Getting Started With UV Resin and Epoxy Resin Barrettes
It had been a while since I’d done much with resin, but this summer I’ve rediscovered just how much fun it is. Seriously, I can’t get enough, and I think I may be a teeny bit addicted. I have a long list of resin projects that I want to try, but I’m having an absolute blast making barrettes—so much so that my brain is spinning with all of the possibilities. I keep coming up with new ideas faster than I can make them. And then I finally sit down to make them and forget what I was planning to do in the first place. Oh well, they’re turning out well!
I’ll include some quick tutorials in this post, but I hope that it will also inspire you to try some different things and have a lot of fun with them.
I’ve been working with both epoxy and UV resin this time around, and I’ll share what I’ve learned from both of them.
Here’s what I’ve made so far:
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There are SO MANY possibilities here, from colors to glitter to confetti to foil flakes… there’s no limit! You can even use alcohol ink! If you’ve never explored the world of glitter/confetti, it is amazing. I can’t even believe how many different kinds there are, and I want them all. Not good for my bank account, but a whole lot of fun! I’ve bought most of mine on Amazon and Etsy, but I’ve also found some other sites that have impressive collections.
Two-part epoxy resin is the first kind I ever tried, and I still love it for a lot of reasons (alcohol ink is one—it doesn’t work with UV resin), but I’ve also come to love UV resin for smaller projects where I’m doing a lot of layering or just don’t want to wait a full 24-hour cure time. I recently read that UV resin has a shorter shelf life—and that the finished pieces are not as durable and do not last as long as those made with epoxy resin—so that’s something I’m still trying to find out more about. For now, I enjoy using it.
Let’s talk supplies first…
First things first: the mix-ins. AKA the fun stuff. Here are some of my favorite places to buy confetti, glitter, and foil flakes.
https://sunnystudiostamps.com Cuteness overload!
https://www.etsy.com/shop/HappyKawaiiSupplies Same.
https://www.etsy.com/shop/MGCustomGlitter Their shop banner alone makes me so happy, but they also have lots of adorable and *sparkly* things.
Speaking of sparkly things, check out these foil flakes. The containers are BIG, so you won’t run out for a long time.
Because I’m preparing for seasons and holidays ahead, I also bought these:
Fall leaves, Halloween, Snowflakes
And I needed some fall/Halloween colors of glitter, so I bought this. Now I’m covered all year round.
I don’t have a lot of experience with different UV resins, but I read a lot of reviews and am on my second bottle of THIS. I’ve had excellent results with it. I couldn’t believe how much I was able to do with the first bottle. Every time I thought I must surely be about to run out, I was able to squeeze more out.
Something I’m just beginning to explore the possibilities of is this UV resin that I found at JoAnn’s. It’s colored resin in little tubes, and I have to admit I was a little skeptical that it would cure well. (That didn’t stop me from buying three 3-packs though…) Fortunately, it has been a success! I bought a tiny butterfly mold that I’ve used to make a rainbow of butterflies with. Aren’t they pretty?! I also made a rainbow barrette using all of the colors, but that’s as much as I’ve done so far. The tubes are pretty small, so I’m saving them for little projects.
At the same time I was researching resin, I did a lot of research on UV lamps, and I’ve been very happy with THIS one. Very little of what I’ve made has required more than a minute or two of curing. Instant gratification for the win.
When I bought my first barrette mold, it came as part of a set, and one of the complaints people had in their reviews is that it was hard to find replacement barrettes. I’m happy to say that that is no longer the case! I’ve bought barrette sets in both silver and gold, and they work great. I’m currently using this set and also these barrettes.
To color my resin pieces, I’m using this set of mica powder. I love the shimmery look I get from it.
To spread the resin in the molds, I use toothpicks.
For epoxy resin, I am a huge fan of the Art Resin brand. I’m still working my way through the gallon-size bottles I have of resin/hardener, and while it’s well past its shelf life, it’s still working perfectly!
Generally, I mix 8 oz of resin at once, and these measuring cups work well for that. Some of the reviews mention that the measurements are off, but I have not had that issue. Certainly not for 8oz of resin, anyway. I also have these silicone cups, but I have yet to clean one properly after I use it. I also keep these small plastic cups on hand for mixing in glitter or mica to smaller amounts of resin. I have popsicle sticks in two sizes for mixing, and then I also use toothpicks.
