Resin Conversation Heart Earrings

Mix and match pairs of Resin Conversation Heart Earrings inspired by the iconic Valentine's Day candy!

Conversation hearts aren't really known for being delicious, but I think we can all agree that they are the one of the most adorable Valentine's Day candies! I was inspired by these nostalgic sweets to make some earrings using resin. They are simple to make, and look SO cute! You can make a variety of earrings in different colors that can be mixed and matched to wear throughout the entire Valentine season. Plus, festive earrings always make a great gift idea!

To make your own Resin Conversation Heart Earrings, you will need these supplies:

• Conversation Heart Mold
• Amazing Clear Cast Epoxy
• Measuring Cups
• Stirring Sticks
• Toothpick
• Disposable Gloves
• White Resin Pigment
• Alcohol Inks - pink, purple, blue, green, yellow
• Acrylic Paint - red
• Cotton Swabs
• Adhesive
• 2 Earring Posts
• Clear Sealant or UV Resin

*Save 10% on resin supplies when you shop Polytek with code AFM

SAFETY FIRST: Before getting started, wear disposable gloves, protect your workspace, and be sure to work in a well-ventilated area!

Prepare 30ml (1 ounce) of Amazing Clear Cast resin according to package directions. Pour in equal parts of resin and hardener to the mixing cup. Slowly stir the resin together with a stir stick for two minutes. If the resin looks cloudy or has any streaks running through it, you need to keep stirring it until it becomes clear.

Add a small drop of white resin pigment to the resin and stir until evenly incorporated. Give the resin a few minutes to "rest", which allows the bubbles to rise to the top.

Split the resin equally into 5* different cups. Each cup should have a little more than 5ml. Add ONE drop of each color of alcohol ink into each cup. You want the colors to be pastel, so if you add any more ink than that, the color will be off (I'll show you a comparison from my mistake later!).

*If you don't want to make all of these colors, just split the resin into however many colors you do want to use.

Use a clean stir stick for each color and stir until the ink is mixed in well. Give the resin a minute or two to allow the bubbles to rise to the top, and then spritz some alcohol on the surface to pop them.

I had some trouble with micro-bubbles the first time I made these, and found a trick to help! Spritz the mold with alcohol first. Then use the stir stick or a toothpick to fill the heart with resin just up to the surface of the letters (as seen above). Run the toothpick around the edges, especially in the corner, to bring any trapped bubbles to the surface. Repeat this process for all of the hearts.

Spritz the resin with alcohol one more time, and then fill the hearts all the way to the top. Repeat the entire process for all of the different colors of resin.

Leave the resin to cure in an undisturbed, well-ventilated area for 12-24 hours. You will know that the resin is completely cured when it easily pulls away from the edges and is no longer tacky to the touch.

Carefully remove the cured hearts from the molds. Trim away any excess resin with scissors or a craft knife. If the resin still feels flexible, it may just need more time to cure. Let the pieces sit in a warm, flat area to cure for a few hours (or days).

Next, you will need some red acrylic paint. I used this matte paint, but you can use any kind of acrylic paint that you want. Just make sure it's red if you want the earrings to look like the candy.

Use a cotton swab or your fingertip to rub paint into the letter openings on the resin hearts. It's okay to get messy with this part! I'll show you how to clean it up later.

Allow the paint on the hearts to dry completely. Since the space is so small, it doesn't take too long.

After I let the first coat of paint dry, I noticed some bubbles in the opening of the letters, as seen in the green heart on the left. I applied a second coat of paint, and pressed a little harder this time to really get paint into the letters. Once that dried, the bubbles were gone! Allow this second coat of paint to dry completely.

Once dried, you can easily clean the paint off the surface of the resin hearts. I tried a couple of different ways to give you some options:

• Dip a cotton swab into alcohol, and gently wiped the paint off. This works pretty well, but I recommend switching to a clean swab after a little bit to keep from just spreading paint around.
• Flip the heart over and rub it over a baby wipe. Make sure that you are working on a flat surface and hold the baby wipe in place, and then press the heart down while wiping it back and forth. This was definitely the quickest way to clean up, but you do have to rotate to clean spots on the wipe after a couple of hearts to prevent the previous paint from spreading around.

Use a clean cotton swab dipped in alcohol to clean any missed spots and edges.

This is optional, but once all of the hearts have been cleaned, you can apply a thin coat of clear sealant or UV resin over the surface of the hearts to protect the paint and to keep the earrings looking good as new for years to come.

Remember earlier when I told you about being careful with adding too much pigment to the resin? Here's the comparison from my first attempt and second. I originally mixed up resin and added a few too many drops because it looked so light. Turns out, the resin will darken slightly after curing, and the hearts on the bottom row just weren't that iconic pastel color I was looking for. They are still cute, but they just weren't what I wanted.

Use some strong adhesive to attach the earring posts to the back of the heart earring pieces. To keep the earring posts from ever popping off, I recommend adding a thin layer of UV resin over the surface.

These earrings are just so festive and fun, and can totally be mixed and matched with different sayings and colors! If you have multiple piercings, you can wear all kinds of combinations!

These Resin Conversation Heart Earrings are so simple and fun to make! I'm so excited to wear these earrings everywhere I go this February and will be making more pairs to share with friends for Valentine's Day. As always, I would love to see what you're making! Share your creations on Instagram, Facebook, or leave a comment/photo on the project pin on Pinterest! #AFMCrafts

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