Plant Based: Alginate Coating Recipe

Scale
Spoon
Blender
Glass jar with lid
Spray bottle (150 ml contents, for the calcium chloride solution)
Acrylic sheet smooth surface to cast the foil onto. A smooth surface will create a smooth matte foil.
A strip of acrylic or squeeguee to push the alginate mixture into place and form an even and flat rectangle
Painting tape to tape down if edges of the sheet start to come off of the surface
Kitchen paper to soak up the water that will be released from the alginate mixture.

Before processing/drying/curing: approx. 200 ml of alginate plastic that can be stored for two weeks and used for any alginate application

Approx. 100 ml of calcium chloride 10% solution that can be used for any alginate recipe

Preparation
1. Weigh your ingredients
2. Prepare the casting surface and find a place where you can leave it for a while, ideally near an open window where there’s air flow.
Mixing and dissolving the ingredients
1. bring the water to the boil
2. optional: substitute part of the water with natural dye if you wish to use color
3. add the glycerine
4. add the agar
5. bring the mixture to a boil while stirring gently, to dissolve the agar.
Cooking the ingredients
1. when the agar is dissolved completely, lower the temperature to 60-80 degrees (make sure it doesn’t bubble), and let it simmer and evaporate water for 40 mins while stirring slowly and continuously.
2. the agar should have the consistency of a light syrup, you should be able to leave a “trace” with you trace your spoon across the pot.
3. If your mixture is thicker it will spread slowly resulting in a thicker foil, if it’s more liquid, it will spread wider, resulting in a thinner foil.
Casting and molding
1. Dip the textile(s) into the hot liquid
2. Take it out and position on the mold, press it down with the second bowl.
3. After an hour, take off the second bowl and let the composite airdry on top of the mold