Using Nail Foils in Epoxy Resin Pendants - this was harder than it looks!

In this video I tried using nail foils in epoxy resin for the first time - with mixed results! After seeing Claire's Crafty Corner using them in a video recently, I just had to try.
Layer one was JDiction two part epoxy with Vista black pigment added. I then used some nail foil glue and cured it under my UV lamp before adding the foils. To finish I topped them off with UV resin.
This was fun to do and I'm looking forward to exploring nail foils more, and hopefully getting better at it. There are so many designs in the packs I bought that I probably never need to buy more!

[@ClairesCraftyCorner]

Mary these are beautiful 😍 my guess as to why the edges didn't stick is simple the fact that the mould has those awkward angles I can imagine it's like resistance around the edges and the foil naturally just rising back up where theres more foil. Its like lining a baking tray with oven proof paper its nice a flat in the middle for ya chips but its not clinging to the corners does this make any sense at all 🤣🤣🤣🤣.. its the only logical explanation still ... they are sooooo beautiful 😍

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thank you so much Claire. I am looking forward to trying an abstract trinket tray or coaster with the foils. There are endless possibilities with all of those designs!

[@appleoneill5135]

These are beautiful. I have found that some foils work much better than others. Thank you so much for sharing. I love your tutorials x

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thanks so much Apple. I'm glad to hear that some foils behave better than others!

[@rechellethackray]

As the creator of an or many art pieces, you see each and every 'flaw', may I say as a viewer, I think they look absolutely stunning ❤

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thank you so much Rechelle. I think we all will always see the flaws, when I put something out on the internet, I find myself wanted to get in there first and point out the flaws because if I don't, I know it will get pointed out in the comments! The joys of being on You Tube!

[@rechellethackray]

@@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417 Yes, unfortunately that is true. Wouldn't it be lovely if all people were just kind. Not over the top, just kind. Either way, your artwork is gorgeous 😍.

[@mlfett6307]

Nicely done! I like that you've shown that you've had some challenges with these - it gives hope to those of us who also have challenges in our creations. What I would probably do when faced with imperfections in the foiling is to add other things (glitter, rhinestones, and other small embellishments) to cover those areas before adding the final uv resin coating.

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thanks so much for watching. Adding gems is a fantastic idea for those tricky areas that didn't work so well - thank you for sharing that great tip :)

[@resincreations]

They came out beautiful Mary. ❤

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thank you so much. I've since made another video trying the same thing but using a slightly different method and the results are much better

[@doreenrosario9808]

These are lovely!!

[@dalemaclaren7576]

They look gorgeous Mary❤ Thank you so kindly for sharing your wonderful talent and videos with us all ❤

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thanks so much Dale. I'm glad you enjoyed watching :)

[@resinartists]

Beautiful pendants, Ms Mary.I didn't find any messed up piece in these.Keep up the Beautiful crafts,Ms Mary💜💖👌

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thank you so much. I'm so happy that people like them :)

[@mizzuzie3338]

Lots of great advice here! 😃 I have recently bought the same mould, lots of foils and a bunch of pinch bails and I totally blaim Claire too! Three weeks until my holiday and hopefully some time to try it myself. I even got the same hand drill and it's brilliant!

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

I can't wait to see what you create with them. I wish I'd known about pinch bails earlier but I discovered them 9 months ago. They're so useful!

[@NicolaNicholson]

These are amazing . I have to say, my favourite is the galaxy one....Thanks so much Mary, I will definitely be using my nail foils to try this :)

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

I'm glad you like them :) I've done this again in a second video but I used a slightly different method - I filled the mould and took the pendants out and added the foil to the flat side that was on the bottom of the mould. I got way better results that way

[@judiemerson1625]

Very cool! I use nail transfer foil on my polymer clay and had the same problem. But I found out that if you rip the transfer foil off quickly , like a band-aid or body hair wax, it worked great! Leave enough foil over the edge so you have something to grip your fingers on and rip it off super fast! I don't know if it'll work, but it's worth trying. I've been making faux polymer clay ceramic flower beads like this and boy do they look like the real thing. Thanks so much for the idea. I have to try it now!

