To make a trace of the arms or legs of your baby, that is, the first trace of the crumbs, you must read this instruction.
All materials that are intended for making casts do not cause any harm and cannot cause.
For their manufacture, a small amount is required, this will not disturb the child, because the technology by which the casts are made is innovative, and the composition from which the cast will be made is hypoallergenic.
Specialists have specially developed kits so that parents can create children's casts on their own.
Often, the parents of children purchased kits in stores, but there was not enough molding mass for a sufficient number of casts. But there are kits with which parents have several attempts before the real start. They train and begin to sculpt something really beautiful and neat. It turns out a quality cast. They can create it not only for themselves, but also as a gift to grandparents, godparents of their little one, make casts of children of close friends as a gift to them.
In addition to casts of the tiny limbs of your baby, you can create a cast of the hands of two lovers or newlyweds, a cast of your own hand.
Today, there is a great abundance of such things on sale, with the help of which it is easy to create your own design of casts.
And on the Internet there are many samples for making casts.
If you want to put the resulting cast on a table or shelf, you need to fill a plastic mold, for example, from under sweets, with plaster, paint it with any paint, then glue the resulting cast of a leg or handle with good glue.
3d impression kits
Watch a video on how to properly create a cast:
Now let's take a closer look at this video: mix the dry gel in the required proportion, beat with a mixer until a homogeneous mass is formed, convenient for use. After that, we lower the child's leg into the mass, take it out. We fill the form with special plaster, after a while we take out the resulting sculpture.
Pretty not difficult, right?
And now let's dwell in more detail on the proportions by which you need to mix water with the impression gel.
Take 100 grams of dry gel, also 400 milliliters of water. Well, to create the hand of an adult, instead of a mayonnaise bucket, they take a two-liter bottle of plastic, cut off her throat. Take 250 grams of gel per liter of water.
For children whose age ranges from and older, it is necessary to calculate the proportions yourself. To do this, measure the amount of water required to completely immerse the child's arm or leg in the container.
In order to fill the form, take a special plaster. To pour one cast, take ten to five tablespoons of gypsum and 0.05 liters of water.
In order to pour one cast of an adult's hand, you will need 20 tablespoons of gypsum and 0.18 liters of water.
2d impression kits
We create a convex cast of any part of the tiny limbs of your baby.
This technology involves a plastic material for reusable use.
It is quite plastic and soft, able to convey every fold and line of the skin, keeps its shape perfectly.
But this material can be used almost unlimitedly.
The main condition for storage is the obligatory presence of the material in a jar, the absence of contact with water, talc and oil.
This kit will help you make casts of children's legs and arms every month. You will compare how the baby has grown.
And now the video instruction for creating impressions 2 d:
When analyzing this video, we want to clarify again that the convex layer of the handle is made using a finished impression mass by hand, filled with special plaster. Then everything dries up, the cast is pulled out, the mass is again kneaded. A new cast is created from it.
After this procedure, the impression mass is kneaded again, it is placed in a bag into which air will not enter, in order to take out the mass next time and create a sculpture again.
Casts can be painted in any color you like. This can be done using watercolor, gouache, acrylic. Glue what you got to the photo frame. At the same time, use any decor that you like, some collages, booties, a tag, a dummy, an ultrasound scan, a bodysuit, a vest, a hat. The main thing is to use your imagination.
Available to everyone. A casting made in accordance with all the rules and in compliance with the proportions when mixing the working solution will turn out to be very realistic.
The appearance of the finished product and its strength characteristics will depend on the quality of the gypsum. To achieve maximum similarity, a quality form is needed. For its manufacture, special materials are used.
Idea
For lovers, a plaster cast of a pair of hands intertwined together can serve as a gift for a significant date. Often such a composition is ordered by newlyweds on their wedding day.
Children's casts of hands and feet are ordered by parents as a keepsake in addition to photos and videos with their babies. Such a souvenir, decorated in an elegant frame, can be presented to relatives and friends as a memory of a memorable date: the first or anniversary birthday, baptism, the first independent step of a child, etc.
You can create a whole collection of such casts made in different periods of the active growth of the child. Later, holding them in their palms, children may remember the happy moments of their childhood.
An elegant plaster hand, made and decorated with your own hands, can also serve as a detail of the original composition. Such a decoration, for example, can also be used as a mannequin for storing rings.
Gypsum
There are many different materials for casting molds. These are paraffin, wax, concrete, silicone, metals, even chocolate can be poured into a food form. Compounds of plastics, resins have now become available. All of them have their own specific casting features. To answer the question of how to make a plaster hand, you first need to understand what kind of material it is. It is also important to understand the technology of its casting.
