 When it comes to working safely and efficiently with Art Resin, the old expression, use the right tools for the job is true. Each resin tool is used for a specific purpose, so it's important to use the correct tools and to use them correctly to save you time, effort, and money. If you're new to working with resin though, you might not know what you need. Today, we're going to walk you through all the resin tools one by one, from the need to haves to the nice to haves. The good news is you may already have some of them around the house. If not, most things are easily found at the hardware store or online. Now, before we take a look at what you'll need to get started with, there are a couple of things to keep in mind. One, you might notice we recommend plastic tools, and for good reason. Resin doesn't adhere to plastic, which makes clean up a breeze. Two, it's important that your resin tools are both clean and dry. Dirty tools can contaminate your resin, and moisture can cause your resin to cure cloudy. Alright, let's get to the resin basics first. If you're using art resin to coat a piece of artwork, there are some basic tools you'll need to have on hand. One. The first, obviously, is resin. Art resin is available in multiple sizes, from 8oz all the way up to 10 gallons, depending on the size of your project. Not sure how much you need? Just enter the dimensions of your piece into art resin's resin calculator, and it will tell you exactly how much resin you need, and even which kit to buy. Two, disposable gloves. Art resin is sticky, and gloves protect your hands from a mess, so make sure you have a few pairs on hand. We like to use nitrile gloves. They're similar to latex, but a lot stronger. You can find nitrile gloves in the paint department of your local hardware store, or in our accessory kit. Three. Protect your clothing from accidental resin drips by wearing an apron or old clothes while you work. If you have long hair, throw it up in a ponytail to keep the resin out of your hair, and your hair out of your resin. Four. Protect your work surface from drips or spells with a plastic drop sheet. A vinyl shower curtain makes an inexpensive liner that can be used again and again. Resin drips can either be wiped clean with a paper towel and alcohol, or when dry, can be peeled off the next day. For smaller projects, kitchen parchment paper works very nicely. Five. Tape. As gravity pulls art resin down the sides of your artwork, drips will start to accumulate along the bottom. Tape applied along the bottom of your piece will catch those drips, and once the resin is dry to the touch, you can pull the tape off and the drips right along with it. Make sure you use a good quality tape. We like blue painter's tape and sheathing tape like duct tape. Six. Propering your piece up on plastic stands allows drips to pool on the plastic lined work surface. We like using painter's pyramid stands. You can find these in the paint section of any hardware store, or they're included as part of our accessory kit. In a pinch, plastic cups or large building blocks work too. Seven. A level. Since art resin self-levels, it'll run off the sides if your piece isn't perfectly horizontal. Before you pour, check your work with either a traditional level or with art resin's mobile phone level, which can be found at www.artresin.com slash level. Eight. If your resin is cold, a warm water bath will bring it up to room temperature. Fill it halfway with warm water, about as warm as you'd use for a baby's bath, and let the capped bottle sit for about 10 to 15 minutes. Dry your bottles off thoroughly before you open them, and you're ready to measure and mix. Nine. A stir stick. The best stir stick for mixing art resin is one with flat edges to really scrape the sides and bottom of the mixing container as you stir. A stir stick is an important tool because if any of the resin or hardener remains unmixed on the sides of your container, the resin may not cure properly. A stir stick with a flat side scrapes the container much more effectively than something rounded like a spoon. You can use wood craft sticks or tongue depressors, but they'll need to be tossed after each use. Ten. A measuring cup. A hand hardener that's not measured accurately won't cure, so it's important to use a cup with well-marked lines to avoid guessing. It doesn't matter if you measure the resin first or the hardener, as long as both amounts are precisely equal. Choose a mixing cup made of plastic. When you're finished, place your cup upside down on a plastic line surface. The next day, when the resin is cured, peel it off and you can use your cup again. Eleven. A spreader. Art resin will naturally self-level after you pour it, but a flat plastic spreader distributes it evenly over your piece. Art resin's spreader, available in our accessory kit, has three different jagged edges to allow you to control the volume of resin you're spreading. If you only wish to apply art resin to a specific area of your piece, you can use a popsicle stick or a toothpick to place it where you want it. If you'd like to let the resin sit only on the top of your artwork without going over the sides, a small spatula or a plastic knife works very nicely to nudge the resin right to the edge without spilling over. If you'd like to apply resin to the sides of your piece, you can use your gloved hands or a foam brush. Twelve. An artist torch. Mixing resin creates bubbles and these need to be removed before the art resin cures. Blowing them out through a straw or poking them with a toothpick aren't effective. Hair dryers don't get hot enough, and a heat gun is a good option when you're working with silicone molds, but for most resin work, nothing beats a flame torch to get rid of the bubbles. A small butane torch like our artist torch works well for most projects. For larger pieces, a propane torch can't be beaten. 