Intro

For this week’s assignment, I stepped into new territory of casting and molding. I chose the intermediate level, mostly because I had never worked with alginate or Rockite before and I figured now was as good a time as any to mess up and learn something. The task? Mold one of my fingers and cast it twice two identical clones of my finger to keep forever. Sounds simple. Was it? Let’s find out.

Step 1: Making the Mold

I followed the instructions closely (because there’s no winging it when you’re working with mysterious powders and timers). I mixed 6.75 oz of water with 1.5 oz of alginate and stirred for about 4 minutes until the mix had the texture of lumpy yogurt. Not the most appetizing comparison, but accurate.

I then plunged both my index fingers into the alginate at the same time doubling up so both casts would come from the same mold. I held still like a statue for about 5 minutes until the mixture solidified around me. Slightly awkward. Slightly cold. But it worked.

Carefully, I pulled my fingers out.  The mold stayed intact and all the details (wrinkles, nail beds, even a tiny scar) were preserved. Pretty cool.

Step 2: Mixing the Rockite

Next up: the casting. I used 10g of water and 35g of Rockite for one fingers but for two it was twice of that, mixed it into a smooth slurry and poured it directly into the mold. Getting it to fill every nook of the finger mold was trickier than I expected but after a bit of tapping and tilting I was satisfied with the coverage.

Then came the screws yep, screws. I placed two in the back of each cast so they could eventually be mounted or displayed. But balancing the screws while the mixture was still setting was like trying to stand a fork on Jell-O. Not ideal. I used the 3d printed supports for those.

Step 3: The Big Reveal

I let the mold cure overnight and returned the next day with way too much excitement for two cement fingers. To my relief, they demolded perfectly—no breaks, no bubbles, and a surprising level of detail.

Only issue? I realized I hadn’t dipped my fingers deep enough. So instead of full fingers, I got fancy half-finger sculptures. But hey—maybe they’re supposed to be minimalist.

Step 4: Post-Processing

I wasn’t done yet. To bring the casts to life (figuratively), I sprayed the glossy finish on the fingers as I didn’t want to spray paint. After a full day of drying, I gave them a final clear coat for that glossy, almost chrome-like finish.

Weirdly beautiful. Slightly dystopian. Definitely worth the effort.

Final Thoughts

This was one of the most satisfying projects I’ve done. There’s something super rewarding about seeing a physical copy of your finger come to life in stone. Even with the slightly shallow mold and screw-juggling act, the end result came out strong literally.

Cost Analysis:

Alginate (1.5 oz):
$12 for 24 oz → ~$0.75
$0.75

Rockite (70g total):
$23 per 4536g → ~$0.35
$0.35

Spray Paint & Clear Coat:
Used ~1/4 of each can
$6.50

Screws (2):
$3.29 per 100 → ~$0.07
$0.07

Labor:
3 hours @ $15/hour
$45.00

Total Cost:
$52.67

Clean space: