Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Man Cave Resin Coaster Kit

Now that my silicone coaster mould is cured I'm all set to cast the first Man Cave resin coaster - the gifts my son is giving to his mates for Christmas.

Beer bottle caps would have to be THE perfect item to embed in coasters for guys in their early 20s (or maybe any age!). My son has been collecting bottle caps for this project for months and I've been busting to get started on it. So whilst the silicone mould was curing, I began by preparing the bottle caps.

I started by filling them with resin.
Pouring resin into bottle caps to the top of the cap

I'm so glad I did this before setting the caps into the resin because a few bubbles got caught around the rubber lining of each cap and it was easier to pop them before they were set into the coaster mould rather than after. It also made them heavy enough so they didn't float to the surface when I filled the mould.

As soon as the silicone was cured I was able to start pouring resin into the mould - just a shallow layer to begin with. Once this was at the soft cure stage, I lined up the bottle caps in the mould as best I could. It was a bit tricky because they're upside down in the mould and you can't see if they're straight.
Placing the resin filled bottle caps into a layer of resin in the silicone coaster mould

One or two of them ended up twisted a little bit but it still looks OK. One final layer of resin covers all the bottle caps.
Finished square resin coaster with bottle caps embedded in it

This first coaster was a test run to see if I've poured in enough resin, whether the mould was deep enough and also to work out how much resin I'll need for each coaster. The mould passed on all fronts.

All that's left to do is to add some silicone feet to the bottom and it's ready for use!

These make great gifts for the men in your lives. What Dad wouldn't love it if you'd handmade a set of these just for him!

Buy a Resin Beer Bottle Top Coaster kit to make your own set of coasters.

Pin this project for later!
Resin beer bottle cap coaster with two bottles of beer
Pouring the resin into the coaster mould and the finished Resin Bottle Cap coaster.



'Til next time.....








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Would you like to comment?

  1. Wow! This is such an awesome idea and I can think of several things that this would work with. Thank you so much for sharing.

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    1. Thanks for stopping by. I can see those cogs turning over in your head!

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    2. I’m so tired of making the coasters upside down !! Have you found any silicone coasters to make right side up ??

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    3. You can always make them right side up if you have a mould with straight sides. I've seen some clear ones on Aliexpress that might work. If you search their website, I'm sure you'll find a seller. Just make sure that the walls are deep enough to accommodate all the layers. Good luck!

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  2. oh my! i just love it, that resin you use... where can i buy it?

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    1. Hi Restless Minds. Not sure where you are but if you're in the US you can buy Easy Cast at Michaels.

      If you're in Australia, you can buy it from me.

      If you're anywhere else, then check the ETI website for stockists: http://eti-usa.com/where-to-buy/

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  3. Myléne! You are doing so well! I've always (since I was a little girl) wanted to do Resin... haven't yet... not much time for craft these days (except the digital kind and making soap!). LOOOVE your stuff still. Wish I had more time to keep up with you. (If I do get Resin I'll come knocking!!)

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    1. Thanks France! My love of resin has come from my high school days and a very forward thinking (in those days) school which allowed girls into the manual arts centre and boys into the home ec centre. Getting to play with plastics was one of the best things I did at school. I've loved plastic and resin ever since.

      One day, when you're ready.... I'll be waiting :)

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  4. Thank you for sharing. I love it! I'm going to give it a go today, but I don't have any moulds, might have to look around the kitchen for something to use, any ideas?

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    1. Hi Diddydel
      Since I wrote this post I have created a kit so that you can make your own. You can purchase one from my website: http://milllanestudio.com/Books.html
      If you are in Australia you can buy the kit with resin but if you are overseas you can buy the kit without resin and source the resin locally.

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