We've popped together the best resin kits for beginners in the UK. Resin crafts have surged in popularity as a fun and versatile craft you can make at home. Resin is accessible to buy, eco-friendly and a great craft material for beginners to make loads of crafts at home. If you know someone who is an avid hobbyist, a resin kit and moulds could make an inspiring gift for a crafter.
Resin (or in full, Epoxy resin) is a two-component mix made up of a resin and a hardener. By simply mixing the two together, a chemical reaction causes the liquid resin to gradually harden into a solid plastic. You can buy your epoxy resin kit online or in your local craft store. We've listed some below that you can buy online today.
Best resin kits at a glance:
• Best epoxy resin kit for beginners: Epoxy Resin Clear Crystal Coating Kit – Buy now on Amazon UK
• Best pigments for resin: Epoxy Resin Pigment - 24 Colour Liquid – Buy now on Amazon UK
• Best for resin mould for letters and numbers: Letter & Number Casting Moulds – Buy now on Amazon UK
Home-crafters use resin to make a huge variety of things. To name a few, you can create paperweights, frames, jewellery, coasters, hair clips, buttons, napkin rings, ornaments, keyrings, doorknobs, trays, dishes, tealight holders, trinkets and pendants. Take preserved flowers into a new dimension and cast them in a resin paperweight.
You can also use it to add a high-shine gloss coating to work surfaces, pictures and other homemade crafts. This crafting material is super versatile and easy to make; it's a great idea for craft projects.
Best resin kits for beginners
Best epoxy resin kit for beginners
Amazon/SigWongEpoxy Resin Clear Crystal Coating Kit is an easy mix resin that dries crystal clear and rock-hard in 24 hours. Use it to make resin art, jewellery and more. It's suitable for beginners and the kit includes detailed instructions.
Customer review: "For a cheap resin it worked surprisingly well and it’s ideal for people who are new to resin to experiment with before committing to expensive brands. I would use this again."
Pros
- Easy to mix
- Non-toxic
- Ideal for beginners
Cons
- Small amount of resin, so not ideal for larger projects
Best resin for crafters
Jarrolds/Pebeowww.jarrolds.co.uk
Pebeo Gedeo Crystal Resin is a quality product for crafters who have some experience with epoxy resin. It's available in 150ml, 300ml and 750ml quantities so it's a great choice if you're planning a batch production craft project.
Pros
- Use as a varnish and protective coating
- Ideal for jewellery making
- Solid and translucent
Cons
- No reviews
Best pigments for resin
Amazon/SigWongEpoxy Resin Pigment is a highly concentrated liquid dye that dries translucent, adding a rainbow of colour and glitter effects to resin creations. The dyes are environmentally-friendly, non-toxic and odourless. The possibilities are endless with this value for money set.
Customer review: "These are really good and easy to use the colours are bright and have a translucent appearance. Lots of compliments on the pieces I have made using these pigments. Would highly recommend."
Pros
- Amazon's Choice
- Huge range of colours and glitters
- Skin safe
- High gloss
- Non-toxic
Cons
- Smells strongly
4.
Tray Mould
Best resin mould for a decorative tray
This Tray Mould set contains everything you need to create an epoxy resin tray with two gold handles. In addition, use pigments to create a geode effect, so when it's dry it resembles a slice of highly reflective crystal.
Customer review: "It's excellent quality and can certainly handle being used over and over again! Will definitely buy again."
Pros
- Amazon's Choice
- Unusual gift idea
- Easy to use
Cons
- Smaller than some customers expected
Best resin moulds for coasters
Make your own square, rectangle, round or heart-shaped coasters with these reusable Oversized Coaster Moulds. In fact, the versatility of these moulds is not limited to coasters, make flower pot mats, decorative items and personalised keepsakes.
Customer review: "Really pleased with these moulds, exactly what I needed to make my resin signs. Easy to take hardened resin out and easy to clean."
Pros
- Good value
- Easy to unmould
- Quality
Cons
- Scratched moulds transfer imperfection on to the resin
Best for resin mould for letters and numbers
AmazonThe Letter & Number Casting Moulds are high quality silicone moulds with 26 letters and 10 numbers so you can create personalised gifts, such as keyrings and jewellery. Tools and glitter are also included in the set.
