How to color resin?

Resin is an increasingly popular creative hobby. If we like its transparency, it's above all because we know we can tint it to our desires and give it infinite color effects.

How do I color resin? If you don't know how to proceed or which colorants to use to give color to two-component resin or UV resin, this data sheet will help you. The two categories of resins do not have the same components, so you need to be careful which products you add so that the resin can catalyze either in the open air or under the lamp without being damaged.

Warning: before handling the resin, be sure to wear safety goggles, a mask and gloves. And don't forget to protect your work surface to avoid potential disasters.

1- How do I color epoxy resin?

Epoxy resin is a transparent, two-component resin (resin and hardener) that can be used to make a wide range of DIY costume jewelry and small decorative objects. The technique for coloring it is quite simple:

• Once the two components have been thoroughly mixed (respecting the mixing ratio recommended by the manufacturer), add the colorant, pigment or paint you've chosen in small quantities to start with.
• Mix well until the result is homogeneous.
• Correct the color if necessary until you achieve the desired shade, always adding your colorant in small doses to avoid mistakes.
• Mix again. Remove any remaining air bubbles.
• Now you can pour your crystal resin into your silicone mold or resin base. Now's the time to add an inclusion, like dried flowers or glitter, then let it air-dry.

The more colorant you add, the darker the color and the more opaque the resin. In general, the total amount of colorant used should not exceed 5% of the finished product.

Which colorant for epoxy?

Two-component epoxy resin can be tinted with :

• Stained glass paints. In small quantities, they help maintain the resin's transparency.
• Acrylic pain ts for an opaque effect. These too can be used for pouring into resin.
• Specially formulated epoxy resincolorant. Just a few drops are needed to color the material and get a joyful color.
• Alcohol inks. A few drops are all you need, asthese inks are highly pigmented and concentrated. They keep the resin transparent. What's more, they're miscible, allowing you to achieve magnificent effects.
• Pigments in powder form. A small quantity is enough for a satisfactory result. Not all pigments are suitable, however, and some have difficulty dissolving, giving a grainy result. To be on the safe side, there's no substitute for a test application.

Avoid using water- or oil-based products, such as oil paint, which could alter the result of your creation or prevent the resin from hardening.

How do I use alcohol inks?

Alcohol inks, being colored but transparent, are ideal for tinting resin while preserving its transparency. It makes perfect sense!
Here's an example of how to tint epoxy resin withPiñata ink:

• Step 1: Mix the resin in the proportions indicated on the instructions (one part hardener to two parts resin). Mix with a suitable utensil such as a stirring stick. Transfer the resin to another container to ensure thorough mixing.
  Stir the mixture.
• Step 2: Add a drop of Piñata Magenta Señorita ink (the more ink you add, the more intense and neon the color will be).
• Step 3: Mix the resin with the ink, waiting for any bubbles that have risen to the surface to disappear before using the resin.
• Step 4: Pour the resin into the mold. If bubbles persist, simply bring a flame close to the surface of the resin to make them burst and disappear.

You can unmold your piece after 48 hours of drying. For final polymerization, leave to dry for 15 days in a dark place.

Mix different inks to create new colors. Add white to make pastel tones, or black to darken a color that's too light. To obtain this orange-pink color, we mixedPiñata Magenta Señorita and Sunshine Yellowinks.

2- How to color UV resin?

UV resin is a thermosetting resin that will only harden on contact with the heat of a UV lamp (or UV LED lamp for UV LED resin). Unlike epoxy resin, it's ready-to-use. No need to mix it! It can be used as is for a transparent effect, or colored.
To color UV resin and UV Led resin, nothing could be simpler:

• Slowly pour the desired amount of resin into a cup.
• Add the colorant of your choice.
• Mix well with a suitable spatula.
• Your colored resin is ready to be poured into a mold. Add an inclusion before curing under the UV lamp on one side and then the other.

Which colorant for UV resin?

This resin does not have the same components as epoxy resins, so coloring is slightly different.

• You can't usealcohol-based inks. During mixing, a chemical reaction prevents the resin from catalyzing under UV rays.
• Stained-glass paint should also be avoided for the same reasons.
• For UV resins, we strongly recommend using colorants from the same brand as your resin. We'll show you how to use Padico colorants and UV led resin.
• You can also use acrylic paints, provided you don't use too much. This mixture will give your creations opacity.

What can I do with epoxy resin? How to make resin rings? See all our DIY resin jewelry tutorials.