More Art Making On Distant Shores.......

Bloody hell...what am I doin' on this blog??? Where's me rum?

Alright Mateys, say you be shipwrecked on a spit o' land with only yer jar of gel medium and a swatch o' canvas and yer trusty dagger (a.k.a. palette knife).....

Sands and Dagger Club....

And on that same island you be shipwrecked with the lurvley Cap'n Jack, and he be runnin' out of rum. (ye knows how he gets....)

Why is all the RUM gone???

And so yer thinkin', maybe if I makes him a nice VALENTINE with me gel and some of this here SAND (Budgie Grit) and that pocketful of white sand (decorator sand) I brung back from *The Locker*, the dear Capn's humor will improve.....

The essentials for all Art Pirates....

What say ye??? AYE???

I thought so! So we be using the sands of the isles and putting two types into one heart mold.

Arrrrgggh! Where did this scurvy dog come from? Have he the Black Spot?

That little guy looks like trouble...I'll keep an eye on him.
Working with Budgie Grit or sand is one of the times you will have to mix and pack your mold quickly. The natural tendency for both items to draw moisture away from the gel means the working time is less, as is the drying time.
This is good and bad....good because I hate waiting for things to dry, bad because I need to mix each item separately and then have a bit in the middle where they meet that blends. 

Initial gel packed into mold.

Once you have something that looks like the above (and you can put the white sand at the top if you want, or one on each side...) then take a bit of the leftovers from the initial mixing and fill the middle, then use the palette knife to swish it about a bit. That will set it with the other two gel mixes, and they will be getting a bit of a crust quickly. Don't worry--this works pretty easy. Just have everything ready FIRST, savvy?
When you pull the mold, it should look like this....

Wet gel with sand and grit.

 And then when dry, you'll be able to see the different colors of the grit/sand, like this....

Nice definition of the two different additives.

 And as for this little fellow, me thinks I be keepin' an eye peeled on him. For I believe he be making another appearance with this heart before all this Piratey business be through.....

Who be lookin' at WHO??? He seems up to no good.....cursed, no doubt!

 Now head fer ye posts and don't make me keel haul ye!
ARRRRRGGGGH!!!!