PJTools, the people behind the awesome Impressart metal stamps and jewelry supplies I wrote about before have come up with another cool product!  They have recently launched Bezel Effects.  This new line features high quality products including  special effect paints from French-based Pebeo Paints, Susan Lenart Kazmer's ICE Resin and Amate Studios of Mesa, Arizona's  super range of bezels.


I received their introductory kit for review.  Inside the box were 2 Fantasy Prisme and 1 Fantasy Moon paints, the resin in a mixing plunger kit, bezels, droppers, stir sticks and a small plastic container for mixing the 2- part resin.

The pendants I found in the box shows off examples of the gorgeous paint colors from the extensive range.


Before I let myself loose on the box contents, I watched the 2 minute video on how to make the easiest one of a kind jewelry ever with stunning results.



Verdict?  A super duper product!  I had so much fun, I not only used up the 4 bezels in my kit, I was in great danger of using up my own stash too! The paints come in a variety of colors.  Prisme forms a honeycomb effect while the Moon paint results in a stone like texture. The process is fascinating to watch when I tried out the pink and violet Prisme paints in my box.

Prisme paints
The honeycombing began very quickly but the process doesn't finish for at least half an hour.  Even without the resin, the paint has a slight glossy or opalescent finish.  Resin though will give the final product a permanent protective layer.  The instructor on the video was right, the tiny bubbles disappeared on their own.

The paints are solvent based so how the honeycombs form depends on surface tension, rate of evaporation, space restrictions and also paint pigments. It's important to stir thoroughly according to instructions otherwise the effects don't form.  The paints look thin to begin with and any accidental spills wipe clean if you do it asap. The solvent smell is not obvious unless you are working on several pieces as I was and have your nose close to them!  So best work in a ventilated area if you are production lining your creations!

The paints can be used on any surface.  I tested out the violet Prisme on a glass tile.


The honeycomb cells were smaller on the tile.  The bezel though showed darker rims due to light restrictions.  Here is what the reverse side of the tile looked like.  Once the tile is coated with a thin layer of resin, the choice is yours which side you like best for the front!


All the honeycomb patterns reminded me of stained biological cells! Those of you who studied histology will know what I mean.

The size of the bezels you use will affect the relative size of the honeycomb cells.  I've had a bunch of  tiny heart charm bezel for years. Now I know what I can do to colorize them!


The bottles were generously filled with 45 mL of paint each (about $6.50- $7 per bottle).  A little goes a long way.  So you can certainly go ahead and test on cardstock as I did with the silver Moon paint. This paint is well named as the resulting texture was rather like lunar rock to me!


As pink and violet are not really masculine colors, I opted for the silver paint for the cuff links.  I added nut like metal beads and Swarovski chatons in the middle for a little bling before covering it all up with resin. 


If you look closely at the cuff links set, you'll see tiny bubbles - this was the only design I saw bubbles.  This is not due to the resin.  This is due to me not following instructions!  The paint has to be completely dry before resin is added. Thorough drying takes anywhere from 24 to 72 hours. The cufflink bezels were deeper than all the others I used and needed more time to dry than I allowed.  So the tiny bubbles are from the paint solvent evaporating through the resin layer.  If you're going to add any beads etc, also wait until the paint is dry otherwise you might smudge the lovely effects.

Onwards to paint combinations. I found larger bezels really do the Prisme paints justice. I added several drops of the contrast paint all over the base paint for the next 2 bezels. On the left is pink over violet and the right, violet over pink. 


I also tried the silver Moon paint over the violet and pink Prisme ones.  I used the stir stick to move the two paints around a bit on the left bezel.  Very different yet cool effects.


The pendant below had silver Moon paint over the violet Prisme without any stirring.  The result reminded me of celestial skies so I added a cross pendant before filling up with resin.  This is my favorite piece from all I tried - it is now available in my Etsy store where 100% of the net proceeds will go to cancer research.


I also found the paints to be very forgiving during testing.  These designs are still a go!  The pendant on the left with a filigree and Swarovski crystal had all three paints in it!  The right one had the silver Moon and the pink Prisme where I disrupted the cell structure after an hour.  I then created the swirls in the thickened paint with a piece of wire.  Looks good enough to eat!


The earrings on the left started off with silver Moon paint.  I added transparent purple Swarovski margaritas as well as reddish flat back rhinestones.  The resin then really softened the whole look.  The earrings on the right was the experiment on successive additions.  I added the first layer violet Prisme paint, waited an hour and added the second drop. Love the funky style!


Giveaway
If you'd like to win a Bezel Effects kit of your own,  please make a comment below.  Make sure you leave contact info below if you do not have an online shop or blog.  Check out the PJTools site for more goodies.

Subscribers need to click on the post title to come to my actual blog. Scroll down and enter your comment. Pick Name/URL. If you don't have a store or blog, leave the URL blank.

This giveaway is international.

Extra entries if you become or are a blog subscriber or follower etc. If you also do shout outs about this giveaway, those will count as additional entries too! Please say so in the comments.

It ends in a week's time at 6 pm EST Monday,  November 4, 2013. I will pick the winner randomly and announce the results as soon as possible after. So be sure to leave a contact email if you don't have an online link or make sure you come back and check! Otherwise I will redraw in a week. Good luck!

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