This will be a pretty quick post, because I did this project pretty quickly – out of necessity.

I arrived at the OEDK the night before the homework was due at 11PM, and I grabbed the alginate and water and got to mixing. The initial mixture I made seemed a bit too thin, so I had to quickly add a bit more alginate until it was a thicker, batter-esque consistency, at which point PLOP! went my finger into the mold.

Some 15 minutes later, I felt the mold had set and I gently pried my finger out. Next I mixed some plaster and water, and whaddya know, my mixture seemed too thin again, so I added a touch more plaster of paris. Granted, this one was harder to judge, because the final mixture was still supposed to be an almost-water-like consistency, but I thought it was good at that point, so I poured it into the mold. Dip a screw into it (hanging off a popsicle stick, of course), and that was a wrap for the night.

The next morning, I got there and pulled my (fake) finger out of the mold, grabbed the one I made the previous week in class, and spray painted and finished them out on the loading dock. And I know what you’re thinking – Ooh, blue fingers! Why that color? I was pressed for time and it was the first spray paint I saw.

So what did this cost, besides a night of sleep and stress?

Cost:

Labor – $15/hr for 1 hr – $15

Alginate – $15

Plaster of Paris – $15

 

Total – $45