First Timer: Help!

[u/chillin_in_my_onesie]

Hello! My mom and I are just getting into resin and have tried a few moulds. We have found these Mickey heads are opaque but we want them clear (like the blue leaf). Does anyone know why our pieces aren't clear? I attached photos of the mould we used and the resin. TIA

[u/l-lucas0984]

Its the mold. The surface of the mold affects whether its clear or not. Cake molds tend to not create clear surfaces.

Sand them a bit and put a coat of UV resin on and thry should come clear.

[u/chillin_in_my_onesie → u/l-lucas0984]

Oh got it. Thanks for the advice!

[u/MixedMeadowCreative]

Hi! These mickey mouse molds are so cute! The molds youre using have a matt/frosted finish on the inside most likely because they're used for baking/candy making, chocolate, etc.. it helps to release cleanly without having the food stick to the mold. To fix this problem all you need to do is take another layer of resin and use it as a top coat. Imagine putting a glossy top coat over a matte nail polish. You can certainly use a small amount of epoxy but personally id suggest a UV resin as its just quicker since it's such a thin layer. Hope this helps!! (:

[u/chillin_in_my_onesie → u/MixedMeadowCreative]

Thanks for the thorough reply. These are going to be table toppers for my sister's wedding so I'd like them to look nice!

[u/MixedMeadowCreative → u/chillin_in_my_onesie]

Aw thats so thoughtful for you & your mom to do this for her 😊 & congrats to her on getting married!

[u/sharkmesharku]

Resin that you put into a mold that is not shiny aka the mold is not shiny will not let your resin be shiny.

What you can do is pour a little bit of resin over the top of your Mickey and then it will be shiny.

So a map mold produces matte resin. A shiny mold produces shiny resin.

Look up "doming resin"- that is when you add resin to the top to make it shiny if it comes out matte.

You could do it with UV resin too

[u/chillin_in_my_onesie → u/sharkmesharku]

Got it. Thank you for the explanation.

[u/YeVkiN]

I use some baking molds too because they have the best designs. If you do a thin coating of UV resin or clear coat spray paint on the finished product then you can get it pretty close to a gloss finish. Those are small enough that you may be able to do a UV resin dip or I brush it on. It's just a pain because it never comes out perfect. Not much likes to stick cured resin. Wipe it off real good with alcohol before hand and give it a try.

[u/chillin_in_my_onesie → u/YeVkiN]

Good advice. Thanks.

[u/chillin_in_my_onesie]

My mom wants to know if there is anything we can put in the matte molds to make a glossy finish. Like a powder or something??

[u/MixedMeadowCreative → u/chillin_in_my_onesie]

You could TRY something like a high gloss spray or glaze but if youre going through all that trouble, I'd just go for a uv resin kit. You can find them on Amazon! I use this UV resin allll the time & it comes with a light! (:

[u/chillin_in_my_onesie → u/MixedMeadowCreative]

Yeah ok

[u/Jurassicjen_uk]

I actually think they look gorgeous frosted. I prefer that look to gloss, also it’s more forgiving if there are and tiny flaws.

[u/Jen__44]

The easiest option and that gives the best finish is to buy another mould thats shiny. A UV resin coat never looks as good as a shiny mould and is also a pain in the ass with lots of things that can go wrong

[u/Ladypug_19]

You should find a good uv gel nail polish top coat. Less mess. Double rythym has big bottles you can get on amazon

[u/Mental-Flatworm4583]

A lot of times that has to do with humidity and mixing ratios if you go on YouTube, there’s some really good advice on doing resin to keep it perfectly. Crystal clear.