Gypsum powder is a natural material. It has a white or grayish color, fine grinding, quickly absorbs moisture when water is added. It is obtained by firing gypsum stone and is distinguished by its purpose: for medical purposes, for molding, for plastering and the production of plates.
Gypsum for construction has a coarser grinding, medical - the purest, molding - sets more slowly. A useful property for sculptures is an increase (up to 1%) of the working composition in volume. This extension makes it possible to fill in a small drawing of a form. When preparing the mortar, after a few minutes it begins to harden and completely seizes within 20 minutes.
Technology features
Store gypsum powder in a dry place. Soaked or damp material is not suitable for casting, it does not set. Its characteristics also deteriorate from long-term storage. The working solution of gypsum is prepared quickly. From prolonged mixing, it “rejuvenates” and seizes weaker, which ultimately leads to a loss of strength of the finished product.
If the working solution has hardened before filling is completed, it is no longer suitable for work. Adding water and re-mixing it will not fix the situation. Liquid glue can help slow down the setting of the solution. It (3-4 tablespoons per bucket of water) is added beforehand and mixed well.
It is necessary to dry the casting at a temperature of up to 60 degrees. It is not desirable to exceed this limit - the material loses its strength and begins to decompose. Do-it-yourself gypsum hand is made taking into account all these nuances. To make the finished product stronger, the solution is kneaded with milk of lime.
Moisture and dampness adversely affect gypsum products, so they must be used and stored indoors, especially if they do not have a protective coating.
Preparatory operations
Making a plaster hand on your own is possible at home without the use of any special technologies and special equipment. However, for the casting process to go smoothly, you need to carefully prepare. Different batches of gypsum (especially building gypsum) may have different setting times.
To accurately know it, it is best to conduct a test batch and pour a small amount of the solution into any simple form. This will allow you to accurately calculate the proportions of gypsum and water, determine the time period within which the solution retains its casting properties. As a result, this will help save material, time and nerves.
At the preparation stage, they are determined with a container for the mold, and also select a suitable vessel for mixing the gypsum mortar. For a one-time filling, you can take disposable dishes. If you plan to continue casting, it is best to purchase a rubber plaster to mix the working solution.
For these purposes, a half of an old children's ball is suitable. Dried gypsum from the walls is easily peeled off when the rubber is deformed. The skin of the hand that will be immersed in the molding mass can be lubricated with a thin layer of castor oil or petroleum jelly.
simple clay mold
A trial plaster cast of a hand can be successfully cast into a clay mold. This will not be a full-fledged volumetric copy, but it will provide an opportunity to get the first practical experience. Clay is an affordable material that can be reused many times after failed attempts, which is just right for beginners.
You need two pieces of board or plywood 5 cm larger than your palm. They and your hand are lubricated with vegetable oil or petroleum jelly. This is necessary so that the clay does not stick. They put a hand on the board with the palm of their hand, press it tightly and begin to apply clay moistened with water and kneaded to a thick dough, kneading it well and compacting it.
The total layer should be at least 5 cm. Its top is leveled on a plane and covered with another board. The whole structure, together with the hand, is carefully turned over. The bottom board is removed and the palm is carefully released. The form for filling is ready. To obtain ideal castings, plastic molding masses are used.
Alginate for impressions
To make a mold for volumetric casting of a complex shape, special compositions are used. One of the most affordable options is alginate mass. Its main purpose is the production of casts in dental practice. But such material is quite suitable for sculptural castings.
Alginate is a raw material from seaweed. Its dry powder, mixed with water in exact proportions, quickly thickens and acquires the properties of a dense jelly. If, before the start of the setting process, a hand is placed in such a mass, and then, after reaching the optimum density, it is carefully removed, then a cavity is formed in the mold. If a plaster solution is poured into it, then after hardening it forms an exact copy of the hand.
It will not be possible to extract the casting without destroying the mold. The alginate mass is in a state of plasticity for a short time, it begins to lose moisture, becomes brittle and collapses from deformation. Therefore, filling with a working composition should be done immediately after removing the hand. In this case, you can expect a high quality cast copy.
Some brands of alginate masses change color as they harden. When kneading, they have one shade, in the initial phase of setting (the optimal moment for immersing the hand) - another, after reaching density (when you can remove the limb) - the third. The process of making a plaster hand with the help of such a molding material is within the power of anyone.
Solution preparation
A gypsum hand is cast in a pre-prepared form with your own hands. Pure cold water is collected in the mixing container in the required amount. Dry gypsum powder is evenly poured into it. Ideally, it should form a hill above the surface.
