Reed Navarro is our Instagram Weekly Winner!!!!
Congratulations to artist Reed Navarro, our latest weekly winner! Reed is a self-taught artist and stay at home mom in Dallas, Texas. As soon as she discovered resin, her art went from being a hobby to a business. Reed's inner innovator craves variety which is reflected in her elegant alcohol ink paintings and novelty coasters.
Reed has a wide array of bright and bold artwork. Her paintings involve applying ink to Yupo paper, mounting them to birch wood and then covering it with a thick, glossy layer of ArtResin.
Reed also creates petri dish art by dropping alcohol ink into a silicone mold which generates an abundance of fun effects. And speaking of fun, Reed makes novelty coasters and wall art that are filled to the brim with candy!! With resin, the possibilities are endless!
You can find more of Reed’s work on Instagram @reednavarro_art and on her Etsy shop: ReedNavarroArt.
Congratulations on your win, Reed!
To celebrate all the amazing artists staying home and creating, every week we will be sending out a FREE Petri Dish Art Kit to one lucky artist who has tagged us on Instagram—and we'll share their work with the world!
Don't forget, tag YOUR ArtResin work with @art_resin on Instagram, and YOU could be our next weekly winner!!
Interested in finding out how to make your own Petri Dish Art?
We've got you covered with all the colorful details, here!
How To Resin Your Home Wall Decor
Do you wish that the canvas prints you ordered online would have a little more pizazz? Are you tired of looking at the same print on your walls?
Add vibrancy to your art with ArtResin! Pouring a perfect coat of ArtResin adds a professional look and shine to any print that you order or pick up from the store. It's simple and quick.
Within 30 minutes, you'll be measuring, mixing and pouring like a pro.
Though the idea of applying epoxy resin may seem a bit daunting, ArtResin was designed by artists who understand what artists want:
- a product designed specifically for artwork
- a safe and easy application
- and most importantly, pro results.
This video will show how simple ArtResin is when you follow a few key steps: measure, mix, pour, spread, cover and you’ll wonder why you haven’t been using it all along!
Let's get started ...
What You'll Need:
The ArtResin 32oz Combo Pack
This kit includes:
• 32 oz ArtResin ( covers approx. 8 sq ft )
• 5 reusable spreaders
• 1 reusable mixing stick
• 5 pairs of disposable gloves
• Artist's Studio Torch ( butane not included )
• 4 resin stands
In addition, you will need:
• cardboard
• level
• plastic measuring cup ( or 2-3 clear plastic drinking glasses )
• toothpicks
• paper towel
• dust cover large enough to fit your piece ( a cardboard box or a plastic tote )
1. Assemble Your Materials:
Gather together your ArtResin and your tools before you start resining. Line your work surface with plastic for easy clean up and to protect your table top: a vinyl shower curtain makes an easy, inexpensive liner that can be re-used again and again.
2. Prepare Your Artwork:
Make sure your artwork is dry and dust free. A cloth, soft brush or canister of compressed air can help eliminate dust.
Decide if you want to resin the entire painting ( i.e including sides ) or if you only want to resin the top. Applying resin to the top of your artwork while leaving the sides unresined is referred to as doming.
If you want to resin the sides, we always advise taping off the bottom of your piece. Drips will naturally start to accumulate along the bottom of your piece but tape will catch those drips. Once the resin is dry to the touch, you can pull the tape off and the drips right along with it.
Stretched canvases should be reinforced. The weight of epoxy resin can cause stretched canvas to sag and, consequently, the resin to pool in the center. To prevent this, cut a piece of cardboard to size and insert it in the back to provide strength and stability.
Prop your piece up on plastic stands. Propping up your piece allows drips to pool on the plastic lined work surface.
Ensure your work is perfectly horizontal by checking it with a traditional level or with ArtResin's mobile phone level: www.artresin.com/level
3. Prepare Your ArtResin
Measure equal parts by volume. ArtResin is a 1:1 epoxy resin, meaning that you need equal parts of resin and hardener measured by volume. To determine how much ArtResin you will need for your piece, enter the length and the width into the Resin Calculator on our website.
