Creative & ArtBeginnerPreview
Resin Art
Learn to pour, color, and cure epoxy resin into bubble-free coasters, trays, and art panels. This course covers the chemistry, safety, pigments, and finishing that separate amateur pours from sellable work.
For complete beginners and self-taught crafters who want reliable, professional-looking epoxy resin results instead of cloudy, sticky, or bubble-filled pours.
Course content
Workbook & downloads
Put the course into practice — a printable workbook plus editable templates you can fill in and reuse.
Preview the workbook
This workbook turns the Resin Art course into a hands-on system you can pour from. Each section mirrors a course module with exercises, fill-in worksheets, and pre-pour checklists, plus an end-to-end action plan. Use the editable templates to log batches, cost your pieces, and price them so your craft becomes repeatable and profitable.
Resin Chemistry, Safety, and Your Workspace
Lock in the chemistry, gear up safely, and build a clean, level, temperature-stable station before you mix a single batch.
Exercise: Decode Your Resin Bottle
Take the actual resin you own (or one you plan to buy) and read its label and datasheet. Answer each prompt from the printed information, not from memory, so you work from your product's real specs.
- Is this a coating/art resin or a deep-pour/casting resin, and what is the maximum single-pour depth the manufacturer allows?
- What is the exact mix ratio, and is it specified by weight or by volume?
- What are the stated pot life, touch-dry time, and full cure time at room temperature?
- Does the resin advertise UV inhibitors or any food-contact certification (for example FDA 21 CFR 175.300)?
Checklist: Pre-Pour Safety and Workspace Check
- Nitrile gloves on (not latex or vinyl) and a spare pair within reach
- Organic-vapor respirator fitted, especially if torching or sanding
- Cross-ventilation running: intake plus exhaust moving air away from your face
- Bench covered with silicone mat or sheet plastic and a trash bag staged
- Room and materials at roughly 21 to 24 degrees Celsius
- Surface checked level in both directions and shimmed if needed
- Dust controlled: surfaces wiped, a cover box ready for the drying piece
Worksheet: My Workspace Profile
Document your actual setup so you can spot and fix the environmental factors that cause cloudy, sticky, or bubble-filled results.
- Workspace location and ventilation method
- Typical room temperature (measured, not guessed)
- How I warm resin bottles before mixing
- Levelling method and tool used
- Dust-control measures in place
- PPE inventory and what needs restocking
Measuring, Mixing, and Defeating Bubbles
Nail the ratio, mix thoroughly with the two-cup method, and remove bubbles with the right heat tool.
Worksheet: Batch Volume Calculator (by hand)
Before mixing, plan your batch so you neither run short mid-pour nor waste resin. Fill this in for your next piece.
- Project and surface area or mold water-volume measured
- Target thickness or number of coats
- Total mixed resin needed (plus 10 percent extra)
- Amount of Part A required
- Amount of Part B required (per the exact ratio)
- Number of color cups I will split into
Exercise: The Two-Cup Mix Drill
Run one full mix using the two-cup method with a timer, then evaluate it. Repeat until you can do it without rushing the stir time.
- Did you stir the full recommended time (about 3 minutes for art resin) with a timer, scraping sides and bottom?
- After transferring to the second clean cup, did the residue stay behind on the first cup's walls?
- Did you mix the batch fully clear before splitting into color cups?
- What changed in clarity versus a previous single-cup mix?
Exercise: Bubble Removal Practice
Pour a small test tile and practice de-bubbling. Note the timing and tool behavior so torching becomes second nature.
- How many minutes did you wait after pouring before the first torch pass, and were bubbles visibly rising?
- How far did you hold the torch and how many passes did it take to clear the surface?
- Did a second pass at the 20 to 30 minute mark catch late bubbles?
- Did any embedded or porous element keep releasing bubbles, and did pre-sealing help?
Checklist: Mix-and-Pour Quality Gate
- Ratio confirmed from the label and measured precisely
- Stirred for the full timed duration, scraping walls and bottom
- Transferred to a second clean cup (two-cup method)
- Mixed clear before adding any colorant
- Total colorant kept under about 6 percent of resin volume
- Surface torched in light passes, not held in one spot
Color, Movement, and Cell Techniques
Choose colorants deliberately, dial in cells with density and silicone, and practice the named pour styles.
