What is Cloisonné art and how is it made?
Cloisonné is a classic inlay technique used to embellish metal surfaces. Thin metal strips or gold wire are shaped into designs, creating small compartments (cloisons). These compartments are filled with vibrant enamel paste, and the whole piece is baked to harden and set it to a glossy, colorful finish.
Northern California artist Teri Haggerty has created a modern twist on the cloisonné technique with her "Cold Cloisonné." She uses copper wire and tinted epoxy resin to create both realistic and abstract designs. This modern resin method doesn't require baking and can be applied to various surfaces beyond metal, offering greater versatility than traditional cloisonné.
In this tutorial, Teri demonstrates how to create a freestyle geometric design using resin and copper wire. She guides you through her four-step process:
• Prepping the wire design
• Tinting and applying the resin
• Sanding
• Applying a clear resin topcoat.
Ready to begin?
Watch the full video tutorial:
What You Need For Cold Cloisonné
• A base: Teri uses a wood panel with gold foil paper, surrounded by wire to contain the resin. FRP fiberglass board is also an option.
• Painter's tape
• Copper wire (preferably soft)
• Wire cutters
• Needle nose pliers (straight and bent)
• Flush wire cutters (for precise cuts)
• Cyanoacrylate Super Glue (liquid enough to seep under wire)
• A pencil (to mark cuts)
• Compressed air (for cleaning the surface)
• 10 ml syringes (optional for resin measuring)
• ArtResin
• Disposable nitrile gloves
• Mixing cups & stir sticks: one for each color plus clear
• Colorant (Teri used ResinTint)
• Artist's Torch
• Dust Cover
• Random orbital sander with 80 grit sandpaper
• Shop vac
• Sanding mask & safety goggles
• Level
Step 1: Prepare the Wire Design
While traditional Cloisonné is applied to metal or enamel, resin can go on a variety of surfaces, including metal, glass, wood, tile, ceramic, or fiberglass. The most important factor is that the surface is completely flat.
In this tutorial, Teri uses a wood panel mounted with gold foil paper, surrounded with 18-gauge aluminum wire to contain the resin.
💡 TIP: Instead of gold foil, try non-porous papers like Yupo. Add permanent colorants like acrylic paint, acrylic ink, or alcohol ink sealed with Kamar varnish. Teri finds that using a colored base adds depth to clear or light resin work.
Teri also enjoys using 1/4" thick FRP fiberglass board. Fiberglass is a forgiving surface—it’s easy to clean, and resin or glue drips can be wiped away, and any misplaced wire can be removed without damaging the surface. You can find fiberglass boards at Home Depot or online at McMaster-Carr.
The first step is to lay out your design. You can either create one on your computer, print it onto parchment paper, and transfer the ink by placing it face down on your board and burnishing.
Alternatively, freehand your design directly onto the board in pencil. For her piece, Teri used basic guidelines to start. When creating geometric designs, she recommends varying line sizes and shapes while leaving larger spaces for resin play.
While you can buy "soft" wire, Teri prefers to anneal (heat) her copper wire with a propane torch, making it more pliable for shaping. She demonstrates her process in her YouTube video Cold Cloisonné Wiring, (4:44–8:14).
Alternatively, skip the annealing step by using aluminum wire, which is easier to shape right out of the package.
Teri carefully marks the wire with a pencil before cutting it with flush cutters to ensure a clean, straight edge. For the best results, she ensures the cut wire fits snugly against other pieces, creating a tight, seamless connection.
To adhere the wire, she applies a tiny amount of glue and gently guides it under the wire with an Xacto knife.
💡TIP: For clean 90-degree corners: start by cutting the first piece a bit longer than needed and glue it down. Then, butt the second wire tightly against the first, trim any excess, and glue it. This method creates sharp, precise corners for your design.