15 amperal paintings can be found at any hardware store. Oh, and if you're nervous to use a flame torch, please don't be. Once you've used one, you'll wonder how you ever did without it. Thirteen. Toothpicks. Toothpicks are indispensable when resigning. After you've torched your piece, look at your artwork at eye level under a light source and use a toothpick to pop stray bubbles or to fish out bits of dust. They're also handy if you want to nudge small amounts of resin around or to place things like gold leaf or other embellishments exactly where you want them. Fourteen. A dust cover. Have a dust cover ready to go before you start to resin. You can use either a plastic tote or a cardboard box with the flaps removed. Fifteen. Paper towel and isopropyl alcohol. Paper towel and isopropyl alcohol are essential for spills and cleanup. Wearing gloves, you can spray your wet tools with isopropyl alcohol and wipe them dry with paper towel. Repeat this step as many times as you need to remove all traces of resin and then wash your tools in hot soapy water. Or if you prefer, you can lay the wet tools on a plastic surface overnight. The next day, the cured resin will peel right off. Because alcohol breaks down art resin, you don't want to use alcohol to clean your hands. Instead, just use hot water and soap. Sixteen. An exfoliant hand cleaner. The kind from the hardware store works very well. Or in a pinch, you can dry rub your hands with a small amount of poppy seeds or salt and some liquid dish soap to remove the art resin then rinse well with water. Once you've got the basics down, it's time to let your creativity start to flow. Depending on which project you want to try next, you'll need to add a few things to your resin toolbox. Let's take a closer look. Silicone molds are perfect for casting small resin projects. Plastic molds can rip or warp, but a silicone mold is flexible so you can peel it back from the cured art resin. It pops right back into shape and you can use them over and over again. An easy way to get started with silicone molds is to make coasters. You can drop in beer caps, shells, decorative stones, gems, crystals and so much more. You can even make your own custom molds with mold making material, a two-part silicone product. Alcohol ink. Use alcohol ink to create Petri dish art. Just squeeze alcohol ink drops into mixed art resin in a silicone mold followed with ink sinker to push the colors down through the resin to create tendrils, squiggles and other cool effects. It looks so impressive and it's so easy to do. Colorants, plastic cups and popsicle sticks. Art resin looks beautiful when it's tinted. For best results, choose a colorant designed specifically for use with resin, like our resin tint. Mix your batch of art resin and portion it out into plastic cups, one for each color. Sur the colorant in with a popsicle stick until the resin is one consistent color. Although it goes a long way, so always start with less than you think you need. An easy way to test the color is to pull a little up the side of the plastic cup. Wood panels and metal trays. Tinted resin is heavy so strong surfaces like wood panels are a great choice when working with resin. You can mount prints, photos or even paint directly on the panel and coat it with art resin for a modern looking finish. Cradled wood panels contain a lip to contain the resin and work very nicely when pouring tinted resin for flow art or ocean art. Metal serving trays also work very well for this purpose. Heat gun and hairdryer. When you're making flow art or ocean art, use a heat gun or a hairdryer on low to gently push the layers of tinted resin around to create effects like lacing and cells. You can finish it off with a quick pass of a flame torch to pop any bubbles. A heat gun is great to use when working with silicone molds. Inclusions. You can add little embellishments to your work to create interest and texture. You can add flakes of gold leaf. You can add crushed glass or crystals to replicate geodes. You can add sparkle with glitter. You can create coasters with beer caps, shells, rocks, glass tiles, dried flowers. You get the idea. Just make sure that whatever you're adding to the resin is thoroughly dry. Sandpaper. From time to time, you may find your resin cured with a bubble or a bit of dust or hair in it. Not to worry, this is easily fixed by pouring a fresh coat of resin. But before you do that, you'll need to sand down the first coat to rough it up so that the fresh resin has something to grab onto. Use coarse sandpaper like 80 grit over the entire surface, paying particular attention to sand out the problem area. It's going to look a mess, but don't worry. Once you wipe away all the sanding dust and pour your fresh coat, it'll look as good as new. Ready to grab your supplies and get started? The bottom line is that when it comes to working with resin, having the right tools helps you get the best result. If you have questions or comments on any resin supplies, please leave them below. We're happy to help. Till next time, thanks for watching.