Worksheet: Color Recipe Card
Record exact color recipes so you can reproduce a result you love instead of chasing it again by trial and error.
- Effect goal (solid color, shimmer, blooming, lacing)
- Colorant type and brand/shade used
- Approximate amount per cup and percentage of resin volume
- Silicone or cell additive used (drops, if any)
- Heat tool used and how (torch passes / heat-gun movement)
- Result notes and what I would change next time
Exercise: Make a Cell on Purpose
Pour a small two-color tile and deliberately create cells using density contrast plus a heat tool, then a second tile with a silicone additive. Compare.
- Which color did you make densest (often white) and did it break through as intended?
- What happened to the cells when you applied the heat gun versus the torch?
- On the silicone tile, did you get clean cells or greasy fish-eyes from too much silicone?
- Which method gave you more control, and why?
Exercise: Three Pour Styles Sampler
Produce one small piece each as a dirty pour, a swipe, and a petri. Keep them as a personal reference set.
- How did your layering order in the dirty-pour cup affect the final pattern?
- Did your swipe pass stay smooth and confident, or did hesitation leave chatter marks?
- In the petri piece, how many ink-and-white layers gave you the depth you wanted?
- Which style felt most natural and which project (coaster, tray, panel) suits each?
Projects, Embedding, and the Professional Finish
Embed objects cleanly, demold and finish to glass clarity, and price your work honestly for sale.
Checklist: Embedding Readiness Checklist
- Mold is platinum-cure silicone, spotlessly clean and bone dry
- Flowers and organic items fully dried (silica gel or pressed), not fresh
- Photos and paper sealed on both sides to prevent bleed and translucency
- Porous objects pre-sealed with resin or sealer and dried
- Plan to build in layers so objects do not float or sink
- Object orientation decided (face-down in molds, face-up in open layers)
Worksheet: Finishing Log: Demold to Shine
Track cure timing and your sanding-to-polish steps so your finish quality is consistent across pieces.
- Cure time before demolding (hours) and firmness check result
- Sanding grits used in order (e.g., 400 to 2000)
- Wet or dry sanding and any issues (frosting, low spots)
- Finish method (flood coat / polishing compound / spray gloss)
- Final clarity rating and any defects to fix
- Resin, ratio, and colorants used (for reproducing this piece)
Exercise: Honest Claims and Pricing Pass
Take one finished piece and define exactly how you will describe and price it for a buyer, grounded in your resin's real specs.
- Can you truthfully claim food-safe, or should it be sold for cold, dry, indirect contact only?
- What heat, UV, and scratch care instructions will you give the customer?
- What are your total material costs and active labor hours for this piece?
- Applying a craft markup (for example materials plus labor times 3 to 4 for retail), what is your price?
Checklist: Sellable-Piece Final Check
- No tacky spots, fish-eyes, or trapped dust on the surface
- Edges smooth, level, and free of sharp flashing
- Embedded objects centered, sealed, and free of browning or bubbles
- Food-contact claim matches the resin's actual certification
- Care card prepared (trivet for heat, keep out of direct sun)
- Batch recorded so a best-seller can be reproduced exactly
Your Action Plan
- Read your resin's label and datasheet; record its type, exact ratio, pot life, cure time, and any food-contact or UV claims.
- Set up a ventilated, level, dust-controlled station and assemble PPE (nitrile gloves, organic-vapor respirator, glasses) and core tools.
- Do a clear practice pour using the two-cup method with a timer, then torch it to a bubble-free finish.
- Mix and split into color cups and test mica, pigment paste, and alcohol ink to learn how each behaves.
- Create cells deliberately on a test tile using density contrast plus heat, then again with a silicone additive.
- Pour one small dirty pour, one swipe, and one petri piece to build a personal technique reference set.
- Pour a coaster or tray with a sealed embedded object, building it in layers so the object stays positioned.
- Demold after full cure, then wet-sand through the grit progression and finish with a flood coat or polishing.
- Write an honest care card and food-contact statement based on your resin's real certification.
- Cost and price the piece using the batch and pricing templates, then log the batch so you can reproduce your best work.
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