Red Hot Resin & The Confetti Explosion

I've been anxious to turn resin - and by anxious, I mean both excited and nervous. There are so many woodworkers and pen makers out there who are doing exceptionally beautiful work with resin and sometimes it's a little hard to manage exceptions when venturing into the unknown. 

So how did it go? It was a blast! 




I've watched hundreds of demonstrations, but I wasn't prepared to see pink confetti ribbons wrapped around the drill bit. As pretty as it is, stopping to clean the bit after every progression isn't my idea of a fun time in the workshop. 



Sometimes I know exactly how I want the finished product to look, other times I wait and see how things shape up while turning. I'm a big fan of variations in wood grain, so I'm not a stickler for making sure everything flows together. A strong juxtaposition can be a girl's best friend. One thing is certain: the cosmic red acrylic blank is beautiful.



It looks like Tinkerbell threw up on the lathe, doesn't it?

A few different tools were used on this little diva: bowl gouge, skew chisel, and mini rounding tool. I'm partial to the mini rounding tool and use it more than anything else, but the skew chisel was my go-to on this day. Wood tends to tell you what it wants to be, but resin waits for YOU to tell IT what it's going to be. I like the little quirks and imperfections that come from wood, but let's face it: resin doesn't have personality quirks or imperfections. It's ideal and it reflects every little tool mark left on its surface. 

So after some back and forth (and some rockin' and rollin') this little beauty came into the world.