Wearing gloves, measure equal amounts of resin and hardener. It doesn't matter which one you start with, as long as you measure equal amounts of both. It's important to measure accurately: if your resin and hardener are not perfectly equal, your resin may not cure properly.
Mix thoroughly for at least 3 minutes. As you stir, scrape the sides and bottom of the cup to ensure you incorporate every last bit of resin and hardener. Mixing thoroughly and scraping the sides will ensure every last bit of resin and hardener are combined. Now you're ready to pour!
4. Pour The Resin
5. Torch, Cover And Wait:
Using an Artist’s Torch, hold the flame a couple of inches above the resin surface just long enough to pop the bubbles. One or two passes with the torch is all you need to get rid of bubbles.
Keep the torch in a constant side to side motion, as if you're ironing clothes. Don't hold the flame too close - it should just lightly kiss the resin surface.
Use a toothpick to pop any missed bubbles or to fish out any bits of dust. Look at your resin under a light source and at eye level to easily spot any imperfections.
Cover and wait 24 hours. Using a clean plastic tote or cardboard box, cover your piece and let it sit for 24 hrs until it’s dry to the touch.
6. Reveal!
Remove the cover to reveal your new and improved artwork!
We hope you found this tutorial informative and helpful. More importantly, we hope it made the process of applying epoxy resin a little less intimidating. Like anything, practice makes perfect but these suggestions will give you a good head start:
- have everything you need ready to go: tools laid out & artwork prepped
- ensure your ArtResin and resin room is 75-85F or 24-30C
- measure accurately, mix thoroughly, scrape your container as you stir
- use a torch and dust cover
Before you know it, you'll be applying ArtResin over ALL of your favourite art pieces!
Questions? Comments? Tips?
Please leave them below!
Mariah Solomon is our Instagram Weekly Winner!!!!
To celebrate all the amazing artists staying home and creating, every week we will be sending out a FREE Petri Dish Art Kit to one lucky artist who has tagged us on Instagram—and we'll share their work with the world!
Congratulations to artist Mariah Solomon, our latest weekly winner! Mariah is mostly a self-taught artist who balances a full-time job in therapy while still putting in 30 hours a week in art! AKA Miss Fancypants, Mariah loves that her viewers always want to touch her work due to her creative use of material and movement.
Mariah usually paints with acrylic and alcohol ink, adding crystals and stones to raise the level of elegance in each piece. She layers ArtResin throughout her process to create a glamorous depth and shine. Mariah loves the immediate beauty and response of resin. Resin, to her, is the jewelry to the outfit.
You can find more of Mariah's work on Instagram @mariahfancypants, or on her Facebook page - Mariah Fancypants.
Congratulations on your win, Mariah!
Don't forget, tag YOUR ArtResin work with @art_resin on Instagram, and YOU could be our next weekly winner!!
Interested in finding out how to make your own Petri Dish Art?
We've got you covered with all the colorful details, here!
Magda Assaf is our Instagram Weekly Winner!!!!
To celebrate all the amazing artists staying home and creating, every week we will be sending out a FREE Petri Dish Art Kit to one lucky artist who has tagged us on Instagram—and we'll share their work with the world!
Congratulations to artist Magda Assaf, our latest weekly winner! Magda is a self-taught resin artist without a single art class under her belt! She currently works full-time in Calgary, Alberta. With every abstract piece she creates, Magda feels free to experiment and express her thoughts while bringing beauty and fluidity to her work. She wants her art to spark passion and imagination in people, enabling their minds to wander and to dream.
Magda always starts with a taped off primed cradled birch panel. She then adds controlled pours of high flow acrylics with ArtResin onto the canvas to create both abstract and representational pieces.
All of her work encompasses 3 to 4 layers of resin with most of them containing gold leaf and other metallics. Once satisfied, the painting gets a final layer of smooth, clear ArtResin creating mesmerizing depth and movement.
