more plastic

I have had a crappy, crappy week.  OK, so Thursday was good as I had a day of work and went to a beading class, but Monday was horrific.  I got a migraine, at work, at 5pm.  There was nothing for it but to drive home.  I've never felt that nauseous with a migraine.  I stopped several times on the way home and really didn't think I'd make it.  I went straight to bed (when I got home, clearly not in the middle of the road) and slept.  I got up the next day and went to work.  Bad move, it came back.  When will I learn?  I suppose when they stop frowning on me for taking time off for migraines...  so many people think a migraine is just a headache.  

But you didn't come here to hear me moan, you came here to hear me waffle on about plastic.  Again.  UTEE was #62 on the great big list.  What's UTEE?  It stands for Ultra Thick Embossing Enamel and is a supply for card makers, you can use it like embossing powder to make raised elements on cards.  I saw at the Hobbycrafts show last year a lady demonstrating using it for cabochons to use for jewellery making.  I bought a couple of tubs.  They sat.

These are the supplies you need - the UTEE itself (it's a couple of quid for a pot), ice cube trays or something similar as moulds, foil pie cases and a heat gun.  You also need something to hold the foil case with as it gets hot.  Simply pour some of the UTEE into the foil case and heat with the heatgun for what feels like about 95 years until it melts, pour into the mould.  It sets AS you are pouring it!

I was aiming for a pebble with a picture in it. I cut a circle of scrapbook paper, melted some UTEE and poured.  I hadn't melted enough.  I melted some more and added it to the set nugget.  That's the left hand image - as you can see, this approach doesn't work as the first bit sets and stands out.  Attempt 2 (centre) involved me not melting enough (you really do need loads!), so reheating the nugget I'd made with some more UTEE.  It goes yellow.  Attempt 3 (right) was the best of the lot, BUT, I'd obviously put it into the mould with some powder (I'd tried to measure the powder in the mould so I melted enough!) and it left that pattern on the surface.  

I was frustrated by this point, and it had taken centuries to get to that point, so I had a go with a butterfly mould and Mother-of-Pearl UTEE, then a heart mould and Silver UTEE.  Much better!  I will be experimenting with this stuff again.  If there's any interest, I could do a tutorial.  Or not, up to you.

I'm linking up to Fiona's New to Me challenge.