry sandpaper: 180 grit and 400 grit
Elastic bands
Packing tape
Ruler
Utility knife
Gloves

 

Designer’s Notes: Because this resin cures quickly, you need to have everything ready before measuring out the resin. Make sure that you mix the two parts together thoroughly, scraping the walls and bottom of the cup during the mixing process. Once the two parts have been measured out, you have just 2 minutes to mix it, draw it into the pipette, and dispense it before the resin begins to set up.

 

Step 1:  Tape off mat

Place the silicone mat on your work surface with the ripples running horizontally. Apply a piece of packing tape from top to bottom, then place another piece of tape two inches away from the first piece. These will act as guidelines to help you keep the edges of your piping straight. For a narrower bangle, place the pieces of tape closer together.

 

 

Step 2:  Measure resin

Measure out 2 1/2 milliliters of each part of resin in one cup.

 

 

Step 3:  Mix

Mix the two parts together. Once mixed, scrape the walls and bottom of the cup to free any unmixed resin and mix that in thoroughly.

 

 

 

Step 4:  Add resin to the mat

Draw the resin into a pipette and squeeze it into the ripples on the silicone mat between the tape. Try to keep clear of the tape because the resin will seep underneath it. As the resin begins to thicken a little, you will find it easier to control it, but if you let it thicken too much, you won’t be able to pipe it out. Repeat steps 2 to 4 for as many batches as you need to fill the mat.

Designer’s Note: The silicone mat shown here is 8 1/2 inches long. You may not need to fill the entire length of the mat to fit your wrist.

If you have any strips that seeped under the tape, peel the tape back and remove these pieces once the resin has cured.

Step 5:  Apply a second layer

Mix up another batch of resin and refill these strips.

Step 6:  Form the clay

Remove the tape from the silicone mat.  Shape the plasticine into four strips:

• two strips 1/4 inch thick by 8 inches long
• two strips 1/4 inch thick by 3 1/2 inches long

Place them around the resin, leaving a border of approximately 3/16 to 1/4 inch all the way around. Press the resin firmly down into the ripples and then smooth out any bulges in the walls with the sculpting tools.

Press the corners of the plasticine together so that the resin cannot seep out.

Step 7:  Mix colored resin

Measure out 20 milliliters of Part A (amber part) and color it with 24 drops of alcohol ink (6 drops per 10 milliliters of mixed resin). Mix the color in thoroughly. Next, measure out 20 milliliters Part B and mix the two parts together thoroughly, scraping the walls and bottom of the cup.

 

 

Pour the colored resin across the white strips. Cover the base of the mold to a depth of approximately 1/8 inch. You will probably have some resin left in the cup, which you can use in another mold. Leave the resin to cure for about 20 minutes.

Step 8:  Demold

Peel the silicone mat away from the resin and plasticine.

Step 9:  Finish edges

Pull the plasticine away from the resin and clean up any stray bits.

Trim away the flashing with the utility knife.

There will be a meniscus on the back of the resin cuff along the edges. This will be pretty sharp, so you need to trim it away with the utility knife until it is flush with the back of the bracelet. Then, use wet and dry sandpaper to smooth the cut edges, starting with 180 grit and finishing with 400 grit.

Step 10:  Shape into a cuff

At this point, you might be wondering how you are going to form it into a resin cuff bracelet. Warm the strip of cured resin on both the front and the back with the heat tool to make it soft. Alternatively, you can place the resin in a hot water bath to soften it.

Place the metal cuff blank on the center of the resin strip and wrap the resin around the curve.

Once it has cooled a little, test the cuff on your wrist and adjust the shape to suit your wrist. Then, place it back on your workspace and place an elastic band around it to keep it in shape until it cools completely.

My bracelet is finished!  I can’t wait to wear it.

Bracelet making is easy when you have the right help.

I’ve helped thousands of artists worldwide make beautiful resin jewelry, and I would love to help you too! My ebook, Resin Jewelry Making, explains the simple but essential steps you need to take to make something that will have people saying, “OMG. You made that?!” Buy the book now, and it’s yours to read in minutes!

 

originally written by Mylene Hillam

Unpublished Blog Posts of Resin Obsession, LLC © 2022 Resin Obsession, LLC