You can find more of Magda's work on Instagram @modernemulsions, on her website www.modernemulsions.ca, and on display at galleries and local markets in Calgary.
Congratulations on your win, Magda!
Don't forget, tag YOUR ArtResin work with @art_resin on Instagram, and YOU could be our next weekly winner!!
Interested in finding out how to make your own Petri Dish Art?
We've got you covered with all the colorful details, here!
Kelly Day is our Instagram Weekly Winner!!!!
To celebrate all the amazing artists staying home and creating, every week we will be sending out a FREE 32 oz ArtResin kit to one lucky artist who has tagged us on Instagram—and we'll share their work with the world!
Congratulations to artist Kelly Day, our latest weekly winner! Kelly has two Associate Degrees in Fine Arts and currently works full-time on her art in San Diego, California. She loves the gravitational pull you feel when you see someone with rare and unique traits. That "electric vibe" is exactly how Kelly wants you to feel when you view her portrait artwork in person.
Kelly always starts with a photograph. Then, with acrylics, she paints the image, making sure to capture the most important details. She then begins to draw lines around the natural light and shadows creating "electric veins."
From there, Kelly covers her work in ArtResin mixed with tints, glitters, mica powders, or anything that will add to the sparkle and shine. Light and reflection then take over bringing a sense of newness every time you view her art.
You can find more of Kelly’s work on Instagram @kellydayart and on her website: Kelly Day Art.
Congratulations on your win, Kelly!
Don't forget, tag YOUR ArtResin work with @art_resin on Instagram, and YOU could be our next weekly winner!!
Bonnie Enzor is our Instagram Weekly Winner!!!!
To celebrate all the amazing artists staying home and creating, every week we will be sending out a FREE 32 oz ArtResin kit to one lucky artist who has tagged us on Instagram—and we'll share their work with the world!
Congratulations to artist Bonnie Enzor, our latest weekly winner for April! Bonnie is a self-taught full-time artist living in Otisville, Michigan. She is a life-long nature lover who enjoys preserving plants and flowers in ArtResin. Prolonging the beauty of her surroundings to connect people with nature makes her heart happy.
Most of the flowers and plants in Bonnie's work were collected by her and then pressed and dried in a book. She then preserves them in various forms of jewelry, like necklaces and earrings, within 3-4 layers of ArtResin.
Bonnie says the whole process brings her a lot of joy and peace. She hopes that her artwork inspires others to create while allowing them to have a little piece of nature with them at all times.
You can find more of Bonnie’s work on her Etsy shop: Little Forest Jewelry.
Congratulations on your win, Bonnie!
Don't forget, tag YOUR ArtResin work with @art_resin on Instagram, and YOU could be our next weekly winner!!
What Can You Do with Leftover ArtResin?
Don’t let your leftover ArtResin go to waste! Artist Carmen Darley shows us how to make adorable, functional trinket dishes with leftover mixed resin.
What you need:
- leftover mixed ArtResin
- 2 silicone egg poachers
- water or sand (for weight)
- gold paint
Step 1
Once you have finished with your main ArtResin project, you may notice that you have a little bit of mixed resin left in your cup.
Pour a small amount of the leftover resin into one of your egg poachers. Don’t worry if the resin is a bit thicker than usual at this point.
Step 2
With the resin in the bottom of the egg cup, insert the second egg poacher into the first one. The resin should be sandwiched between the two stacked cups.
Gently push the top cup down with your fingers to spread the resin evenly around the mold.
Step 3
Fill the top cup with water or sand to hold it in place. Let the resin cure like this for 24 hours.
Step 4
After 24 hours, you can release the cured resin from the mold. Trim away the rough edges with scissors. Then, set the cup somewhere safe and allow it to cure for 3 - 5 more days.
Step 5
Once the resin has completely cured, you can finish your dish by gilding the edges. Gently tap some pigment onto the rim of your dish using gold paint or gold leaf.
And that's it! You've made your very own trinket dish with leftover ArtResin.
