Epoxy Resin Tips - 10 Practical Tips

In this article, our most experienced customers and epoxy experts share their most important tips and tricks regarding making resin art.

In the past months we have welcomed many new customers to our community. Thanks to the good contact with our regular customers, we know from experience that everyone has their own way of working with epoxy resin. We also notice that our customers have many questions. That is why we are now sharing the best tips and tricks with you.

Tip 1: How do you remove air bubbles from epoxy resin?

My favorite trick to remove bubbles from epoxy resin is to use the Bubble Blaster spray from itsOkay. This is a much safer alternative than lighters. Lighters or other heat tools often damaged your mold.

- Demi, epoxy expert at itsOkay 

Tip 2: Which epoxy resin for jewelry making?

Do you also want to make epoxy jewelry yourself? Of course you need epoxy casting resin for this. In general, you need little resin for jewelry such as earrings, pendants or key rings. With a good quality epoxy you ensure a beautiful end result. My advice is to use ready-made epoxy for making jewelry. I use the UV Resin from itsOkay myself. This special jewelry resin is easy to use, hardens quickly and gives a beautiful clear end result.

UV Resin is a premixed epoxy and can be poured directly from the bottle into a silicone mold thanks to the handy spout. Such a spout gives me much more control over where I want to place the epoxy in the silicone mold.

- Liza, epoxy artist

Tip 3: How do you remove uncured epoxy resin?

Uncured epoxy resin is still soft and therefore easier to remove than already cured epoxy resin. Use acetone or alcohol for this. Put this on a cloth and rub it on the surface until the epoxy comes loose.
Always keep disinfectant gel, alcohol and baby wipes at hand when working with epoxy resin. In my opinion this is the easiest and best way to remove epoxy resin or anything else if you accidentally spill resin on something. A simple tip, but absolutely worth it!

- Ellen, resin artist, @EllenAndersonArt

Tip 4: Epoxy Resin Sticks! Now What?

It can happen that the epoxy resin is still sticky after curing. Below are the most common causes of sticky epoxy:

1. You have used too much epoxy pigment (a few drops is enough). If you use too much, the mixture is no longer balanced and cannot harden properly.
2. If you use a two-component epoxy - then it is important that you weigh both well and use exactly the same amount of A (resin) and B (hardener). If you do not do this, there is a chance that the epoxy resin cannot harden properly. Stir well so that everything is well mixed and scrape the epoxy resin completely.
3. If you use UV Resin - Let it harden well in direct sunlight or under the UV LED lamp and do not remove the epoxy resin from the mold too soon. Stickiness disappears after the jewelry has been in the sun long enough. Do not forget to turn the jewelry over.

Is your epoxy resin still sticky? You can fix stickiness by:

1. Place the epoxy resin in a warm place or in direct sunlight for several hours;
2. Apply a new layer of resin or clear nail polish on top of the sticky resin;
3. Let the epoxy resin harden longer than stated on the packaging. Make sure the resin can harden properly and do not remove it from the mold too quickly out of enthusiasm;
4. Let the ready-made UV Resin cure under a UV LED Lamp .

- Kate, Resin Artists and UK Resin Supplier

Tip 5: Removing air bubbles from epoxy resin

Tip 6: How to clean silicone epoxy molds?

I always get a lot of questions about how I clean the silicone molds and cups after crafting. Here's how I do it:

1. Try to remove as much epoxy as possible with paper towels (or toilet paper). Clean as much as possible while the resin is still liquid. Once the epoxy gets sticky and starts to harden, it will be harder to clean.
2. Clean your workspace and silicone molds with spirits or alcohol. This will remove the last and smallest residues.
3. After this, wash your silicone epoxy molds, tools, and cups with mild soap in warm water. Never use scouring pads, steel wool, or anything else that is abrasive when cleaning. Turn everything upside down and let it dry on a tea towel.

- Demi, epoxy expert at itsOkay

Tip 7: How do you remove spilled epoxy resin?

One of our customers spilled epoxy on her glass table top. If this happens, put boiling water on an old cloth and place it on the epoxy. Wait a few minutes and use a putty knife or other flat tool to carefully get under the epoxy and then remove it. This works great. Be careful though: you can only do this on a hard surface that won't damage the table. Also be careful with your hands.

Use acetone to remove epoxy resin from wood and concrete. Did epoxy resin accidentally end up on your wooden floor? Do not use alcohol and paint thinners to remove the epoxy resin. These can damage or discolour your floor. You can easily remove epoxy residue with acetone.

- Stefanie, Customer service experts itsOkay.nl

Tip 8: How do you clean silicone molds?

Keep your silicone molds clean with a little soap and water. Before each pour, use a little dish soap and warm water to clean your molds. Silicone can withstand temperatures of up to 250°C, so you don’t have to worry about the mold deforming while cleaning.

Is there dust, sand or glitter on your silicone mold and do you want to remove it quickly and easily? Simply use adhesive tape for this. Fold it in half and stick it on your finger. Then press this on the dirt in the silicone mold. Repeat this a few times and the silicone mold is clean!

- Erica, epoxy artist

Tip 9: Reuse leftover epoxy resin

My tip is not to throw away the leftover epoxy pieces you have, but to save them. You can chop them up and reuse them another time in other pieces as a kind of mosaic!

- Sanne, epoxy expert at itsOkay

Tip 10: How do you remove sharp edges?

When you remove epoxy from the silicone mold, sharp edges often appear. These sharp, raised edges are caused by epoxy shrinking slightly during curing. The epoxy pulls up a little at the edges, which causes these edges. Fortunately, there are several ways to tackle these edges.

My tip to remove sharp, raised or rough edges of epoxy with pliers , deburring scissors or kitchen knife. Always do this carefully. You can then apply a small amount of epoxy to the unevenness to repair it this way.

- Petra, epoxy expert at itsOkay

More information?

Do you have questions about making art, jewelry or casting/coating floors or other objects? At itsOkay, several epoxy experts work with each their own expertise. We are happy to help you.
Please contact itsOkay customer service or take a look at the Epoxy knowledge center .

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