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thanks so much for the great tip Judie. It's such a fab idea doing it on polymer clay. I dabble a bit with polymer clay but the whole flower cane process feels a bit daunting to me, even though I love the results, but it had never occurred to me to try nail foils on them. There is something so satisfying about seeing miniatures isn't there? I don't do that myself, but I love watching other people make them :)

[@tammytoth5874]

Beautiful ❤❤❤ and I have just received a ton of those foils. Now I know what to do. Thank you ❤

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

So happy the video helped. Good luck with your nail foil projects :)

[@heatheradkins-ix8zb]

Thanks for the tutorial 😊

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

You're very welcome. I've actually tried it again but filling the mould and taking the pendant out first, and that gave better results. The second video has been live on my channel for a while

[@hillarygroundwell2807]

They are lovely and thank you for sharing

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thank you so much Hillary :)

[@SoulfulVeg]

I do nail art. I thought of using some of my foils,since I wasnt able to master them with my nails. And I'm pretty good at new techniques. Thanks for sharing your ups and downs. Foils are a but of a challenge.

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thank you for watching. I have some ideas of what to try differently next time, and I think the main thing I'd do differently is that I will pour the pendant, demould and add the foils to the front of them rather than the back.

[@Coyo-Tea]

I think they came out beautifully Mary, I had enough troubles with foils on my nails so not brave enough to try with resin yet. I would happily buy any pendants that looked so pretty ❤

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thank you so much for your kind words; I really appreciate it :) Hope you have a lovely weekend x

[@eyecu382]

I've made clear thin templates of all my pendant moulds as I like to back them with nail foils and I just cut round the templates I need. x I apply the nail foils with the pendants already demoulded instead of fiddling about with the moulds. x Also a very very thin layer of the nail foil glue and only cure for 30 seconds bofore you apply the foil.

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

I actually made another video trying this again but taking the pendants out first and I got a much better result. I also found that adding the foil to the wet resin and curing it with the foil attached also gave me a cleaner result.

[@fedrasdesigns7]

Love it Mary❤

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thank you; I'm so happy you like them. I had a play doing some more a couple of weeks ago and I'm getting better at gauging the right amount of UV glue and got really nice results :)

[@sarahthurlby3556]

hey mary id also got the idea from claire and now yours deff going to give it a go as i have some foils xx

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

That's great Sarah! Good luck :-) I will be having another go at it this week myself and hopefully that will be the video for around 17th February

[@JenniferPallone-nl8ul]

I found that some of the foils work better as a cutout (like you would do with a film piece) and placed on a resin base with clear cover still attached, then just dome over the entire thing and no missing spots in the foil.

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

That would certainly give a smoother result!

[@zarinaanwar869]

beautiful work

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thank you :)

[@koroushtajdini9837]

Hi I dont use glue . I use a thin layer of uv-resin. I have no loss of foil by pull it off. this way is very good for transparent nail foils. have a nice day

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thanks for the tip. I struggled getting a thin enough layer of resin with the viscosity of the two brands of resin I have, I posted an updated video trying this again with the glue, but I took the pieces out of the mould and added the foils to the top. I got far better results that way

[@koroushtajdini9837]

@@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417 Hi, if you like i can make a short video to see you how i do it. thank for answer. regardes ps: sorry for my english

[@dawnr714]

The heart's my fave and the round one second!

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

The heart is my favourite too :)

[@loriwargo9271]

foils can be very tricky. I have heard a lot of people say to let it sit for a minute or two after curing the glue and it gets stickier. there are foil glues that air dry and they are a cream color going on but dry clear. it is a good way to make sure you have covered it all. normally when the design has transferred the foil will lift up or let go. if it is still stuck all you can do is keep rubbing until it lets go. Also for areas where it didn't stick you can go back and tap and pull to fill in the empty spots. I hope this helps. These are still beautiful.

