Let’s Round this Semester out with… a Beginner’s Ballad

During the last week, I’ve been working in the OEDK Loading Dock to create a molded cast of my own index and middle finger. Because I chose the beginner level difficulty (Due to my complete lack of experience with this process), an already pre-planned design and procedure were given. Despite this, creative liberties were taken to ensure that the piece was unique in and of its own. From this, I started the Maker Process for this piece….

Masterful Molding

For the beginning of the process, I took alginate (A substance that can be utilized to make molds) and mixed it in a 1:4 ratio with water to create a binding substance. Due to the substance having a quick curing time, I promptly began the molding process and inserted my fingers within the substance. Following the given instructions, after five minutes passed the alginate mixture solidified around my hand and a negative mold of my hand was created as shown.

Pesky Plastering

Following this, the plastering portion began. Mixing together plaster in a 2:1 ratio to water, a plaster solution was created that was poured into the mold. From this, screws were half submerged within the piece to ensure that their original function of being decorations could be utilized.

However, this process was not quite as simple. I encountered failures within the plastering section as I made three attempts in total at casting the aforementioned fingers. In this, the first attempt had the plaster to runny and did not solidify completely (Crumbling after removing from the mold). The second attempt had the inverse issue wherein it was too thick and did not fill in the entire mold (Leaving obvious portions of the finger missing due to air pockets). Finally, however, after these attempts the plaster mixture was made successfully and held strong whilst filling in the mold. After its removal from the alginate mold (Removed by cutting it away till the plaster could be safely pried out), the fingers were removed as shown and moved to the final step.

Finalizing Finishes

With the fingers now casted, they were to now be finished. To do so, two layers of blue spray paint were applied to each finger to ensure even coating and for a deeper color on the final product. After allowing for the spray paint to bet set and cure, I added one final layer of clear coat to ensure the spray paint would not be removed easily and protect the integrity of the piece. Once this final layer dried, the piece was finished!

Relevant Review

Room for improvement on the next Molding & Casting Project

• Being more careful on the alginate mold removal process
  • Because of my removal technique for each plaster attempt, I was not left with a reusable mold for my fingers and thus has to redo that process several times. Being careful next time on this process can save me time going into the future,
• Ensuring my mixtures are set to the right ratio & consistency
  • Plaster failure from being too thick/thin certainly set me back in terms of time after waiting for the pieces to finish. Ensuring they’re correct before pouring will definitively streamline the process

Despite these setbacks, I still enjoyed the Casting & Molding process and certainly look forward to working with it again during the Final Project.

Fungible Fees

• Materials
  • 100g of Alginate ($0.0198/g): $1.98
  • 50g of Plaster ($0.00202/g): $0.10
  • 2oz of Blue Spray Paint ($0.498/oz): $1.00
  • 1oz of Clear Coat ($.581/oz): $0.58
• Time:
  • 2 hours at Texas Minimum Wage ($7.25): $14.50
• Overhead:
  • Estimate: $10

Total Cost of Casting & Molding: $28.16

Since my last project, I’ve learned how to use a number of post-processing techniques in utilizing spray paint and clear coat for a cleaner final product. For next time, I’ll utilize a mixture of different spray paints/post-processing techniques to develop new finalizing aesthetics for pieces!