When Polly’s Plastics reached out to see if we would review their products for the +5 Charisma blog I was immediately threw myself at the chance. Moldable plastics?! That sounds so cool!
**Disclaimer: Polly Plastics sent me these products for free in exchange for an honest review**
I have to admit that while I’d heard of moldable plastics and a myriad of uses for them from cosplay to protective sword fighting gear (yup, I’m that person), I’d never actually used them before. I was a little doubtful of my skill set and afraid this would be a total bust. While I consider myself a generally crafty person, I was worried there would be a steep learning curve and a lot of mess. Luckily I was completely wrong!
Polly’s Plastics sent me their Silicone Molding Putty and Moldable Plastic Kit which includes the two parts of the silicone mold putty, a 10 oz container of while plastic pellets, and directions for how to use both! I was skeptical because it sounded too easy. Mix equal parts of the putty together and then press over your object to create the mold? Put the plastic pellets in a pot of hot water on the stove? So simple!
For my first project I decided to make D20 beads for a pair of awesomely nerdy earrings. I used my handy kitchen scale to make sure I weighed the putty parts equally. From there, I kneaded the two parts together and spent too much time trying to document the process, so that the putty froze up on me before I could get all the details pressed in. It dries QUICK, y’all. So I mixed a second batch and made a cute little mold!
The scariest part of this process for me was throwing plastic pellets into my pot of near boiling water. I was so afraid that they were just going to melt to the bottom of my pan. But just as the instructions said, they turned clear and started to stick together. I used a pair of tongs to pull the pliable limb of plastic out of the pot, but was able to then touch it with my bare hands to push into the dice mold. To make the bead, I just stuck a safety pin straight down the middle of the mold.
Once it cooled and I pulled it out of the mold, I wasn’t too thrilled with my first attempt. So I threw the plastic back into the hot water. No longer in pellet form, it took longer to heat up, but it eventually turned clear again and I put it back into the mold. The second attempt turned out much better, but there are areas where the mold closes that have plastic run off that needs to be torn or filed off. I don’t think I got enough detail in my mold/plastic to make actual balanced dice to play with, but for beads they work great.
I left my D20 beads white, but you can also buy color pellets or use power paint or alcohol dye to color your molten plastic. I could also go over the bead with a sharpie to get detailing in the numbers, but I think I like these beads kind of minimalistic!
TL;DR? I really loved playing and experimenting with the silicone putty and moldable plastic. For my first attempt, it was a lot easier to use that I thought and picks up a surprising amount of detail! I could definitely see myself using these for more crafty and cosplay solutions!
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