Original ring made of epoxy resin. All the subtleties and secrets of manufacturing.

by Alexey | For Children Crafts For Friends Gifts For Loved Ones For Men For Women Workshop | Thursday, April 07, 2016

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Not long ago we told you how to make furniture from wood and epoxy resin. This publication caused quite a stir. And today we will show you a master class from a man with golden hands who makes amazing rings from wood and epoxy resin. Enjoy...

How to make a beautiful ring from wood and epoxy resin

To make beautiful wooden rings with epoxy resin, you should purchase jewelry (decorative) resin for the work. Epoxy is divided into two types: structural and decorative. Structural is used in industry, it is toxic and has a sharp, unpleasant odor. And the jewelry substance is used specifically to create beautiful jewelry.

After curing, the decorative epoxy becomes completely transparent. This quality allows you to use various additional inclusions during work, as well as paint the substance in any color.

Epoxy resin is great for decorative work

What you need

To make a beautiful ring from wood and epoxy resin with your own hands, you first need to prepare both the work surface and the necessary tools. For the creative process you will need the following:

• epoxy resin and hardener (a catalyst is often included with the epoxy);
• containers for mixing substances;
• a spatula or long wooden skewer for mixing materials;
• forms (molds), blanks into which epoxy will be poured;
• tools for finishing: polishing machine, mini-drill, jigsaw (needed for processing large and massive rings);
• polishing paste;
• dyes (if the design includes multi-colored products);
• fine-grained sandpaper.

Preparation for production

Before studying the instructions on how to make a ring from epoxy resin, you need to decide on its design. You can use wood, sparkles, dried flowers, rhinestones, beads, etc. as additional accessories. The necessary tinting dyes are also prepared.

Step-by-step work guide

To correctly approach the creation of a beautiful epoxy ring, follow these simple instructions. The work is carried out in the following stages:

1. Design elements are placed into forms. The mold is installed strictly horizontally - this is necessary for complete filling.
2. The hardener is carefully and slowly added to the resin. The proportions should be observed according to the instructions. In the classic form, 1 part of hardener is added to 10 parts of resin. At the same time, the necessary dye is included in the mass.
3. The viscous mass is slowly poured into the mold. When pouring, the substance must be mixed so that the resin completely fills the entire workpiece.
4. After pouring is completed, the mold is left at room temperature until complete polymerization. This usually takes 1–1.5 days.
5. The finished ring is removed from the mold. Now comes the finishing stage. The product is ground and polished to give it an ideal shape and mask imperfections.

The finished product must be processed and polished

Advice. Not every dye is suitable for working with a substance such as epoxy. For such creativity, special epoxy pigments are used. You can also use stained glass dyes, nitro dyes, pastel, oil paints and inks for color laser printers.

When working with a resinous substance, you should also follow some useful tips. Namely:

• the hardener has a shelf life (1 year), after which it loses its properties;
• It is necessary to store epoxy at a temperature of +15–25⁰С (when the temperature drops, the mass crystallizes);
• the prepared mass (resin + hardener) should be used immediately;
• the polymerization process requires air;
• the maximum permissible thickness of one layer of resinous substance should not exceed 5 cm;
• repeated layers are poured only after the previous ones have completely hardened;
• polymerization of the product occurs within 1–1.5 days.

Materials for creating jewelry

Epoxy resin (plastic) belongs to the group of synthetic resins. It has found application in construction, production of paints and varnishes, adhesives, electrical engineering and other industries. The resin exhibits its qualities, such as wear resistance, adhesiveness, strength, only when paired with a hardener. The characteristics of the resulting material depend on the proportion in which the hardener and epoxy are mixed.

Epoxy resin used in industry has an unpleasant odor and can produce toxic fumes when used. A special, less toxic, practically odorless composition is used to make jewelry. Some manufacturers produce kits that include a container, mixing sticks, gloves, fixative and resin. More often these materials are sold separately. When making jewelry, substances should be mixed in the proportions indicated on the packaging. Otherwise, you risk getting a sticky, non-hardening mass or an unusable conglomerate.

