My third child was a surprise baby. We thought we were done and had rid ourselves of all baby items when we found out I was pregnant again. We had to start from scratch and although it was frustrating to do so, I was an experienced mom at this point and knew what baby equipment was really unnecessary and a waste of money. It was much easier to buy only the things that I knew I couldn't live without and not bother with the rest.
Resin art is similar in this regard. If you're just beginning, unsure of what you need and you've been researching you may end up with a list of the latest and greatest things that you think you may need because they sound great or because the companies market them well but are they really necessary or a waste of money? Well, just like baby equipment you can get by with a surprisingly small amount of items and still do amazing things with your art. Personally I have a very small list of MUST HAVE items and I'm going to share them with you.
I don't think a day goes by that I don't use this. Coming in at under $10 it's a very inexpensive tool that I use for taking all my resin drips off the back of my art and for scraping cured resin drips off my table top. I also use it for applying modelling paste to some of my art and occasionally around the house for repair jobs too!
Find on Amazon here: Paint Scraper
A tool that you definitely can't live without although some use a hair dryer I find it doesn't have quite the high temps needed. Not just for making lacey waves but heat guns can pop those bubbles and help take the drips off. Can also be used for getting rid of small indents that happen in resin if it wasn't fully cured and got bumped.
Find on Amazon here: Heat Gun
You may be scratching your head at this one but trust me! If you plan to ship your items or even package them up to gift glassine is a must. Why? It protects resin like no other. Glassine may look like wax paper or parchment paper but it's not. It is air, water, and grease resistant making it the perfect layer of protection for art surfaces. Bubble wrap can react to resin in certain temperatures and the last thing you want when someone opens up their art is to have bubble wrap indents all over the surface of the piece. I buy it in large rolls so I can cut to size and small envelopes for ornaments and smaller pieces. Bonus - it's made from wood pulp so it's 100% recyclable making it an eco-friendly choice.
Find on Amazon here: Glassine
You will see so many people suggesting painter's tape as a means to drip removal. Yes, tape works but it's finicky, it's costly as you use more of it making it also wasteful and if you do any irregular shapes like I do it's time consuming to apply. I also find it harder to remove the drips with tape especially if you're doing multiple layers of resin and the drips have built up. I use Minwax Paste Finishing Wax on the backs of all my projects. ( I also use it on the backs of resin pieces that I create in a mold and it works great for that as well) It creates a barrier between the wood and the resin making drip removal super easy. A little goes a long way as you just need a thin layer (I rub on with a gloved hand) and even with the amount that I create a can lasts me usually around 6 months. Not bad if you ask me!
Find on Amazon: Minwax Paste Finishing Wax
Of course there are other must have tools for resin but these are some of my top suggestions if you're just starting out. In my Beginner Resin Course that is coming later this year I go into detail on ALL the tools plus provide a downloadable list of supplies. Interested? Sign up for my Resin Studio Newsletter to stay up to date or join my Facebook Community Group to get in on the discussions!