Crafty Book Review: Cool2Cast eBook Blog Hop and Cast Sweetheart Box
In case you're not familiar with Cool2Cast, it's a finely textured plaster-like material which mixes up with water and casts beautifully into any kind of flexible mold. It holds detail very well and dries really quickly so you can jump right in and add color with all sorts of inks and paints. The final pieces have a lovely smooth finish which makes them look like ceramic - but without having to use a kiln!
My first impression on receiving my advance copy was thinking how gorgeous the cover picture is. In fact all the photography in this 106 page book is luscious and drool worthy. There are step-by-step instructions on how to mix up the Cool2Cast and a thorough discussion on the many kinds of molds that you can use.
A fun thing to do is to add inclusions - permanent ones like chains and pin backs which remain embedded as part of the cast piece or flexible ones like craft foam shapes which you can peel out to leave just a negative image.
Techniques such as stamping and color dipping are clearly explained and everything is illustrated with loads of brightly colored pictures. There are gallery pages with project ideas sure to inspire you. As a matter of fact, you'll find one of my projects on page 95!
What I love about Cool2Cast is that using it is a super easy process but with so many possibilities for making each piece absolutely unique. It's so much fun to play with! You can order your copy of "Cool2Cast - Tips, Techniques and Ideas for Jewelry, Home Decor and Embellishments" on the Bella Crafts Quarterly site here . And just to get you started, Tiffany is giving away a Cool2Cast Starter Kit! Click on the picture below to head on over to her website Cool2Craft to leave a comment to enter. Now that's cool!
But one last thing before you go! Here's a project I just made using Cool2Cast. It's a play on a chocolate-filled candy box with a secret sentiment inside - and appropriately I made it using a two-part candy mold! The color I added with alcohol markers and a black paint pen. That was fun! And see how the Cool2Cast actually looks like ceramic? Awesome! I'll do a more in depth tutorial on it soon but here's some crafty eye candy for now!