Gypsum begins to absorb water intensively. At this time, it must be well stirred. This should not be done too intensively, as air bubbles form. They remain in the solution, get into the mold, and after it hardens, they form shells and cavities. Therefore, you can use a drill with a kneading nozzle only at low speeds. It is better to do everything by hand, using a spoon or a wooden stirrer. The goal is to get a homogeneous mass without lumps, resembling sour cream in density.
The proportions of water / gypsum (approximately one to two) are determined experimentally in advance. After mixing, the container is lightly tapped to release air bubbles to the surface. The resulting foam is collected with a spoon. The prepared working solution is immediately poured into the mold. The time from the beginning of mixing to pouring is no more than a minute and a half.
Filling in a mold
Do-it-yourself gypsum hand is made by casting into a prepared mold. The solution is added in portions. If they fill out a complex form at once, then air sacs can form in it. The gypsum mortar does not fall into such voids; as a result, the finished model will have defects.
To avoid this, the form is rotated in all directions after pouring the first small part of the working solution. So it spreads over the inner surface and falls into all the recesses. The air inside does not accumulate and is gradually forced out.
With the next portion, the gypsum mortar is deposited on the walls more and more, its layer becomes thicker. When complex undercuts are completely filled, you can pour the rest of the gypsum.
The technology for making a cast of a child's hand is slightly different from the workflow with adults. The fact is that the child, as a rule, cannot keep his hand in a constant position until the molding mass seizes. Finger movements during molding spoil everything. Therefore, it is best to carry out this procedure during sleep in its deep phase.
An alginate molding compound is used. It is kneaded in a bowl of a suitable size. All components are prepared in advance according to the instructions. Alginate powder is poured into the water and stirred with a spoon until smooth for about one minute.
For adults, cold water is used. But so that the child does not wake up during sleep from contact with a cool mass, it is better to warm it up. Warm water for mixing significantly reduces the time of use of the molding material, so everything must be done quickly.
When the mixture is ready, it is poured into a suitable glass, matched to the child's hand, and his limb is placed there. The hardening time of the mass is 1-2 minutes. During this period, you need to keep the form at rest in order to get a quality print.
After the allotted time, the baby's hand is carefully removed. As a rule, this happens without problems, since the mold is plastic and does not deform from light loading.
Immediately after this, a working solution is prepared and poured. Gypsum is kept in the mold for no more than 30 minutes. Later, the alginate mass begins to give up water, which will adversely affect the casting. The form is removed from the glass, cut into pieces, the plaster handprint of the child is released. It is cleaned and left to dry.
By the same principle, the hand of an adult or a child is cast, which can keep the hand at rest during the molding.
Kits for making self-made 2D and 3D impressions
Recently, a copied souvenir plaster hand has been popular with the townsfolk. How to make it with your own hands is described in detail in the instructions for ready-made kits for modeling. Such a kit is ideal for those who want to try their hand at volumetric casting, but do not have the opportunity or do not want to understand the brands of molding masses and gypsum.
The kit will cost more than separately purchased components. But manufacturers are focusing on the convenience of such a configuration. In addition, they give a guarantee of the quality of their materials. The kit includes a dry hypoallergenic mass for forms, it is easy to prepare it by filling it with water in the required ratio. There is also a model cleaned gypsum of increased strength.
A reusable plastic molding compound is included in the kit for making simple impressions of hands or feet. Before use, it is kneaded, an impression is made and plaster is poured into it. After solidification, the casting is removed. If re-filling is not expected, the mold is again kneaded to a soft state and set aside for storage, packed in a plastic bag.
Finishing
How to make a plaster cast of a hand as a finished composition? To do this, it must be painted. For some, the ideal option would be toning with gold or bronze paint. Another will choose a skin tone or white.
Acrylic emulsion is suitable for a decorative coating, but its layer, although thin, can smooth out fine lines and wrinkles on the cast. Although, if the copy turned out to be imperfect, then this option is quite suitable. If you need to preserve the smallest details, it is better to use spray paint.
Before finishing, the cast is inspected, all irregularities are polished, defects are corrected. In order for the paint to lay down in an even layer, the workpiece can be pre-primed, allowed to dry and then sanded again with fine sandpaper.
For installation, they select a decorative base at their discretion and mount a copy of the hand or a composition with it on glue. After drying, the souvenir can be varnished for greater effect.
How to make a plaster hand yourself for replicating copies?
Having worked out the technology of casting and making molds, you can try to expand the range of products. A copied plaster hand, made with your own hands, can serve as a detail of the original composition.
For example, if molded in the position of holding an object, it can serve as a phone stand. In another case, it may be the base of a candlestick or table lamp. A decorative glass can be placed in a plaster hand and such a composition will turn into a pen holder or an original flower vase.
