Epoxy Wall-art

I've been making epoxy wall-art for over a year now, and learned a lot of tips and tricks on the way.

I fell in love with the contrast that can be created between the wood and the figure.

For this project, I asked a artist to draw a silhouette for me. It is a very abstract shape, but feel free to use anything that you find online or make yourself.

Supplies

Materials:

-Wood (size and kind by choice)

-Epoxy or polyester resin

-Color or filling for the resin (optional)

-Wood finish (I use linseed oil)

Tools:

-Printer (optional)

-Scalpel (recommended)

-Little marker/pencil

-Router (optional but recommended)

-Clamps

-Chissels

-Throwaway cup + mixing stick

-Sander or sanding paper

Step 1: Selecting Silhouette and Wood

I always begin with the silhouette I want to make and look for a piece of wood according to the silhouette but it can also be done the other way around.

1. Find silhouette on computer (or draw yourself)

2. Find piece of wood

3. Sand or plane your wood so you have a straight surface to work with.

4. Adjust silhouette to fit the piece of wood

5. Print the silhouette

6. Roughly cut out the silhouette and lay it on the piece of wood, if you like it, you keep it.

Tip 1: Try to select a silhouette without small pieces, this will make everything a lot harder.

Tip 2: Select a silhouette that has a clear image.

Step 2: Marking the Silhouette on the Wood

I have tried this on many was but found this the most effective way of transferring the picture on the wood. If you are lucky, you still have an offset printer and can speed this process up a lot.

1. Use spray glue to glue the silhouette in the desired place.

2. Make sure the silhouette is nice and flat.

3. Take your scalpel, follow the outer lines of the silhoutte. Make sure to press hard enough so that a cut line is visible in the wood.

4. Peel of all the white parts of the paper.

5. Take your marker and follow the cut lines in the wood. Make sure that the lines are very clear on the wood.

6. Peel of the black part of the silhouette (I keep this for when I like to remake it).

Tip: Turn the wood to make it easier while cutting.

Step 3: Cutting Out the Silhouette

This step can enterily be done with the use of a chisel, but I have a router so why don't use it?

1. Secure your piece of wood to the table.

2. Instal your router, I start with a 10 mm bit and set it on a depth of 3-5mm.

3. Go over the biggest surfaces of the silhouette. Keep in mind the turning direction of the router. It is not needed to go completely to the line yet.

4. Swipe of the dust and chips from time to time.

5. Switch over to a smaller router bit (I use 4 mm) and set it to the same depth.

6. Take away all the places you can, barely touching the line you drew earlier, on "your" side.

7. Turn the piece so the "other" side of the silhouette is now facing you. Continue taking wood away on the side you can now see.

8. Take some chisels and a scalpel and finish all the places you couldn't reach.

Tip: Leave little pieces of the silhouette while working with the router and finish them with a chissel. If they would break off, use some second glue to reattach it.

Step 4: Deciding Your Color/filling

I've used a lot of different kinds of filling over the past year and experimented a lot.

1. Fingerpaint: Just add a few drops to color your resin, if you add too much it will take a lot longer to set.

2. Glitters

3. Aluminium shaving, probably my favorite. Just use some shavings of alumium from cutting alluminium. Place it in the silhouette before pouring to get an even spreading and don't mix it with the resin beforehand.

4. Fake snowflakes

5. Choppped crayons, place before pouring (same as aluminium)

6. Nail polish (what I'll use for this project). I use the ones with glitter, just spread it out and let it dry before pouring the resin.

Other things I tested: Chopped glow in the dark stars, molten crayons, ...

These also work but I never used them on a project (yet).

Step 5: Pouring the Resin

Every type of resin has a different way of mixing and pouring, so read the manual of the kind you are using.

1. Level your piece of wood so that the resin doesn't leak away.

2.Blow away all the wood chips and dust so that your silhouette is clean.

3. Fill your cup with the resin and the hardener (I have to use a ratio of 3 to 97).

4. Mix very, very good.

5. Pour the resin in the silhouette, spread it evenly.

6. Let it harden long enough so that it is really hard.

Tip: Let the resin overflow over all the sides, this way you can't get dimples.

Step 6: Sanding, Hanging and Finishing

This is probably the most messy part of the job but it can be done quickly. Make sure to wear a dust mask!

1. Start with a high grid sanding paper to sand the resin even with the wood.

2. Work your way up the numbers of sanding paper, try to cover the whole piece and not only the resin. I go up to 220.

3. Wipe off the dust to see which spots you missed.

4. Use some water to see the last unsanded pieces on your resin.

5. Clean up the sides, I always put a small chamfer on the corners as well.

6. I use a router to make a groove in the back of the piece so I can hang it. Setup your router with a straight bit at an angle of aprox. 45°, set the depth so you have groove of 5mm deep on the shortest side. Clamp a piece of wood as a guide on the back.

7. Use the router to make the groove, check if it's deep enough. Now you can hang the piece on 2 screws in the wall.

8. Wipe off al the dust.

9. I use linseed oil to finish it off, wipe it on the work piece and let it dry for about 10 min before wiping it off with a dry cloth.

You made it! This is for a free standing piece of art.

Check out my page for more examples: https://upsidedownwoodwork.wixsite.com/hello/flowting-coats-copy