Features of working with epoxy:

• The material should be stored at a temperature of 15-25℃. At low temperatures, it crystallizes;
• the mixture of resin and hardener must be used immediately;
• air is needed to dry the product;
• the maximum thickness of the plastic layer should not exceed 5 cm;
• The product dries completely within 24-36 hours.

Natural material for decoration is selected depending on the designed design. For a ring made of wood and epoxy resin, a solid wood board, chips, or shavings are suitable. You can use the saw cut along with the bark. Additionally, the product is decorated with leaves, flowers, and moss.

To add color to epoxy and wood jewelry, you need to use dyes. Water-based pigments are not suitable for this. Specialized stores sell dyes for liquid plastic and alcohol inks. But you can also use:

• stained glass paints are not water-based;
• nitro paints;
• toners for laser printers;
• oil paints;
• pastel;
• ink from gel and ballpoint pens.

What kind of wood can a ring be made from?

Wooden finger rings are stylish jewelry with a deep sacred meaning. In connection with the popularization of Slavic culture and Rodnoverie, they are rapidly gaining popularity among all segments of the population. And then there’s the tradition of celebrating Wooden weddings!

The fashion for natural materials is growing all over the world. So wooden rings are a sign of good taste and following global fashion trends.

However, wooden rings are still difficult to find on sale. They are presented, perhaps, in stores where they sell hand-made jewelry, and on artisan websites. But, as mentioned above, you can make wood rings yourself, even with minimal tools.

Having cutting and drilling machines for woodworking can significantly speed up and simplify the process. However, our ancestors created wonderful works of decorative and applied art exclusively by hand. Why are we worse?

Theoretically, a wooden ring can be made from any type of wood. However, you need to understand that the softer the material, the easier it is to process. But a ring made of soft wood (for example, pine or alder) will not perform well. And aesthetics, expressed in the beauty of the open natural texture of wood, will remain in question.

Therefore, it is better to use wood to make rings:

• Wild hardwood trees native to Russia. The most common and accessible are oak, hornbeam and ash. Birch also performs well, but it is a little soft for decoration. If you find a walnut, hazel, acacia or dogwood, that’s also good.
• Fruit trees. The wood of cherry, pear, apple and some other trees growing in our gardens has a very interesting texture. Even branches cut off during garden renovation can be used to make jewelry. The main thing is that they are alive and subsequently dried, that is, not rotten.
• Exotics. Eucalyptus, Karelian birch, mahogany or ebony, sandalwood, caesalpinia, Spanish cedar and other representatives of exotic flora are not found in our latitudes. Moreover: some species are on the verge of extinction. But sometimes blocks of their most valuable wood can be found in craft stores.

The wood of some exotics has not only exquisite primitive aesthetics, but also a pleasant aroma. A ring carved from sandalwood or eucalyptus will exude a natural fragrance that is beneficial for health.

The growths on trees (the so-called burls) have a very refined texture. However, they are very hard and difficult to process. In the first stages of independent creativity, you definitely shouldn’t use them.

It is better to sharpen the first ring from simpler wood in order to, so to speak, get the hang of it. You can even use thick plywood if you have it on hand. It is possible that the first product will turn out clumsy, or even break completely. There is no need to be upset: you should just take into account the mistakes and try again!

See all types of wedding rings in the SUNLIGHT catalog

Stages

Before you start making an epoxy ring, you should decide on the type of decoration. It is more convenient for beginners to work with a cast ring, since it is more convenient to grind it. However, if you want to make a ring, then you should first prepare a wooden base from a cube of wood.

Preparation of the composition

Carefully pour the epoxy resin into the prepared mixing mold and mix thoroughly to expel excess air.

Pour wood shavings, wood chips and/or glitter into the container, then stir again until smooth. If you plan on tinting, add a dye (regular color, epoxy or other options).

A hardener for the polymer is poured into the resulting mixture. In most cases, the optimal ratio is 1:10 (1 part hardener, 10 parts resin). The exact proportions are indicated on the box. For better mixing, you can pour the composition from one container to another several times. After which everything is stirred again with a wooden stick.