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thank you so much for those really helpful tips. I've never been somebody who has bothered having their nails done so everything I know about nail foils has come from just 3 You Tube videos! I've had some really helpful comments under this video so I'm sure next time I try this I'll get better results :)

[@loriwargo9271]

same here. I have never had my nails done and now can make gel nails on my own thanks to youtube.@@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417

[@marinariquelme4081]

Wow good thinking had now Idea you could do that and it looks so good love it going to do it thank you

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thank you so much. I only knew about it because of Claire's Crafty Corner - she shares so many amazing techniques on her channel :)

[@dshe8637]

Very nice

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thank you :)

[@joannapavel2803]

I just came across your video. I would suggest taking the resin pendants out of the mold and then putting the foil on them. It gives you full access to the pendant and makes it easier to get full coverage. You can then dome them with the UV resin. And since you are drilling after everything is cured, you won't have to create holes in the foils beforehand. I would also try Deco Foil Transfer Gel. I have found that the nail foil glue isn't adhesive enough on resin or polymer clay.

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

That's such helpful advice - thank you so much :)

[@Petertronic]

Another lovely set of creations, I thought the flowers and nebula were especially good. I wonder if it's possible to demould after the first layer, apply the foils outside the mould, then put them back in the mould for the upper resin layer? 🤔

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thank you Peter. I probably could try it that way; that's how people attach foils to nails. I need to experiment more once I've stocked up on resin :D

[@nancysepic]

I use the gold leaf glue. I then topcoat with resin

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thanks a great tip, thank you

[@looseskullsscrafts]

Oh really interesting video, strange how those foils just wouldn't stick to the sides, but I do love the effect, I think they all turned out beautiful. Thank you for sharing!

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thank you so much for the lovely comments. Next time I'm going to remove the pendants from the mould and try adding the foils on the bottom because that's the intended "right side" and the edges are slightly rounded so I shouldn't have the same issue. I do risk making a mess of top-coating them, but I'll worry about that part once I've mastered the foils :)

[@fotojeny]

😍

[@toughtimes6596]

I just use uv resin for foils. Never had to use glue 🤔. Cure first layer so its still slightly sticky. Apply foil, rip off and dome 👍 I have had foils that don't work as wel though, so it may be the brand too. l

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

I actually like the control I get with the nail glue brush (it's essentially just UV resin but with a brush). I had another play over the weekend and realised the trick is to use exactly the right amount of the nail glue. Too much and it goes wrinkly as it cures, too little and it doesn't grab the foil properly. The other thing I did differently was to make the pendants then demould and paint the glue onto the front rather than the back. I think the results are much better.

[@texasmarshalls]

Please do more with foul on earrings maybe with wooden blanks?

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

I definitely need to revisit this technique. I keep getting distracted by other things!

[@BeccaL2016]

Cool vidoe! What do you do with those resin products that don’t work? Do you just threw them away?

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thank you. I never throw away anything because I either do another topcoat and try to add more nail foil on top, or I can use the chunks as filler pieces in deep moulds when I'm using black resin. I recently got some new bits for my Dremel so in theory I can also sand down and engrave resin pieces into other abstract shapes as well. I have a tub full of "seconds" just waiting for me to do something with them.

[@dawnr714]

I couldn't get my foils to work. 😟 These are great! 💙💜👍

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thanks Dawn. I had another play over the weekend and realised the trick is to use exactly the right amount of the nail glue. Too much and it goes wrinkly as it cures, too little and it doesn't grab the foil properly. The other thing I did differently was to make the pendants then demould and paint the glue onto the front rather than the back. I think the results are much better.

[@rhondagover9237]

thanks for that, I haven't tried this yet. Do you think they would be easier to put on if they were out of the mold first? I have no idea it is just a thought.

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thanks so much for watching. Yes, I do think that next time I will pour the pendants fully then demould and add foil to the tops rather than the back. The shape is slightly nicer when you use the bottom of the mould and I think it will be easier to get the foils on neatly doing it that way round. The top coat will need to be done carefully but I will see how I get on

[@levmania]

They are gorgeous. Nail foils are difficult to use. I think if you know you are gonna struggle to get full coverage you can be more relaxed with them. Even when I used to do my own nails I struggled with them.

