DIY Kits, Transfer Sheets, Tutorials
Colorized Resin in an Open Back Bezel with Transfer Sheets
I’m crazy about these tree transfer sheets that we released earlier this year. I think the effect of colorized resin with the dramatic tree photos is quite stunning.
Transfer sheets are printed images that have a film front with a paper backing. When you drop the film into a dish of warm water, it separates the film front from the paper backing, making it translucent. Beside the awesome look, you don’t have the typical issues that you have with using a paper collage sheet. You don’t need to seal the image to prevent the inks from running or the edges discoloring once you pour on the resin, something you need to do with collage sheets. I am confident that you will have great results with this technique.
A blog post that you might be interested in is; How to Make 2017 Summer Pantone Colors with Colorized Resin. In this post I list formulas for mixing Nunn Design Resin with Castin’ Crafts Opaque Pigments to create colors from the 2017 Summer Pantone selection. I used the Flame formula for this tutorial.
Supplies Needed:
Nunn Design Open Pendants
Castin’ Crafts Opaque Pigments, Red, Yellow, White and Brown
Nunn Design 2-Part Resin Kit
Nunn Design Transfer Sheets (Transfer Sheet Blk & Wht Trees)
Others:
Packing Tape
Wet-wipes
Toothpick or headpin
Timer
Stir Sticks
Mixing Cups
Business Cards or glossy card stock
Goo-Be-Gone
Rubbing Alcohol
Plastic Bags
Q-Tips
Small dish of water
Paper towels
Tools:
Scissors
Tweezers
Learn How:
Step 1:
Cut a piece of packing tape and place it on your work surface. Place an Open Pendant onto the tape. Using your fingertips, press the pendant down onto the packing tape and rub back and forth on your work surface to make sure it is burnished down.
Tip:
Check to see that your packing tape is clear and there is no residue or mottling in the adhesive. If there is, it will show up in your finished resin piece when you remove the tape once the resin is cured. Try to use an area of the tape that does not have blotches or marks.
Step 2:
Trim away any excess packing tape from around your Open Pendant to avoid the curing resin piece from being potentially disturbed.
Tip:
I like to place each bezel on its own individual piece of packing tape. It makes the pouring easier to manage and eliminates the chance of disturbing the bezel next to it.
Step 3:
I tend to work in a small area (typically my kitchen table), so I like to work on a surface that projects can be easily moved around and not disturbed. Place some business cards or some heavy card stock onto your work surface, making it easy to move the pendants without getting any resin on your fingers.
Step 4:
Read the resin instructions for safety concerns regarding the Nunn Design Resin.
When I work with resin, I always:
- Place a large plastic bag over my work surface and tape it down.
- I make sure I have ventilation in my workroom.
- I wear gloves.
- I wear glasses (readers because I can’t see anymore. Plus it protects my eyes!).
- I have a pile of wet wipes handy.
- This is a great blog post that covers 20 Habits for Successfully Using Nunn Design 2-Part Epoxy Resin. Even if you are a seasoned resin mixer, this might be worth a read.
- You can also watch this great video on How to Mix Nunn Design Resin
Step 5:
Place one cup (included in the Nunn Design Resin Kit) onto your table. For curing purposes, it is very important that the resin be an exact 1 to 1 ratio of Part A and Part B. I suggest getting your eyes level with the resin so you can see the lines on the measuring cup. Pour Part A of your resin kit up to the ½ fluid ounce mark on your measuring cup. Pour Part B of your resin kit into the same cup until it is filled to the 1 fluid ounce mark. It is important to pour Part A first and then Part B. It is some chemical thing about the part B being heavier or something.
Step 6:
Set your timer for 2 minutes. Using the stir stick from your kit (a popsicle stick or coffee stir stick will work great too), slowly and carefully stir your resin scraping the sides as you stir. Stir for a minimum of 2 minutes. If your resin is still cloudy continue to mix until clear. After mixing is complete and your resin is clear, scrape both sides of your stir stick on the edge of your resin filled cup.
Step 7:
To create 2017 Summer Pantone Colors, take a look at this earlier post or download the PDF.
For this tutorial, I colorized my resin with Castin’ Crafts Opaque Pigments; red, white, yellow and brown to create a Flame color.
The formula for Flame, Pantone 17-1462 TPX :
- 1 tsp. Nunn Design Resin
- 1 toothpick tip Red
- 2 toothpicks tips Yellow
- 1 toothpick tip White
- 1 toothpick tip Brown
Step 9:
Here is a visual of what a “tiny toothpick tip” and a “toothpick tip” look like.
Step 10:
On a piece of plastic, such as a Ziplock bag, squeeze out a little of the Castin’ Crafts Opaque Pigments. This will prevent you from contaminating your colorants with mixed Nunn Design Resin as you add the toothpicks of color to the resin.
