Crafting with Alistina Studio

Hi everyone! It seems that everybody and their tanty is looking to get into resin crafting these days so of course there's a great deal of interest in finding epoxy resin in Trinidad. I've compiled a list of the local resin suppliers that I've come across so far including the prices advertised at the time of posting. In the interest of being fair to the retailers, I will not be including wholesale suppliers of brands that are sold at retail outlets locally. If you are an epoxy resin seller or if you know of one that should be added to the list, please leave a comment below or contact me via my Facebook or Instagram page. You can find me by searching for Alistina Studio.  Epoxy Resin Suppliers in Trinidad and Tobago (last updated October 2020 by Alistina Studio) Art & More Facebook:  Art & More Location: St. Augustine Brand: EasyCast Clear Casting Epoxy Betty's Tru Kreations  Facebook:  Betty's Tru Kreation Phone Number: 780-3302 Brand: Whitaker Kl...

Hi everyone! I hope the series has been helpful so far in showing you what areas you need to read up on before you start. There are a few more bits of information that I'd like to share so consider this a bonus post. Lucky you! Removal of resin from skin Nothing is foolproof and, despite your best efforts, you may accidentally get resin on your skin once in a while (but you should try very hard to avoid it).  D o NOT use alcohol or acetone to remove resin from your skin.  These solvents make it easier for resin to be absorbed into your body. Sanitising wipes and hand sanitiser may also contain alcohol and should not be used either.  If you get resin on your skin, immediately use the method listed in the MSDS to remove as much as you can and seek medical attention if necessary. It's a good practice to reread the MSDS from time to time so you can remind yourself of the information it contains, in particular the section on first aid measures. You don't want to wait until you...

Hi everyone! I hope you've given some thought to the topics discussed in the previous posts. Today I'm going to discuss the safety equipment you'll need. This is just an overview and is not meant to be a complete account of all the information that is required. You must still do your own research of the subject. Before you start your journey into the colourful world of resin, you will need: 1. A Respirator A respirator with organic vapour filters must always be used from the minute you open your bottles to measure the components, up until you're ready to leave the room. A regular cloth mask or even an N95 mask will not filter the toxins out.  Don't do this. You can find respirators locally at many hardware stores, or online on stores such as Amazon. They come in different sizes and are available as full face respirators or half face respirators. I personally prefer the 3M brand as it tends to be reliable and replacement filters are fairly easy to find.  Ha...

Hi everyone! Now that you've read the MSDS for your preferred resin brands and done a bit of research, we'll get into some of the criteria for choosing a work space.  First of all, you need to make sure you have a well-ventilated work space that's separate from your living area. Resin and hardener can each give off their own fumes but when they're mixed, they create  toxic fumes . These are given off during mixing and curing. Even though most epoxy resins can be removed from their moulds within 24 hours, they still aren't fully cured until a week or even a few weeks later (depending on the brand) and will continue to emit those toxic gases in decreasing amounts until they're fully cured.  Your living room, dining room, kitchen, bedroom and bathroom are  NOT  safe places to use resin. Any room that people or animals spend time in is unsafe for resin use, even if it's well-ventilated. These chemicals can seep into your furniture, curtains, tables, etc. You may...

 Hi everyone! Today I'm going to discuss a topic that's been surprisingly controversial within the international resin community- safety and precautions. Somehow the suggestion that resin should be used with caution tends to offend some people. Yeah, doesn't make sense to me either but anyway... There's a lot of important information to be shared so I'm going to break it down into a series of posts where you can learn about the different aspects of resin safety. This series is not meant to deter you from starting this hobby but rather to encourage you to work safely. Before you start working with any unfamiliar chemical, you need to do your research. Don't expect that you'll know everything there is to know about resin safety from this blog alone. These posts are not a substitute for proper research, nor are they intended to provide medical, legal or any other professional advice.  You need to thoroughly research epoxy resin and the potential dangers involve...

 Hi everyone! I'm the artisan behind Alistina Studio on Instagram  and  Facebook , and I'm from Trinidad and Tobago.  I started my research into crafting with epoxy resin early in 2017 and I spent ages  reading and learning (I literally grew new grey hairs during this period!) until I was finally able to start working with resin about a year later. As you can imagine, it was very frustrating as most of the information I found was applicable to other countries such as the USA and the resources available to potential resin artisans in Trinidad, or even the Caribbean, were limited. I'd always wished that I could've found all the relevant information more easily so, 3 years later, I'm starting a blog in the hope of providing information that a local resin artisan would be happy to stumble upon.  I hope to be able to help you in your journey and to create a community where we can all help each other to recognise our dreams of becoming unique artis...