Intro

For our second to last homework assignment, our task was to create two identical fingers that could be used as hangers using molding and casting. This was my first time using the material by myself, but the directions given and the quick on-hands tutorial we had in one of our classes, gave me the confidence to accomplish the task.

Procedure

The first step came by having two cups: one for the powder to be mixed and the other for water.

The first cup was filled with alginate to a level that allowed for a finger to be fully submerged. The second cup was filled with water to the same level as the alginate cup. This was done since the mixing ratio for alginate to water is 1:1 based on volume.

After I had the two cups ready, I poured the water cup into the alginate cup.  Since, the alginate has a short shelf life,  mixing it required to me to be quick. Once the consistency of the alginate-water mix was that of fresh dough, I inserted my finger into the cup and waited for about 10 minutes. Making sure to remain still, I passed the time by looking through my phone.

Once, the 10 minutes were up and I checked that the mix had now hardened into a rubbery consistency, I was gentle to remove my finger. This left a mold of my finger!

The final step was to cast the actual finger. To do this I repeated the previous steps with a few tweaks. The powder to mix was plaster and the ratio of plaster to water was now 2:1 by volume. So, I prepared this plaster-water mix and poured it into the mold. After the mold had been filled with plaster solution, I made sure to bang the cup up and down onto the table to remove any air bubbles that may have formed. This increased the likelihood of casting a smooth finger. Then I used tape to keep a nail floating above the finger so that the finger could be screwed into a potential wall and be used as a hanger.

I repeated this steps for my second finger reusing the first mold!

Once I had my two fingers ready, I placed them into a foam base and clear coated. I decided not to paint them since I enjoyed the marble looking finger. It reminded me of old renaissance statues.

Reflection

This homework assignment ranks in my top 3 HW assignments of this class. It was very simple and straightforward to follow, while being a cool process that fuels creativity and gets me excited to think about future uses for it. As I was molding and casting my finger, I also found the process to be therapeutic as it required patience to do right. For all these reasons, it propelled this assignment to become one of my favorites for this year.

Cost

Materials: 85g*2 of Alginate ($13.39/pound), 85g*2 of Water (free), 20g*2 of Plaster, 2 screws

Labor: 2 hours ($7.50/hr)

Total: $18.50