What can I add to Epoxy Resin?
Are you wondering what you can add to Epoxy Resin? Basically the possibilities are endless but, there are a few things you might want to consider. Lets take a look.
Mica Powder
Mica powders can give an amazing depth of colour to your project. Not only is mica cheap, it comes in a massive range of colours, is cheap and can add a bit of sparkle too.
We love the Smalltongue pack of 36 mica powders. There’s a huge range of beautiful colours that will add pearlescent depth to your project.
Mica is relatively cheap and you only need a small amount to see a big difference in the colour of your resin. You can add multiple colours together to create added depth to your resin too.
Sand & Shells
Add sand and or shells to this Resin Pro Wave Kit from Amazon to create some amazing beach effects. They go well with coasters, clocks and kitchen accessories. Sand works well in resin keyrings to. Perfect for a beach themed gift.
Alcohol Ink
Alcohol inks are mesmerising to watch! We love them. Just be careful to not add more than 5% alcohol ink to resin or it can affect the time it takes to set your resin. We added too much to the one in the video below and our tray ended up bendy because there was just too much alcohol for the epoxy resin to set properly. It was still fun to watch though.
We recommend this 18 colour set from HXDZFX on Amazon.
Gold Leaf
One of our favourites! Gold leaf which also comes in silver and rose, can give some amazing effects. We use it all of the time in our coasters. A little gold leaf will go a long way and we recommend adding small bits at a time with tweezers until you get the desired effect. We use these pots from amazon and they’ve lasted us absolutely ages. They also come with tweezers which is a bonus.
Glitter
What’s not to love about glitter? (Other than the issues of it managing to get everywhere!). Glitter is perfect for giving sparkle to your projects.
Pigment Paste
Pigment paste is a great way to add solid colours to your resin. Again, make sure you don’t add too much or your resin wont cure. Each brand will come with its own instructions and we always recommend adding a small bit at a time. Resin Pro have a great range available to buy from Amazon and their pigment really does go a long way!
Flowers
Flowers can be a great way to add colour and depth to your project. Resin is perfect for preserving flowers from your special day or memorable moment. They can be tricky to work with but we have some blogs to help you add flowers to resin.
Dried fruit
Adding dried fruit like orange slices can give some amazing effects. Just make sure that what ever it is that you use has not been treated with anything and that it is fully dried. Additives and moisture can cause your fruit to mould or rot over time.
Vinyl
Using a vinyl cutter like the Cricut Joy (which is what we use), can help you easily personalise your resin gifts. We love how easy it is to add vinyl. Just remember to protect any vinyl (even if its permanent) by adding a top coat of epoxy resin or UV resin.
Lego and other plastic items
We love using Lego with resin. It can give some really cool effects and is a big hit for children’s bedroom decorations. Check out our blog on creating epoxy resin letters with Lego.
Crayons
So this might be one of our favourite projects that we’ve done so far. We added Crayola Crayons to an extra large resin letter. The results are fantastic. Just watch out though – if you’re using a heat gun to pop those bubbles, don’t hold it too long over the crayons as they will start to melt. (We may have done this on our first attempt … oops!).
Ashes and hair / fur
Adding ashes and fur or hair to resin is a popular way of creating a special memorial piece. When adding anything light like this, consider pouring in layers to ensure you get a good spread within your resin.
Light items or additives can float so adding them when your resin is toward the end of its working time will mean that your resin is a little thicker and give you better control.
TIP: We always recommend testing projects with non sentimental pieces or using a small amount first. We would hate for your project to not work out the way you’d expected.
Photos
If you choose to add photos to your resin, there’s a few things to think about:
1) to protect your image and retain the colour; coat your image in Mod Podge (both sides) first and let fully dry.
2) pour your base layer of resin, add your photo and ensure you smooth out any air pockets or bubbles. Once your first layer is fully cured, add your second layer. Again, watch for bubbles.
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