How do YOU use up leftover ArtResin? Let us know in the comments!
How to Make Money as an Artist
So you're an artist, and you want to make money from your art.
As artists, we all dream of earning a living from our art — and with some hard work, we can achieve it!
Here is a list of 10 ways to turn your talent into dollars!
Some of these possibilities may fit your lifestyle and capacity better than others — and pretty much all of it involves a hustle. But having done most of what's on this list myself, I'd say the hustle is worth it.
Besides, sometimes as artists we are not given the option not to make art. ;)
1. Sell your work through galleries
The main advantage here is that you just have to make the art... you don't have to worry about the business side of it (the gallery will take care of that for you). The downside of using a gallery is that they will usually receive a 50% commission from your sales.
Some people feel intimidated by the prospect of getting in with a gallery, but it's easier than most people think. When choosing a gallery to exhibit with, remember that locations in urban centres will always have the best markets.
Check out @kristofirdean as an example of a very successful artist selling work through galleries.
2. Sell your work through Instagram
Fine-tuning your Instagram account is a great way to begin marketing your art for sale. Simply start by posting as frequently as possible with artwork that feels like it belongs to a single body of work, and then field sales inquiries as they come into your DM.
Instagram is a great place to offer a narrative about your work and allows your viewers to form a deeper understanding of who you are and what you do. Showing your process can also really help viewers connect with your work. Artist @callenschaub does a great job of showcasing his unusual proprietary process through Instagram to make sales.
Instagram is also a great way to drive traffic to your other points of sale, such as your personal website, a gallery you're exhibiting in, or an upcoming art show.
3. Sell your work through your website
Having a personal website is a MUST for selling your art. This website will serve as a home base for people to find you as you will want to connect all your other online presences back to this site.
When you sell art from your own website, you don't pay a commission, and you can build an email list that will help you communicate directly with your audience. Many people will likely need to encounter your work a few times before they commit to making a purchase.
It's a good idea to offer some kind of incentive for signing up to your email list. For example, when you sign up for our email list on ArtResin.com, we provide a free how-to guide for beginners. Send out regular emails with news and updates—1 per month is usually a good schedule—to keep your business in the minds of your potential customers.
Building this website doesn't need to be complicated. You can use pre-made templates from intuitive platforms like Wix or Squarespace to create a simple and effective page.
4. Sell your work through art shows
Once you have built an inventory of art pieces, you can take your work to public art shows. Shows are great because they give you a ton of exposure and can translate directly into sales. You can use this face-to-face time to direct potential customers back to your website, Instagram, and mailing list.
Art shows are usually set up in public spaces where people can view your work casually. This makes it a unique place to capture the attention of people who might not otherwise come across your art as many people aren't comfortable frequenting a proper art gallery.
The only downside to art shows is that it's a ton of work to cart everything around from place to place. But the sales will make up for all of that!
Artist @lorieslaterfoto does as many shows as she can as they work for her as a photographer.
5. Sell your art through Amazon Handmade and Etsy
There are several popular platforms like Amazon Handmade and Etsy that draw a lot of traffic and allow you to sell your art. People who visit these sites come with the intent to buy, so you will likely reap more sales on a site like one of these.
The downside is that these sites usually take a 15% commission, and you can't build up your email list from customers on these platforms. On the other hand, they are quite easy to set up, and the commission may be well worth it because of how much traffic these sites bring to your work.
6. Sell reproductions of your work
Building an inventory takes so much time and energy, and when you sell that work, you have to work even harder to build it up again! Reproductions offer a way to work smarter, not harder.
In conjunction with selling your original pieces, you can also sell prints of your original work. Search for giclee printers near you, as well as printers that will put your work on pillows, phone cases, leggings, bags, etc. Some examples of businesses that do this are ArtsyShark.com, Society6.com and Printful.com. Reproduction items will sell for a fraction of the value of the original. However, this method allows you to retain the original and still put money in your pocket!