Expert opinion

Oleg Vasiliev

Master of making furniture and interior items from epoxy resin. She creates unique items to order in her own production.

Ask a question to the master

The proportions of the resin and hardener ratio can be very different. It is imperative to follow the instructions of the resin manufacturer (supplier) at this stage. You need to be especially vigilant when measuring components. In most cases, we are talking about weight ratios, for example, for 100 grams of resin you need to add 20 grams of hardener. In this case, you must use a regular electronic kitchen scale to weigh the ingredients. The “by volume” method, and even more so “by eye” is inapplicable in no case. Epoxy resin will either not harden completely if there is not enough hardener, or it will boil from its excess.

Removing bubbles

The main audience prefers rings as clear as tears, so you will need to rid the resulting mixture of air bubbles. There are three ways to do this effectively:

1. Water bath. The container with the resulting mixture is placed in a water bath (the temperature should not exceed 60°C degrees) and stirred with a wooden stick until the bubbles completely disappear. This is due to the fact that epoxy resin is more elastic when heated, which makes it easier to squeeze out excess air.
2. Lighter. You can squeeze out air bubbles from the resulting mixture using a household lighter. A lighter flame brought close to the mixture heats the top layer of resin, and the air is removed. Hot air from a construction or household hair dryer will also lead to this effect.
3. Vacuum. Some craftsmen own a vacuum unit, some homemade, some factory-made. By placing a container with a polymer mixture in the installation, the air is pumped out for 3-5 minutes. The result is a complete absence of bubbles.

The best way, especially if you want to produce products in fairly large quantities, is vacuum chambers, which can be of different sizes. The purchase price for such things ranges from several hundred to tens of thousands of rubles.

Fill

Having rid the resulting mixture of excess air, it must be poured into the prepared form. It is worth remembering that if the mold is homemade, then its inner surface should be wrapped with tape (cling film). There is no need to lubricate the inner surface with greasy cream or Vaseline, since the epoxy will react with it.

Useful to know > An original solution for the interior - a river table made of epoxy resin

The mold should be placed on a flat surface and carefully filled with epoxy resin. Leave the resulting mass to harden for at least a few minutes. The ideal time for hardening is 36 hours.

If the master uses factory molds, then it is necessary to control the fullness. The composition should not overflow.

Treatment

The mass froze. It's time to cut out the ring. You can do this:

1. With a professional sander. The blanks are turned and an internal hole is cut out.
2. Drill with a crown. If such an attachment is not available, it is enough to make a hole with an ordinary drill and sand it with sandpaper rolled into a tube or a round file.

Boring and grinding work should be carried out exclusively in a respirator.

Expert opinion

Oleg Vasiliev

Master of making furniture and interior items from epoxy resin. She creates unique items to order in her own production.

Ask a question to the master

Although the cured resin is chemically inert, breathing small particles is as harmful as breathing sand dust.

Grinding

The cut “blanks” should be sanded. To do this, take sandpaper of different grain sizes, starting with the coarsest. If there are many inaccuracies or irregularities that you would like to grind off, you should use sandpaper with a grit of P80 or even P120.

The quality of grinding is controlled by the internal hole. The optimal measurement is when the craftsman begins to like the ground inner diameter. Also, sandpaper is used to adjust the size of the internal hole and the symmetry of the entire product.

The outer diameter of the epoxy resin ring is also sanded with sandpaper. It is recommended to use a waterproof one, since during external processing a soap solution is used, this allows you to control the quality of grinding.

Polishing

The final step in making a ring made of wood and epoxy resin is polishing. This is done using polishing paste, linseed oil or even car polish. For polishing use:

• fine-grain sandpaper;
• bur machine with a soft nozzle;
• polishing wheel.

Useful to know > What countertops are made from epoxy resin and why they are good

The final treatment consists of rubbing the jewelry until it shines with wax, linseed oil or polish.

The entire process of making an epoxy resin ring takes an average of 3-4 hours. If the hardening time of the mixture is included in the process, it turns out that up to 48 hours are required for one ring.

Summarizing what has been said, we can conclude that creating jewelry from epoxy at home is quite possible and very exciting. This activity is suitable for almost anyone who believes that their hands are growing correctly.

