I haven’t scrubbed YouTube or the entire blogosphere, so it’s likely others have previously come up with similar techniques and tools. Still, I find that even obviously useful items like binder clips become even more essential in the workshop when used in some non-obvious way. I hope that maybe these posts will make someone’s crafting experience just a little more efficient, a little less frustrating, or maybe just more fun.
OK, on to the first tip: keep a number of silicone muffin baking cups around your hobby space.
I saved four or five of these little individual silicone muffin cups that my wife added to the charity shop donation pile. Both crafters and bakers know that almost nothing sticks to silicone, but I’ve found craft-specific silicone mixing cups a bit pricey. Silicone baking cups seem cheap and plentiful however, at least in my experience. I think we paid maybe $5 US (in 2015...) for a pack of 16.
Use one of these cups to mix your acrylic paint; when you’re done with your brushwork, turn the cup inside out to pop the dried paint right into the garbage. Do the same trick when mixing up putties, waxes, or resins.
OK, on to the first tip: keep a number of silicone muffin baking cups around your hobby space.
Use one of these cups to mix your acrylic paint; when you’re done with your brushwork, turn the cup inside out to pop the dried paint right into the garbage. Do the same trick when mixing up putties, waxes, or resins.
Glues like PVA also come off the muffin cups with no effort, once cured. Super glue supposedly comes off silicone easily, according to various references, but my silicone/CA glue experience is mixed. I recently spilled a few drops of CA glue in a silicone cup and then tried to remove them once cured. One blob of cured CA glue popped right off, but the other blob refused to let go, tearing away a small chunk of the cup when I pulled. So, with CA glue, who knows? I recommend against using a cup like this with super glue, or at least using a barrier like aluminum foil.
The malleability of these cups make them great for controlled pouring of liquids or powders, like the baking soda shown here.
Finally, after an easy clean-up the cups nest together for compact storage.
Finally, after an easy clean-up the cups nest together for compact storage.