DIY Resin Coasters with Sea Glass

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Resin coasters look polished and cool, and are so easy to make! Add something extra special to the resin (like sea glass) to preserve a memory or make a one-of-a-kind gift. Check out this easy tutorial on how to create your own!

resin coasters with sea glass
resin coaster with sea glass

We have the sweetest neighbors. One of our friends who has a place near the beach showed up at our house one day early in quarantine with a huge bag full of sea glass that she had collected. She thought maybe they could use it for quarantine craft projects.

The kids thought they had hit the jackpot. (I mean, they kind of did.)

So we’ve been using this precious sea glass for all kinds of things. And I wanted to find a really cool way to use it to create a thank you gift for our friend. Something a little more than “here, my kid glued this onto a sheet of paper for you.” 😉

Turns out, the size and shape of the sea glass was perfect to include in resin coasters! We made a few for our friend to use at their beach house, and a few for us just because they’re so pretty (and fun to make).

Psst — before you dive in, check out these home decor projects too!

And you can sign up below for our VIP group, where I’ll send more DIY ideas and inspiration right to ya!

glass on a coaster

Choosing the Right Materials to use in Resin Coasters

We discovered as we were adding the sea glass that it really is important to choose the right decorations or materials to use as you’re making resin coasters. For starters, they need to be fairly flat, or they’ll poke up above the surface of the resin in the mold, as the molds are not very deep at all.

We were brainstorming on other materials that would work well, and came up with a few ideas that we might try:

  • dried flowers or petals
  • glitter
  • sand dollars
  • rhinestones
  • string or thread
  • confetti
  • beads
  • buttons

You get the point, right? The things that work the best are somewhat small and flat. Additionally, you want to steer away from using things that are clear or have very little color, as they won’t show as well in the resin coasters. (You can see that some of the clear sea glass doesn’t show as much as the blue or green.)

It’s also nice if they have a bit of weight to them, to help them stay in place as you pour the resin. But that’s not a deal breaker, there are tips to help keep you items down if they start to float upward!

How to Make DIY Resin Coasters with Sea Glass

So let’s make some! Here’s how to create your own resin coasters

Materials

Make Time: 10 Minutes (Plus Setting Time)

  1. Start by making sure your mold is free of any dust or debris. Lay out your sea glass (or whichever material you choose) in your coaster mold to choose the exact pieces that you’d like. Remove them from the mold and set aside.
  2. Measure out your resin and hardener. Follow the instructions on the package for your exact materials, but most often you need to have the exact same amount of each to ensure a firm and complete set on your resin.
  3. Once you’ve measured out equal amounts of resin and hardener, then pour them into the same cup and mix with your stir stick. Make smooth mixing movements and mix for about 3 minutes. If you undermix, your resin will be cloudy.
  4. Pour resin until your mold is about 1/3 full. Then gently place the sea glass on top of the resin. Use your stir stick to adjust the pieces as needed.
  5. Next, pour more resin over the sea glass until the mold is as full as you like. Make sure to thoroughly cover all pieces of sea glass. If your glass wants to float to the surface, use your stir stick to gently press the pieces down until they remain below the surface.
  6. Now allow your resin coasters to set overnight! The next day, remove from the mold and allow to sit for another 24-48 hours to completely cure.
resin coaster supplies
pouring resin
child's hands stirring resin
child making coasters with sea glass

A Great Homemade Gift!

Resin coasters are turning out to be the perfect homemade gift. These went to our neighbor, but we’re already planning ways to create some for teacher gifts, grandparent gifts, and more.

They’re also really satisfying to make, and an easy & attainable project to tackle with kids. Just make sure to have them wear protective gloves if they’re prone to spilling, or have the grownup do the messy parts.

Hope you try out some resin coasters! What would you put in yours? xoxo

DIY resin coasters with sea glass
DIY resin coasters

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resin coasters with sea glass

Resin Coasters with Sea Glass

Yield: Resin Coasters
Active Time: 20 minutes
Additional Time: 1 day
Total Time: 1 day 20 minutes
Difficulty: Easy
Estimated Cost: $20

Resin coasters are easy and fun to make (and they're a perfect DIY gift!).

Materials

  • Resin
  • Hardener
  • Coaster Molds
  • Sea glass
  • Pouring cups

Tools

  • Stir sticks

Instructions

    1. Start by making sure your mold is free of any dust or debris. Lay out your sea glass (or whichever material you choose) in your coaster mold to choose the exact pieces that you’d like. Remove them from the mold and set aside.
    2. Measure out your resin and hardener. Follow the instructions on the package for your exact materials, but most often you need to have the exact same amount of each to ensure a firm and complete set on your resin.
    3. Once you’ve measured out equal amounts of resin and hardener, then pour them into the same cup and mix with your stir stick. Make smooth mixing movements and mix for about 3 minutes. If you undermix, your resin will be cloudy.
    4. Pour resin until your mold is about 1/3 full. Then gently place the sea glass on top of the resin. Use your stir stick to adjust the pieces as needed.
    5. Next, pour more resin over the sea glass until the mold is as full as you like. Make sure to thoroughly cover all pieces of sea glass. If your glass wants to float to the surface, use your stir stick to gently press the pieces down until they remain below the surface.
    6. Now allow your resin coasters to set overnight! The next day, remove from the mold and allow to sit for another 24-48 hours to completely cure.

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14 Comments

  1. These are so beautiful. I don’t live anywhere near a beach, so I was wondering if you can buy similar stones at crafting stores? I’d love to try this and I’m glad now that you gave some suggestions for flat type materials that will fit in the resin molds and not poke out when it’s done. Thanks for the share and the info. You’re great as always.