I used these craft sticks for mixing. I use smaller ones for smaller batches of resin unless I’m making a REALLY small batch, in which case I use toothpicks.
After collecting three-packs of alcohol ink for a long time, I splurged and bought THIS set. The colors are amazing, and I love them. I also bought a big bottle of white ink, since it’s what you use to sink the alcohol ink in resin.
No matter what kind of resin you’re working with, you’re going to want to have a protected surface to work on. I bought an inexpensive clear shower curtain liner to cover my table with, and it has worked out so well. It’s easy to clean off, and since resin doesn’t stick to it, if I accidentally drop some epoxy resin on it, I just peel it off once it cures.
It’s also a good idea to wear gloves. A really, really good idea. I don’t always do this, but I almost always wish I had.
My glue of choice for attaching the hair clips is E6000.
I also keep a lighter on hand for popping bubbles.
I just bought a filing set to file down any rough edges on my barrettes (or any other resin pieces). It comes with metal files, sandpaper, and all sorts of things that will come in handy for non-resin crafts as well.
One last thing that I love to have on hand: isopropyl alcohol wipes. These come in a tall container like antibacterial wipes, and they are amazing for cleaning up resin or alcohol ink messes. I’ve used them to clean off my hands after I’ve gotten alcohol ink on them. You could also use a bottle of isopropyl alcohol and a paper towel, but this is so simple.
Let’s get started!
I’ll start with epoxy resin. You can read about my early resin adventures HERE.
Start by mixing the resin according to the manufacturer’s directions. Mix slowly to prevent bubbles, and make sure to scrape the sides as you go to get everything mixed properly. You’ll know it’s mixed when turns clear.
If you’re going to color your resin, you can add mica powder directly to it or pour some clear resin into smaller cups and color those individually.
One of the biggest tips I have for working with epoxy resin in general is to always have a clean mold handy for any overflow resin that you’ve poured. I am terrible at guessing how much resin I’m going to need for any particular project, so I always have extra. If it’s clear resin, I can color whatever’s left or mix in glitter. I’m telling you this because this is how I recently ended up with a whole batch of colored barrettes. My daughter and I were playing around and poured way more resin than we needed. I nearly panicked because there was so much extra, but we found ways to use it all using just mica powder. We got some truly beautiful barrettes out of it.
My favorite way to color clear epoxy resin is alcohol ink. To get this effect, I pour clear resin into the molds, being careful not to overfill them. Using one color at a time, I add a few drops of ink into the resin, and then go back with white ink and add drops over the colored ones. The white ink is heavier than the other colors, so it helps them to sink. The effect is magical. Every tutorial I’ve ever read has cautioned to not use too much ink, but no one ever says how much is too much. I’m afraid I’m not much help there either. I think you just have to learn through trial and error. I felt like I used too much this time, but apparently not.
*** Apparently I took zero pictures of the epoxy resin barrettes I made, but here’s what alcohol ink looks like in a different but also shallow mold.
The absolute hardest part of this whole process is the waiting (what magic is happening under there?!), but it is soooo worth it. Just look at these!! I waited 24 hours before removing them from the molds.
UV Resin
For this barrette I left the resin clear and just used the pretty sunflower confetti, so it was very simple. I squeezed some resin into the mold, and then I used a toothpick to make sure it had completely covered the bottom of the mold. I also used the toothpick to fish out any bubbles that had settled at the bottom.
Because I was matching a barrette I’d already made, I put the sunflowers into the resin and used the toothpick again to move them around and made sure they were completely in the resin. I added just a bit more resin to the mold.
Then I cured the resin under the UV light for two minutes.
Alternatively, you could do one thin layer of resin, cure it under the UV light, and THEN add more resin and the confetti/glitter and cure it again.
To attach the hair clip to the barrette, I put a line of resin along the clip, pressed it onto the barrette, and carefully moved it under the light, trying not to move it. You can actually hold it under the light for just a few seconds until it starts to cure, and then set it down for the rest of the time.
Once that’s done, that barrette is ON there and not going anywhere! I did have some issues with this on some of my other barrettes, though, where you can see bubbles between the barrette and the clip. The same thing can happen with the glue, though, so I’m working on perfecting my technique. If your barrette is opaque, you won’t be able to see it anyway. It’s only an issue for clear or translucent barrettes.
Now you have a completed barrette! You can make them in pairs or have an assortment of different styles. I’d love to see what you make! You can tag me on instagram @katieishstl, for example!