7. Turn your art into a book or greeting cards
This is another form of residual income from reproductions—you just need to find a printer that will print cards or books on demand, such as createspace.com. I wrote and illustrated a kids' book and sold each copy for $15. Ultimately I made more money selling many inexpensive books than the most money I had ever made off of one painting.
If you're curious... the book was based off my multicultural students from back in the day when I taught grade six; I painted realistic portraits of 18 kids and wrote a narrative that spoke to equity and diversity. Titled, The Cutest Face, my book can be purchased here.
8. Sell the rights to your original art to a publisher
You know all that pre-fab art you see at homeware retailers like HomeSense or Ikea? Someone made that art and sold the rights so the store could mass produce it. My friend @heathersinnottart has made a good living this way. I've even seen her reproduced art on display at The Brick (a local furniture chain) which was pretty cool.
9. Rent out your art
Set designers often rent out art for the shows they are working on. The standard rate is 20% of the total value of your art PER WEEK. This means you can make a chunk of money of your artwork and still retain the work to sell at a later date. If you rent it indefinitely, you have cash flow without having to trade your hours for dollars—the art makes money for you!
If you want to get started this way, reach out to galleries and museums in your area to see if they have a similar program. Artist @callenschaub earned a lot of notoriety by renting out a mural size painting through the Art Gallery of Ontario.
10. Market your process—put together a course!
You can also make money from your knowledge about your technique. You can charge interested patrons to learn your trade secrets by setting up a course on a platform such as Thinkific. It takes some time to set these courses up, but once you do so you'll receive residual revenue as you continue to run that course into the future.
Artist @janelovesdesign offers e-courses for her techniques. She sees her courses as one of many streams of income in her diversified portfolio. Check out our interview where Jane and I speak about the business of being an artist.
At the end of the day, making art should be something that you do for the love of it. Making money off your artwork just allows you to invest more of your time into doing what you love!
Nicole Quinones is our Instagram Weekly Winner!!!!
To celebrate all the amazing artists staying home and creating, every week we will be sending out a FREE 32 oz ArtResin kit to one lucky artist who has tagged us on Instagram—and we'll share their work with the world!
Congratulations to artist Nicole Quinones, our fourth weekly winner for April! Nicole is a trained artist living in New Hampshire. She graduated with a degree from the Fashion Institute of Technology and has since found a passion for creating art with ArtResin in her free time.
Nicole creates beautiful and functional homewares with ArtResin, and is often inspired by the forms and colors of simple found objects. Nicole uses a variety of tints and colorants of various opacity to bring her work to life. Her goal is to bring color and beauty to homes, and she hopes her viewers will find as much joy in her artwork as she does.
You can find more of Nicole’s work on Instagram @quinohome, on her Etsy shop: quinohome, and on display at My Country Story in Dover, New Hampshire.
Congratulations on your win, Nicole!
Don't forget, tag YOUR ArtResin work with @art_resin on Instagram, and YOU could be our next weekly winner!!
Sam Lynn Arnold is our Instagram Weekly Winner!!!!
To celebrate all the amazing artists staying home and creating, every week we will be sending out a FREE 32 oz ArtResin kit to one lucky artist who has tagged us on Instagram—and we'll share their work with the world!
Congratulations to artist Sam Lynn Arnold, our third weekly winner for April! Sam is a professional artist and artist-educator working in Chicago. Following a health crisis, Sam began creating artwork every day as a way to heal and find joy, and she has been working as a full-time artist ever since!
To create her vivid landscapes, Sam starts by layering acrylic colors with a palette knife. Once the paint dries, she outlines each color shift in black to create the form of the landscape. Finally, Sam applies a layer of ArtResin to protect her work and add vibrancy to her colors.
You can find more of Sam’s work on Instagram @samlynnstuido, on her website www.samlynnstudio.com, and on display at Jackson Junge Gallery in Chicago.
Congratulations on your win, Sam!
Don't forget, tag YOUR ArtResin work with @art_resin on Instagram, and YOU could be our next weekly winner!!