It is impractical to make disposable forms for mass copying. In this case, elastic silicone is better. Forms from this material can be used repeatedly. To remove the casting, they are cut on one side and a copy is carefully removed.
Silicone is installed in the container in which it was poured during manufacture, and the process is repeated. For the convenience of extracting castings, you can use release agents. In such forms, you can pour not only gypsum, but also paraffin, tin or chocolate. The imagination of the authors is limitless - the main thing is not to be afraid to experiment!
Currently, many parents make casts of children's arms and legs with their own hands. Such a commemorative imprint looks very cute and will allow you to remember the wonderful moments of early childhood for many years.
Do-it-yourself casts of children's hands and feet
To make casts of handles and legs with your own hands, you do not need experience, you just need to carefully read the instructions. As a rule, kits contain all the necessary materials and tools. In addition, they often provide the opportunity to make several casts, because working with a child is completely unpredictable, and whether a perfect outline is obtained depends largely on our small models.
How to prepare for a do-it-yourself volumetric cast of arms and legs:
- take care of the good mood of the little model;
- you can use sleep time;
- residue from the mixture after making can be difficult to wash off, so wear clothes that you don't mind getting dirty;
- the participation of two adults is necessary - one to take care of mixing the ingredients, the second to hold the baby and distract him;
- if you have touched the sides or bottom of the mold, you can pour plaster into it and then smooth out any imperfections with sandpaper;
- the time during which the form completely hardens depends on the temperature of the water used - the colder the water, the longer it will harden, the warmer the water - the faster the material will harden, room temperature of the water is optimal;
- make sure the containers are the right size for your baby's foot or hand.
How to prepare a child for making a cast of children's arms and legs with their own hands
How to prepare molds for casting casts for children with your own hands
To make an impression with your own hands, mix the mold powder with water in any container and pour into a closed plastic container, you can mix the mixture directly in the same container. Be sure to measure the ingredients accurately as a poor ratio can affect the final result. You can use the test sample, which is sometimes included with the kit, to have information about the curing process.
Wet the skin of children's feet or hands thoroughly so that they easily slide out of the hardened mold.
Thanks to this manipulation, your child will be able to get used to the temperature of the mass, in addition, we will minimize the risk of air bubbles that impair the quality of the product. Guide the baby's hand so that it slides accurately and gently into the prepared paste.
Don't worry if your child moves his arm. The beginning of the hardening process will show a change in the color of the paste, and this is the point at which the child should not make very sudden movements. After hardening (about 1-1.5 minutes), remove the handle. To avoid holes in the hardened form, guide the child's hand without touching the bottom or sides of the container.
How to prepare and pour plaster
Plaster pouring should not last longer than 5-6 minutes.
- Prepare a plastic bowl, measure the right amount of water and gypsum in the appropriate proportions. Always add powder to water, not the other way around;
- Pour the gypsum into the water slowly, with constant stirring, until the mass reaches the consistency of a very thin yogurt. Too intensive and long mixing can lead to the fact that the mass begins to harden already during pouring into the mold. Also, too much agitation can cause bubbles to form. If you see bubbles on the surface, tap the container a few times to get them out;
- Initially, the plaster is very watery, but after a while it gently begins to thicken. Gypsum is ready when it reaches the consistency of pancake dough. Then, pour a small amount of gypsum into the mold and carefully move the container in different directions so that the mass fills exactly each hole;
- After filling the mold 1/3, tap the container on the table surface;
- Pour the rest of the mass in batches;
- Leave the container to harden for several hours.
How to avoid air bubbles in plaster?
Air bubbles spoil volumetric casts, as a result, the plaster does not reach the fingertips, and the impression will not completely repeat the child's hand. This problem mostly occurs with pen impressions, as the fingers are longer on them than on the toes, and the plaster does not always flow well into these holes.
You can use the following methods to avoid this:
In what position is it most convenient to make 3D casts
0-5 months. For the smallest children, it is necessary to carry out the procedure in a supine position, as for feeding.
5-12 months. Place the baby sideways on one knee to the parent, legs should hang freely. Make an "airplane": the parent holds the baby on his stomach with his hands, the arms hang freely. In a sitting position: the parent places the child on his knees, facing the table.
After hardening, carefully sand the product. After painting with paint, this treatment will become invisible.
How to make casts of arms and legs with your own hands
The resulting casts can be processed in different ways:
You can add photographs of a baby at the age at which the impression was made, as well as create a thematic background, such as a footprint in the sea sand.
The resulting souvenir will delight you, and you will be able to enjoy this memorable and beautiful thing for many years.