How are epoxy resin products made?

It will be difficult to make large resin products, since the material must lie evenly over the entire surface and not form bubbles. If the thickness of the product is more than 2 millimeters, the resin is applied in layers, after each application has hardened.

To obtain the finished product, the resin is poured into special molds, pre-lubricated with industrial fat. The material can also be combined with wood, this is how rings are made from epoxy resin. Using a dye, the composition can be given the desired color. To make the product harden faster, the temperature is increased. The initial and final holes are made in the completed workpiece using a drill and a cutter. Subsequently, the product is subjected to grinding and polishing on all sides. To do this, the ring is soaked in linseed oil and then rubbed with beeswax using a hair dryer.

Products of significant size are not produced from epoxy resin, since it is very difficult to achieve uniform distribution of the composition over the entire surface. Epoxy resin combines well with various materials, so you can make a wooden blank for the ring yourself.

What you need

To make epoxy rings, the craftsman will need a set of certain items and tools. The list can be adjusted depending on the selected pattern.

First you should prepare your work area. To do this, you will need a table, which must be covered with oilcloth or cellophane. Such measures will protect the surface from accidental ingress of particles of resin, hardener or other components.

It is necessary to work in a well-ventilated area; high-quality ventilation is one of the most important components of worker safety.

The workplace is located:

• epoxy resin and hardener, can be bought as a craft kit;
• mixing container, a regular plastic cup is enough for one ring;
• a form for pouring the composition, a cardboard box wrapped with tape, or a special silicone one;
• dye to give the desired color to the ring;
• wooden sticks (spatulas) for stirring the composition;
• wood shavings, glitter, dried flowers or other filler;
• sandpaper of different grits (P60-P2500);
• drill with a drill, with a crown or a cutter;
• pliers and thin-nosed pliers;
• round file;
• linseed oil or polishing paste.

Useful to know > What products can be made from epoxy resin with your own hands, what are the difficulties

Some craftsmen use a lighter, mini grinding machines, and vacuum devices during their work.

It is also necessary to think about safety during the work process. Having prepared all the components for making the ring, it is advisable to change into work clothes or something that you don’t mind getting dirty.

In addition to working equipment you will need:

• respirator, there is a lot of harmful dust and fumes from resin during grinding;
• safety glasses will prevent eye damage from splinters or shavings;
• gloves, rubber or latex, to protect against aggressive polymer getting on the skin, the tighter the better.

Having prepared everything you need for work, you can start making a beautiful product.

Making a ring out of wood with your own hands

Each wooden decoration is unique, because the material has veins, the pattern of which is unique. Even seemingly identical rings made from the same piece of wood turn out different. That's why wooden jewelry will appeal to those who love something exclusive and unusual.

We chose the option for beginners - a ring made of solid wood. The main thing here is to choose the right wood species, as well as follow the exact manufacturing instructions.

What you need for work

To turn a piece of wood into an elegant decoration, you will need the following tools:

• drill;
• electric jigsaw;
• Sander.

If the idea requires it, then in addition to wood, you need to prepare varnish and tinting for the final processing of the decoration.

Rings can be made from both transverse and longitudinal sections of wood. The thickness of the initial workpiece should be in the range of 15–21 mm.

Step-by-step making of a wooden ring

The manufacturing process requires scrupulousness and strict adherence to step-by-step instructions .

1. The first thing you need to do is cut through the outer diameter of the ring by about a quarter of the thickness with a crown.
2. Then you should drill a central hole, the diameter of which is equal to the circumference of your finger. After this, you need to complete cutting out the outer part of the ring.
3. The next step is rough sanding using a drill with a 60 grit attachment. After this, you need to take a 220 unit nozzle and do finishing processing.
4. The final stage is manual sanding of the product until a perfectly smooth surface is obtained.

To make a massive ring from wood, the initial blank must be thicker.

The resulting ring can be decorated with engraving or a decorative pattern, painted in any color or simply coated with matte varnish. This is the most creative part of the work, which completely depends on the author’s idea.