Casting organic material

Jewelry Discussion
1

Hi,

I have a question about casting organic material and this is the
only thread I found in the archives and it doesn’t really address my
problem.

I had found a couple of dried out wasp hives on my sidewalk and I
cast the less symmetrical one and it was a qualified success. The
base of the hive worked beautifully, but the cell walls above the
base were just gone. I clearly need to strengthen/thicken the other
one with a coating of some kind before trying with it. The hive is
very complex and rather delicate. The leaf casting thread mentioned
micro-crystalline wax, but not specifics on type and brand and I’ve
looked into those a bit and there are many types and I don’t know
enough to pick the right one. I’ve also had spray polyurethane
suggested. The cells range from maybe a half inch to an inch deep
and are maybe 4-5mm in diameter and the hive is roughly the diameter
of a 50 cent piece. I can provide a picture if that would help.

Thank you!!
Barb Moermond

2

I do a lot of casting of organics,and my favorite wax for that kind
of strengthening is Pro-Craft green inlay wax, because it’s very
liquid when melted and sinks into the organic, rather than simply
lying on the surface, so you retain more of the original texture
while strengthening the delicate parts.

Janet Kofoed

3 
I do a lot of casting of organics,and my favorite wax for that
kind of strengthening is Pro-Craft green inlay wax, because it's
very liquid when melted and sinks into the organic, rather than
simply lying on the surface, so you retain more of the original
texture while strengthening the delicate parts.

Sounds like a great tip, thanks! Where do you buy the wax? Quick
google search didn’t turn up sources

Thanks
Carina