Hello,
I made a two part mold of the interlocked hands of myself and my dying mother. I used plaster of paris. I first layed our hands halfway into the a plaster of paris mixture in a plastic basin, with mostly my hand in the plaster, until the plaster dried. I then extracted our hands, with just a little pinching by the mold. I then applied vaseline to that part, reinserted our hands, and poured a batter thick mixture of plaster of paris completely over our hands. When dry, the halves separated easily and hands came out of the molds with a little more pinching.
Now I have this precious mold from which I want to make (hopefully) more than one casting (for family). I know something rigid would have to break the mold to be extracted (i.e. because of the pinching). I don't mind casting in something besides metal.
What are the possible options for processes and materials?
My general guesses are:
- make multiple castings from this mold using a flexible casting material (e.g. silicone). or use the flexible casting to make a better mold
- make one casting from this mold using a flexible casting material and use the to make a better mold
- make a one casting using a rigid carvable material and use this to make a better multipart mold. (I'm worried about doing something destructive, though)
- get a computer scan of the mold and use that to make ...
- turn it over to a profesional. What might it cost?
Thanks for any advice, Michael