Creating casts of baby hands or feet - how easy is it really & what advice can you give?

Using the impression powder & casting powder in your home casting kit can take some getting used to & this is why we provide enough material to produce more casts than you should need of a baby's hand or foot up to the age of about 12 months. This creates many more casts than many other similar casting kits giving you a choice of which baby hand/foot casts you display. Here's an insight into how you form a cast of a baby's foot/hand & some of the questions we are commonly asked!

The Creative Casting's Blog has several posts with advice on taking casts as well as more general advice on clay prints & inkless footprint techniques. A summary or the most useful posts as well as links to other casting resources can be found further down this page or click this link text.

Mix the impression powder to create the moulding mixture

Mix the impression powder Mix the impression powder (also called alginate) with water and scrape the mixture into the casting bag. Measure your amounts carefully as this can seriously affect your results. We do suggest mixing a small amount of the moulding powder first so you get the hang of the process.
Is the moulding/impression powder safe for my baby's skin? The impression powder is non-toxic and biodegradeable, so is totally safe to use on the skin. It's more common use is in dentistry and it has been thoroughly tested by this industry. We have all the relevant health & safety data for our materials available on request.
Does your impression/alginate powder change colour? No. We do not use a colour change/chromatic alginate as these are standard off-the-shelf alginates used by dentists. Our impression powder is bagged & prepared for us to our requirements for lifecasting. The colour change can be inaccurate if you haven't mixed quantites exactly as required for a dental impression & a baby's hand or foot impression requires more alginate than this. Also, our impression powder/alginate does not stain the plaster cast - something many chromatic colour changing alginates do.

Make the mould of baby's foot by putting the mixture around baby's foot/hand

Squeeze the impression mixture around the foot/hand & wait until it has set. It only takes a couple of minutes from mixing to setting! The mould can then be gently pulled away from the hand/foot. If your baby has dry skin we do suggest moisturising the limb beforehand but not too much as this can make the moulding mixture slip off the limb!
My mould set too quickly! The time taken for the mould to set varies with temperature of the air and the water as well as the amount of water added. To extend the moulding time you can add a little more water. Also, the colder the water the more time you get before the mould sets.
I keep getting holes in the mould! Make sure you cannot see any of the baby's fingers or toes through the clear casting bag to avoid this problem. If you are struggling with the amount of mix the instructions suggests (if your child has big feet or hands for their gae for example) you can double up giving you more mixture to work with.

Pour the casting powder mixture into the set mould

Mix the casting powder with water and pour into the mould in a steady flow. Always add the powder to the water & allow the powder to absorb the water for a few minutes before stirring gently.
How can I avoid bubbles in the toes? There are several techniques for avoiding this & some are discussed in a post on the Creative Casting Blog. One great tip is to push the brush end of a paintbrush into the half filled mould to help dislodge bubbles deep in the corners.
The casting mix set before I poured it into the mould! Most likely is that you havestirred the mixture too much. This speeds up the setting process so mix slowly & carefully. This will also help keep bubbles out of the mixture.

Remove the mould revealing your plaster life cast!

Peel away the mould a few hours later and your baby hand or foot cast is made! Remember in our 8 cast baby casting kit we provide enough material for at least 7/8 casts up to a 12 month old baby.
FAQ: Can you reuse the mould? No, it has to be broken up to peel it away from the plaster cast so it is not possible to reuse the mold. It is possible to make another mould of a plaster cast with practice. Contact us for advice on this before you attempt it!
I broke off a toe/finger! Keep all your bits & allow them to fully dry out. Once dry, stick them back on with a gel based superglue & touch up with some fresh plaster mix making sure the surface of the cast has been dampened first. Once painted & put in a frame it is likely only you will notice!

Paint your plaster cast to finish

Prepare your finished lifecast for display by levelling the base using a knife if necessary. Then, allow at least 2/3 days for your cast to dry out before painting and/or mounting in a specially made box frame with sufficient depth to hold the hand/foot casts.
FAQ: Help - I need more alginate/casting powder/glue! We sell most of the casting kit components individually or as a refill pack. See our the refill page or contact us for further details.
The bottom of the casts isn't level for sticking into my frame? Flatten off the back of your casts either with a knife or by rubbing it along a piece of sandpaper secured to a flat surface. You can also rub it along a cheese grater for great results!

Further help with baby casting:

Pouring plaster - techniques & advice - information on types of plaster & how to reduce bubbles.

Tips for casting hands - post on reducing problems with incomplete moulds & bubbles in your casts.

Taking a copy of a foot from a plaster cast - not recommended but if you really want to try here are some helpful tips.

How to prepare for a great baby hand/foot mould - advice on preparing for a casting session.

The dangers of casting directly into plaster - recent article on why a safe mould should be made & why plaster should not be used to directly cast babies hands & feet.