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thanks so much for that Lev, it makes me feel a whole lot better! I made some pendants with leftover resin so I have a blank canvas to try again

[@levmania]

@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417 I like surreal and abstract art so I'm OK with them not doing full coverage and just having bits spread around

[@ownsacat]

I like them. Mine never hardly ever come out perfect. so often I have problems with the UV resin. These look better then mine I can tell you that. LOL. I am subscribing if I can get the button on my tablet here. Going to be one of those days

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thanks so much for commenting. I've had quite a few people tell me that they've struggled with getting these perfect, so it's been really helpful to hear that. I hope you can continue to improve yours. I'm definitely going to demould before adding foils next time because I think the mould was hindering this attempt

[@kimberlyhowey4452]

I poured the whole pendant first and then put a thin layer of UV resin and put the nail foil on top of that, it worked I did not have the issue of the raised edges😊 11:10 😊😊😅😅

[@kimberlyhowey4452]

Sorry I forgot to mention that I put another layer of resin on top

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thanks for that. It's definitely going to give a smoother finish doing it that way

[@charmedlife7758]

Any issue with yellowing on that top coat? Just wondering. Nicely done!!

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

I haven't seen any yellowing as yet, but it's only been a few months

[@adelewashburn3744]

I think they look lovely, shame about the nebula one but it still looks ok xx

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thank you so much Adele :)

[@WizardKitty723]

Nice

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thank you so much :)

[@llamasugar5478]

I’m wondering if the stuff you brushed on was too thin. You started on the left each time, so maybe there wasn’t enough left by the time you got around to the right? Doesn’t matter-they’re all so pretty. The wonkiest one might be my favorite!

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

I think you're spot on; I definitely didn't use enough of the UV nail glue. I used it for another project over the weekend and it worked really well, so it was definitely user error in this video!

[@chriscoulson1118]

Mary, I love these! Could you explain how to use uv resin instead of foil glue?

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thanks Chris. When I used the UV resin I put a thin coat on, cured it for about 2 minutes then applied the foil in the same way, and cured it again for about a minute. I think the nail glue is essentially just UV resin but in a bottle with a brush, so they work the same way

[@chriscoulson1118]

Thank you! I would think it would be cured too much for the foil to stick, but I'll try it!

[@kathleensmalltowngirl8357]

Wondering why you didn’t take them out of the mold first? You wouldn’t need to cute a hole then.

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

I think I said in the video that I wanted to keep them in the mould so it would make the clear top coat easier, so I left enough space for the clear to go over the foils. I've since made another nail foils video where I filled the mould then took them out before adding the foils. I got far better results that way but I really don't enjoy freehand top coating with UV resin.

[@VickyShawcooksalot]

Sime fouls need a brushing of acetone before applying to the nail. Could be what your problem with that one foul is.

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Thank you, I'll try that next time :)

[@flutefun999]

It has been my understanding (and experience) that epoxy resin does not bond well with UV resin. So how did it go with you putting epoxy on the first layer and UV on the last layer long term??

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

I haven't had any issues so far, but so many people on You Tube top coat epoxy resin with UV resin, so I always assumed it's ok. I will keep an eye on my early creations and see how they hold up.

[@Joani161]

I would take 29 Celsius vs 37.7778

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Yikes, that's really really hot :(

[@Joani161]

It is and some places are even hotter with high humidity.@@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417

[@2468661]

Pidiam traduzir né??

[@coelegioiellimulas625]

Sono bellissimi 😍brava

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Grazie mille x

[@shamaliwatthaladeniya4506]

What is that foil?

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

It's the foil that nail artists use. I bought mine from Amazon but if you search for "nail foils" you will find a supplier of them near you. They tend to come in packs that have loads of different colours and designs. It is a two layered foil, the bottom layer is what sticks to the UV resin / nail glue and when you peel it off the clear top layer comes away from the design. You can also just embed the entire foil into clear resin if you wanted to but there's a risk it will curl

[@WikidlySexz]

Could you please post where you got that really cool mold!!

[@marymcintyresfxartcraft7417]

Hey, I got it from Amazon - it's this one: tinyurl.com/4bncf75m But there are many other similar pendant moulds on Amazon