Hi Mary,
You might want to try a colorless resin, such as Devcon 5 minute and
20 minute epoxies for mixing with other colors.
Devcon labeling is 5 minute and 20 ton. The 20 ton is best for the
final jewelry as it has a 20 minute working time, a 24 hour curing
time but has excellent UV resistance to keep your colors bright.
After sanding, I spray mine with a fixative like Krylon Matt Spray.
This pops the flat colors from sanding which absorb light.
This gives you a large range of color experimentation with mixing
colors, gradients of color etc. I suggest making a huge color
template with all the colors you use, if it is Colores or Devcon.
Experiment! Play! If you create a good template, you won’t have to
reinvent the wheel, which is why I advocate solid documentation.
You can use Krylon Acrylic spray for a glossy look on the Devcon,
but this is only a thin exterior coat. If you want a high gloss, than
Colores is great for this. Colores’ unique property is that it is an
acrylic high gloss which is perfect for highly saturated colors like
yellows, pinks, blues and greens without having to use high fired
enamels.
Spices and coloring in Devcon change, such as tumeric. Tumeric mixed
with epoxy goes from its original color of deep orange to blood red.
Now I know when I need a deep red, I can use tumeric.
I haven’t played with Colores yet, but now I am eager to get moving
on another range of coloring and see what this does.
Set up time depends on the chemical makeup of what you are mixing.
The pH of make-up, spices, dry paint pigments are all different and
they will effect the curing times and the outcome of your ultimate
color. This is where documentation is critical. Spend the time making
samples, document the time for curing, reactions to certain colors
and pigments, if they work or don’t work.
If you spend the time doing this, your work will benefit from the
effort you put into this all important step.
-k
Karen Christians
Waltham, MA
http://www.cleverwerx.com