Customer review: "So happy with this product! Excellent value for money and so easy to use. Just starting up using resin so these were the first moulds I bought. The kit comes with so much! So I spent the whole weekend making keyrings🙂"
Pros
- Positive reviews
- Easy to use
- Great for beginners
- Good size letters
Cons
- Customers comment that the keyrings broke
Best resin bookmark mould
AmazonMake meaningful personalised bookmarks as gifts with the 26 PCS Bookmark Epoxy Resin Mould. The silicone moulds are easy to use and clean, so you can create whole batches of bookmarks. Also, a range of coloured tassels is included in the set. Larger sets are also available.
Customer review: "Very happy with the moulds. The depth of the mould was good allowing the bookmark to cure and be solid unlike other moulds I had used."
Pros
- Amazon's Choice
- Great value for money
- Easy to de-mould
- Range of tassel colours included
Cons
- Customers comment the tassels fell apart
Best resin jewellery mould
Amazon/shynekshynek Open Bezels for Resin is a 60-piece set of jewellery frames that can be used for earrings, pendants, handbag charms and more. Fill the open frame with small objects, such as shells, and then add resin to set your design in place.
Customer review: "Great quality. Much better than I was expecting."
Pros
- Amazon's Choice
- Value for money
- Versatile
Cons
- Customers comment the frames leaked
Best resin crystal mould
Etsywww.etsy.com
With three styles to choose from, the Large Crystal Resin Silicone Mould could become a repeat purchase. Make stunning bespoke resin geometric crystals that can be filled with decorative objects and even lights.
Customer review: "Great product. The stone came out beautiful."
Pros
- Etsy Star Seller
- Range of moulds available
- Create unique crystals
Cons
- Delivery charge
Best resin shell mould
Etsywww.etsy.com
This best selling Ammonite Silicone Mould is versatile and can be used with plastic, soap and wax as well as epoxy resin. Customers are resoundingly positive about the product for its quality and ease of use. It's perfect for your creative side hustle.
Customer review: "Great detail, just what I wanted. Excellent service, would recommend this seller and will definitely be buying from them again."
Pros
- Four sizes available
- Best seller
- Multibuy discount available
Cons
- Choose the glossy option for epoxy resin
What do you need for resin crafting?
All you need for resin crafting is:
• PPE equipment, which includes: nitrile gloves, safety goggles and a mask - make sure to work in a ventilated room.
• Epoxy Resin Kit, containing: resin and a hardener
• Mixing Sticks & Containers
• Moulds
• Any additives or colourings you’d like to add!
How do I mix my resin kit?
Mix an equal amount of resin to hardener in a mixing cup. Stir well for 3-4 minutes. Then, pour your mixture into your mould. Make sure to spread out the mixture in the mould - to remove and pop any air bubbles. You have around 45 minutes to make your craft - before it begins to harden!
The resin can take 24 hours to set so wait patiently before removing it from your mould and sanding down the edges.
How do I customise my resin design?
Coloured resin
While the epoxy resin comes out clear, that doesn't mean you can't add colour to your mix. To add colour, use alcohol inks, acrylic paint or special epoxy dyes like the below. We'd also recommend being sparing with your colour drops - a little colour goes a long way! Experiment with mixing and create a unique finish for custom designs.
Additives for your resin
You can customise your design by adding things to your resin to make it even more dynamic and give that extra pizzazz. Some great options to add can be:
• Glitter
• Threads
• Gold leaf
• Charms
• Ink
• Sequins
Use old craft supplies from around the house or off-cuts from other crafts to make sure nothing goes to waste.
Resin craft ideas for beginners
We've listed some fab resin craft ideas for beginners that are super simple to make including bookmarks, a terrarium, fairy pendants, coasters, letter keyrings and hair clips.
These are all fun crafts you can make to have in your home, gift to friends or family or even make to sell!
Resin crafts are booming on Etsy at the moment.
Bookmarks
Terrarium
Coasters
Letter Keyrings
Hair Clips
Where can I buy moulds for my resin?
A key part of making your resin craft is having a mould to cure it in.
So long as the material of your mould is flexible enough to eject your finished product, you can use candy, chocolate or baking moulds you already have around the home.
Alternatively, you can easily buy resin moulds online or try your hand at making your own.
Need inspiration?
As resin crafts are booming at the moment, there's no end to the inspiration you can find on social media, from home crafters to people who have turned their passion for resin into a business.
Eleanor Weaver is the Deputy Homes & Garden Product Editor for Yours, specialising in home décor, furnishings and appliances. Having worked commercially on Yours magazine and Yours.co.uk for the past six years, she's previously hosted Yours Live events and loves looking for home inspiration online.