How To Resin Charcoal

October 12, 2018

Covering a charcoal drawing in a coating of ArtResin is easy - in fact, epoxy resin takes charcoal art next level, sealing and protecting it with a professional looking finish and a glossy sheen that makes it pop!

We love using wooden art panels here at ArtResin - you can mount your artwork and pour your resin directly on the panel! Some panels even have a raised lip specifically designed to contain resin - they make for a super easy pour with clean edges.

Measure, mix, pour, spread, cover and wait, and in 24 hours your charcoal drawing will go from good to gorgeous!

Let's get started ....

Supplies:

A 12 x 12" wooden art panel
a charcoal drawing sized to fit the panel
spray sealant safe for charcoal
glue stick or spray adhesive
ArtResin epoxy resin
A pair of nitrile gloves, a stir stick and spreader
a level
a measuring cup with easy to read measurement lines
a mixing container
a handheld torch like our Artist's Torch
toothpicks
an empty plastic tote or cardboard box with the flaps cut off to protect your piece while it dries

Check out our resin art tools & accessories!

Steps:

1. Complete Your Charcoal Drawing

Complete your charcoal drawing on paper sized to fit the panel. You can work freehand or trace your design, as we did.

Resin Charcoal - Complete your Charcoal Drawling Resin Charcoal - work freehand

Seal your artwork using a spray sealant safe for charcoal.

A Note On Sealing:

We always recommend testing your particular materials out with ArtResin on a scrap piece so you know exactly what to expect before you resin your final project. There are certain cases, however, when sealing your work prior to resining is required ....

Sealing over low quality paper. It's a good precaution to seal when applying ArtResin over soft or low quality paper that may otherwise absorb the resin, causing dark, wet spots in your work or causing your work to bleed.
Sealing over loose material. With a medium like chalk pastel or charcoal, or when resining over a loose material like glitter, you want to be mindful of loose particles that might get mixed up and float away in your liquid resin. For peace of mind, you can certainly err on the side of caution and seal your artwork first - use a spray fixative rather than a brush on sealant.
Sealing the wood panel. Being an organic material, wood may contain trapped air which can release into your resin as bubbles. There are many variables that can affect gas bubbles: the type of wood, how dry the wood is, humidity etc. Sealing wood with a spray or brush-on sealant (or even painting them with acrylic paint) is an option to help to prevent bubbles. We've used these wood panels enough to know that we don't need to seal them, but we always recommend testing with your particular materials so you know exactly what results to expect before you resin your final project. Again, if in doubt, you can never go wrong by sealing first if it makes you feel more comfortable.

Resin Charcoal - Pre-sealing wood with a spray or brush-on sealant

Mount your work directly to the panel using adhesive. You can use either a brush on glue, a spray adhesive, or a glue stick as we did. Just be sure that the surface is coated evenly. For best results, smooth the drawing out with your hands or a brayer to ensure that it's evenly mounted to the panel, with no air pockets.

Resin Charcoal - Mount your work directly to the panel using adhesive Resin Charcoal - spray adhesive or a glue stick Resin Charcoal - smooth the drawing out with your hands or a brayer

2. Calculate How Much Resin You Need

Using our Resin Calculator, simply enter the length and width of your piece to determine how much ArtResin you’ll need.

💡 TIP: a standard 1/8" or 3 mm coating for a 12" x 12" panel requires 5 oz resin (2.5 oz resin and 2.5 oz hardener). Measure the lip on your panel as they can vary. The panel in our video, for example, has a 1/4" lip. In order to fill it to the top, you'd use double the amount: 10 oz total resin (5 oz resin and 5 oz hardener).

Resin Charcoal - Calculate how much resin you need

3. Stir Thoroughly

Wearing gloves, measure accurately (by volume) precisely equal amounts of resin and hardener. Stir thoroughly for 3 minutes total, ensuring you scrape the bottom and sides of your mixing container as you go.

💡 TIP: for our very best measuring and mixing tips, read the blog How To Measure And Mix Resin And Hardener.

Resin Charcoal - Wearing gloves, measure accurately

Resin Charcoal - Stir thoroughly for 3 minutes total

4. Pour The Resin

Pour the ArtResin onto the centre of your piece and spread it out to the edges using a plastic spreader or a popsicle stick. You'll have about 45 minutes of working time before the resin gets too thick to work with.

💡TIP: Read our blog How To Pour And Spread Epoxy Resin for more resin tips and techniques!

Resin Charcoal - Pour the ArtResin onto the centre of your piece

5. Use Your Torch

Using your Artist’s Torch, hold the flame a couple of inches above the resin surface just long enough to pop the bubbles, keeping the torch moving from side to side at all times.

💡 TIP: if you're nervous about using a torch, don't be! Read our blog with all you need to know about How To Use A Torch On Epoxy Resin.

Resin Charcoal - hold the flame a couple of inches above the resin surface

Resin Charcoal - keeping the torch moving from side to side at all times

6. Final Check Of Your Artwork

Once the piece has been torched, look at the resin in the light for any missed bubbles, tiny hairs or bits of dust, using a toothpick to fish them out. With a plastic tote or a cardboard box ( with the flaps cut off ) cover your piece and let it sit for 24 hrs until it’s dry to the touch.

Resin Charcoal - Final Check of your Artwork

7. Wait 24 Hours

After 24hrs has passed, reveal your piece!

💡 TIP: the resin will be dry to the touch at the 24hr mark. At this point, you're free to hang and admire your artwork on the wall, absolutely, but if you're planning on packing and shipping your artwork, please wait at least 72hrs until the resin has fully cured.

Resin Charcoal - After 24hrs has passed, reveal your piece

We hope you found this informative and helpful!

Do you want to learn more about using resin on different surfaces? See below our how-to tutorials:

ArtResin: Made For Artists, By Artists.

About the author: Joanne Wright

I'm Joanne, the Content Manager at ArtResin. Originally from Canada, my home is now Indianapolis, Indiana. My love of all things creative and my entrepreneurial heart means I’ve worn many hats over the years including fashion producer & stylist, retail store owner, t-shirt designer, and even vegan baker! I am...

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