Birth of a Bangle

Are they cuffs or bangles? I tend to call them bangles, cos I like the word.
My carved skinny bangles were really popular last summer and I wanted to add some bigger, chunkier designs to my range.
They've taken a while to develop, so I thought I'd share a little of the process with you.
Back in April, having sketched out the shape and dimensions for my design, I made a mold from plastic - I used recycled plastic bottles - and poured a rough cast in modellers wax. Then I spent days filing and carving the wax til it was as smooth and comfortable as I could make it, leaving little trails of wax shavings wherever I had been.

Raiding my boys Lego stash, I built a sturdy mold to hold this wax master. Lego is great because it's so quick and doesn't leak. This new cast is in silicone rubber. It's a little expensive but gives great detail to the cast and the mold can be used again and again. It needs to cure for a few days, if you can wait.

After nearly 3 weeks, I still didn't know if the bangle would look good. So I was a little nervous and excited when I un-molded the first full resin cast. I used a combination of indigo and pesto green pigments to colour the resin and once it had set (another 24 hours) and I had polished and finished the bangle. I don't think I've taken it off since.

Now, after all that work, the fun really starts and I can play with techniques and colours using my own, handmade, original mold. You can see them all (except my green one, s'mine!) in my Etsy shop