A wonderful master class on how to make prints of your baby's arms and legs as a keepsake. To make a cast of your child's legs and arms, dear moms and dads, grandparents, you will need patience, strong nerves and, above all, calm, and even better - sleeping baby.
In addition, you will also need:
150 g flour
- 75 g salt
- 2 spoons of vinegar
- 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil
- 300ml water
- two shallow molds
- gypsum
- an old gypsum pot (which you don't mind throwing away)
In a Teflon bowl (so that the mass does not stick to the walls), pour flour, salt and pour water, in which the rest of the products were previously mixed. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly. After about 3 minutes, the mass will begin to stick together, continue to cook, stirring. Finally, a ball will turn out of the mass, which continue to turn over and warm up - when the flour warms up, the mass will stop sticking to your hands. Finally, put the finished mass to cool and you can start!
1. If you are going to make two casts, divide the mass into two parts and fill the molds with it. 
2. Well, now the most difficult part is to make an impression of the baby's hand or foot. It is desirable that the impression be at least 7 mm deep, it can be deeper. If it doesn’t work the first time, it’s okay, take out the mass, knead it and put it back into the mold. The print is made in the following order: first the base of the palm, then the palm, then each finger, if you start the print from the fingers, it will not work. 
3. Let's leave the received impressions for now, and in the meantime we will mix the gypsum: it should be neither thick nor liquid, it should be flowing in order to fill the impression well. 
4. Do not rush to remove the impression, let it harden well, preferably until the next day. The next day, carefully remove the dried cast, remove the adhering mass and put it in the oven at 50-60 ° C on parchment (it may not withstand high temperatures and crack). 
5. Dry gypsum is light, you can clean the finished cast of the legs and handles with a brush so that it is even and clean. Do not forget: accuracy and patience! 
6. If you want, you can paint the paws of our kids with gold or silver paint and place them in a frame. 
Our mothers circled our hands and feet in childhood, so that in the children's album there would be a memory of what we were. Already at school, we circled them ourselves and gave them to each other.
Today you can make an imprint of the child's hand and foot with every fold on the skin. And your Romeo will be able to give his Juliet in kindergarten not just a picture, but a three-dimensional copy of his pen. In our century, you won’t surprise anyone with photographs, videos are shot with a mobile phone, and casts of children’s arms and legs in 3D format are really exclusive, which you can’t buy, you can only order a master or make it yourself.
Godparents buy a gift certificate for this service so that an adult child will remember them with gratitude. Lovers (as in the "Avenue of Stars") and newlyweds order handprints on a stand with engraving. For the hero of the day, you can call a specialist at home, and organize a gift - a procedure as part of the holiday program.
Now it is fashionable to collect sculptural copies of the entire family and keep them as family heirlooms for posterity. Many people order accurate 3D sculptures of their hands.
Of course, such casts were invented a long time ago, but this service was expensive, and not everyone dared to take their crumbs across the city to the sculptor's workshop. Children grow rapidly, and I want to leave an extraordinary gift in memory of childhood. When your child becomes famous, these casts will be worth more than gold. Now many masters provide this service, but it is quite possible to manage on your own at home.
Children's casts. Method one - on the sand
Tools and materials
Step-by-step instruction
- Sand is poured into a bowl (without tamping).
- Carefully in the center we make an imprint of the handle or foot of the child.
- Along the edges we lay out the selected decor for prints.
- Dilute alabaster to the consistency of sour cream (preferably with cold water, as it seizes very quickly).
- In a thin stream, so as not to spoil the work, pour the solution onto the sand with a layer of 2 - 3 cm.
- After 15 minutes, when the alabaster completely hardens, carefully remove it from the mold.
- > We clean it from sand with a brush and cover it with paint, varnish, apply a commemorative inscription.
Materials of casts of children's hands and feet are very diverse. We got used to the sand, you can experiment with plasticine.
Method two - plasticine
Tools and materials
- children's soft plasticine;
- gypsum;
- PVA glue;
- decor material.
Step-by-step instruction
Method three - in the test
Tools and materials
- wheat flour - 1 cup;
- fine salt - half a glass;
- vegetable oil or glue - 1 tbsp;
- paints;
- decor material.
Step-by-step instruction
For grandparents, this is the most desired gift that they will keep for a lifetime.
But no one canceled grandmother's fun and simple method - if there are hypoallergenic paints in the house, just give your child paper and paints - and you will have a lot of prints in five minutes.
If you have mastered simple methods from simple improvised materials, you can purchase a set for professionals.
Children grow up very quickly, and you need to have time to catch moments that will delight you all your life!
