Plaster of Paris

[smallhobbit]

The Dare to Dabble class yesterday was for Plaster of Paris.

We began with all our equipment laid out neatly



And rolled out some clay which would be used for the mould.  The idea was to create a pattern using natural materials pressed into the clay.  So here's an imprint of a seashell



And alternatively some lavender leaves



Once satisfied with the pattern (being clay it can be rerolled until happy) the clay and the container is oiled to make it easier to release the plaster cast



And then the plaster of Paris is made up and when at the right consistency, and not already starting to set, it is poured into the mould.



While this was cooling and setting (it gets quite hot as there is a chemical reaction between the water and the plaster powder) we made a second, larger mould, this time without using a plastic ring to help contain the plaster.

There are no pictures of my second attempt because



Instead, it's a similar process: roll out the clay, create the pattern and then push the sides up to contain the plaster



Once cool and the plaster is set it is released and here are my two casts



The brown is residue from the clay which I can wash off in a day or two, when everything is properly set

Comments

[badly_knitted]

Cool!

I remember using plaster of paris in rubber moulds to make little figurines when I was a kid. Makes me wonder what happened to that kit. I haven't thought about it in decades.

[smallhobbit]

Yes, we were talking about using those rubber moulds yesterday - it brought back memories!

[stonepicnicking_okapi]

It looks very interesting. And messy!

[badly_knitted]

It was fun being a kid when we were young *feels nostalgic*

[smallhobbit]

It was good fun - and definitely messy :)

[adafrog]

Very cool.

[smallhobbit]

Thank you.

[debriswoman]

That looks like fun:-)

[smallhobbit]

The process was great fun.

[apachefirecat]

I always find all your arty endeavors so neat! :)

[smallhobbit]

Thank you. I'm lucky to have the opportunity to try them out.

[rusty_armour]

Oh, wow! I've used clay before, but I've never tried making moulds and creating pieces of art with plaster. It's great to see all of the stages of the process. Both of your projects turned out well. I especially like the first one with the seashell.

[smallhobbit]

It was a fun thing to do, although I'm not convinced I'll do it very often.