Step 11:
Place another empty resin mixing cup onto your work area. Pour the clear resin from Step 6 into the cup, filling it to the 1 tsp. mark. Add in the colorants from the formula in Step 7 to create the Flame color. Stir gently until the colorant is fully mixed together. Let resin sit for 5 minutes to let the bubbles rise to the surface and pop.
Tip:
Be sure that the colorant does not equal more than 10% of your resin as having more than 10% could cause issues with curing.
Step 12:
Slowly drizzle your mixed colorized resin into the Open Pendant until the base of the bezel is filled and the resin comes to the outside edge of the pendant.
Step 13:
Use a toothpick to agitate the resin and make sure there aren’t any air bubbles lurking below the surface.
Step 14:
Set the bezel aside for 12 hours until the resin is slightly cured. If you see bubbles rising to the surface, using your hot breath, breathe on them. It isn’t a “blow” sort of breath – more of a “huff” sort of a breath. The hot air will make the bubbles expand, rise to the surface and pop. As the resin starts to set-up and become thicker, it will be more difficult for the air to rise to the surface. Make sure to check in on the curing resin and double check for air bubbles. If you do have some bubbles, use a toothpick to gentle drag them over to the sides. This agitation process will help them to pop. When the resin is thick and taffy like in texture it is time to let it be. If you attempt to pop bubbles at this time, you may end up with a gooey mess.
Step 15:
If you do have some overflow, let your resin filled bezel set for 12 hours. After 12 hours, the resin will be set, but still very flexible. Use a pair of needle nose pliers to pry away the resin from the pendant. The resin will easily peel away and is fairly easy to pick-off with your fingernails.
Step 16:
Remove the packing tape from the backside once fully cured. If you do it after 12 hours the resin will still be very flexible and can easily “bow” within the bezel. Just go slow and don’t press or pull too hard.
Step 17:
If you have any excess residue from the packing tape on the backside, use the tape to remove it like you would when you are removing lint or animal fur from your clothes. Keep touching the packing tape onto the sticky surface until it is no longer sticky. Still sticky, try Goo Be Gone! Follow the manufacturer’s instructions for best results. I applied a couple drops on the backside and let it sit for over a minute. I then used a stir stick to scrape the tapes residue. It was fast and easy. Once clean, just use rubbing alcohol on a wet-wipe to wipe clean.
Step 18:
Now we are ready to apply the transfer sheet directly on the colorized resin. With a pair of scissors, trim one of the images from the Black & White Tree Transfer Sheet. Continue trimming and adjusting until the transfer sheet image fits nicely into your open bezel. You can even use the bezels themselves as templates.
Step 19:
Fill a small shallow dish with warm water approximately 3⁄4 of the way full. The Nunn Design Transfer Sheets are printed on a film with a paper backing. When the transfer sheet is submerged into water, it separates the film front from the paper backing. Drop your trimmed transfer sheets into the water and wait 30 seconds. If you are doing more than one piece at a time, I like to work with one of my transfer sheet images at a time, so I’m not in a rush as all of the backs release from the film fronts at the same time.
The film is very fragile, so be gentle when handling it. When removing the transfer sheet from the water, you will be able to feel the film and paper-backing slide apart from one another and then hold them in your fingers. Leave the paper backing attached to the film front and dry your fingers with a paper towel.
Step 20:
Mix up another batch of Nunn Design Resin. Drizzle a small amount onto the colorized resin. Spread the resin over the surface with a toothpick. The resin will provide a layer of moisture between the cured resin and the transfer image. If this isn’t there, it is easy to get air trapped under the transfer sheet.
Step 21:
Once the transfer is dried off, slide off the paper backing and place the film into the resin filled base of the Open Pendant Drop.
Step 22:
Continue to pour your resin until the bezel is filled. If you want a flat resin surface, fill the resin just to the edge of the bezel. If you would like a high dome, continue to drizzle resin until you have your desired height.
Step 23:
Drag the resin to the edge of the bezel with a toothpick. The resin is self-doming and wants to know where the edge is. By dragging the resin to the edge of the bezel, you will be able to create a more finished look.
Step 24:
If you have any resin where you don’t want it, use a wet-wipe to clean up the surface. Set aside to cure (up to 72 hours).
Optional: What to do with the Excess Resin
If you have excess colorized resin from this project, don’t let it go to waste. Pour the resin onto a plastic bag and let it cure. Once the resin is cured for 12 hours, you can cut the resin with scissors and create interesting patterns. See our tutorial on our blog to learn more: Create Colorized Resin Mosaics with Excess Resin Tutorials.
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