Freestyling your wire shapes can be a lot of fun! Teri creates smooth curves by wrapping wire around a metal dowel, forming organic, fluid shapes. This technique adds variety and flow to your piece, creating an interesting contrast with the geometric designs.
Once she finishes wiring, Teri selects clear resin drips from her scrap pile and carefully glues them to the board. These pieces will accentuate the gold paper below when the final resin layers are applied, adding depth.
Teri also glues leftover bits of copper wire to enhance the design, creating unique textures and an extra layer of dimension in her artwork.
Step 2: Apply the Tinted Resin
Prepare the ArtResin by mixing equal parts resin and hardener, as directed. For this project, Teri mixes five small cups, each with 10 ml resin and 10 ml hardener, for five color options: clear, grey, gold, and two shades of white.
💡 TIP: Teri uses syringes to measure small amount of resin and hardener, one syringe for each, but you can also find small plastic measuring cups online.
Be sure to tape off any areas where you don’t want resin, then start applying it to the background. Teri likes to work in stages, leaving gaps between colors to avoid them blending together.
Torch after each application to remove bubbles.
Let the first layer cure for a few hours before adding resin to the connecting areas. Teri applied a second layer of resin tinted with two shades of brown (Burnt Sienna & Truffle), allowed it to thicken up, and is now ready to apply her final coat of gold.
Feel free to play at this point. Don’t worry if you don’t fill the resin right up to the height of the wire: you’ll be adding a coat of clear resin that will fill in any voids. Similarly, don't worry if you cover the wire with resin: the entire piece will be sanded down after the resin cures, exposing the wire once again.
Teri recommends cleaning up resin drips while they’re still wet. However, if you're working on a fiberglass board, you can clean drips easily after they've cured.
Finally, allow the piece to fully cure (72 hours) before sanding.
Step 3: Sand
Sanding is a key part of the process: it not only evens the surface out, but it makes the copper wire glow. It also prepares the surface for the final topcoat of clear resin, which adds depth and protects the wire from oxidation.
Teri uses a random orbital sander with 80-grit sandpaper. The surface will look scratched after sanding, but don’t worry: once you apply the topcoat, the resin will fill in those scratches and create a beautiful finish.
💡 TIP: Take your time—sanding an 8.5" x 11" piece should take around 45 minutes. Be careful not to sand more than half the thickness of the wire. Since the wire is softer than the resin, excessive sanding could cause damage.
If some spots don't sand all the way through, Teri recommends using an X-Acto blade to gently remove the excess resin, exposing the wire.
💡 TIP: After sanding, wear gloves to prevent oils from your hands staining the exposed wire.
Step 4: Apply the Resin Top Coat
Next, prepare the ArtResin for the final top coat.
If you're unsure how much ArtResin to use, enter your panel’s dimensions into our Resin Calculator.
For example, Teri's panel, with a bordered area measuring 8.5 x 11", requires approximately 50 ml of resin and 50 ml of hardener.
Wearing gloves, measure equal amounts of resin and hardener into a graduated mixing cup. Stir well for 3 minutes, making sure to scrape the sides and bottom of the container to ensure thorough blending.
Ensure the piece is level, then pour the resin over top of the surface, using a spreader to guide it to the edges.
Use a torch to pop any bubbles, and then cover with a dust cover for at least 24 hours until dry to the touch. The resin will fully cure in 72 hours.
After 24 hours, once the resin is dry to the touch, you can handle your piece of art and even hang it on the wall. However, if you want to package and ship your art, you will need to wait the full 72 hours for the resin to fully harden.
Here is Teri's final piece!
We hope you feel inspired to try Teri's Cold Cloisonné technique and create a piece of artwork of your own!
A huge thanks to Teri for sharing her techniques and tips with us!
To see more of Teri's art:
Follow her on Instagram: @haggertyteri
Watch her YouTube tutorials: @terihaggertycoldcloisonne7191
Please leave any questions or comments below :)
ArtResin: The Original Epoxy For Resin Art.
