Pigmenting Silicone?

[LittleTreasure]

Hey guys, I'm sorry if this is an obvious or already solved question. I have decided to embark on a new project - a silicone tail - and I am not sure about materials.

Do you have to use specially designed pigments (Like Silc-Pig pigments from Smooth-On) to tint or color Dragonskin silicone? Or could I use a paint? I have some Pearl-Ex pigments I want to use already, but I wonder if that will be enough to keep my tail from being too translucent. Looking on this forum, some have done experiments at least with Createx paint. Is that a good substitute for something like Silc-Pig pigments? I will have to start doing scale experiments eventually once my molds are ready to go, but I want to waste as little material as possible. O,o; Also for a poor college student who would probably need to use multiple pigments to get my desired effect, Silc Pig is....hella expensive. :/ So. Yeah.

Thanks for looking!

[Mermaid Melanie]

I used createx paint mixed in to part B of the silicone then mixed A and B and added paint thinner ( so it could be airbrushed on ) after a few layers the colour builds up and it sets fine ... i think pearl ex needs less pigment though I find I'm putting in what seems to be quite a bit of paint. Pearl Ex seems to go further intensity wise.

[PearlieMae]

A little Pearl Ex goes a long way, and it can be very opaque...pearly, but opaque.

[Raayvhen]

Yep. Pearl ex is great. I highly suggest you check Pearlie Mae's Tailmaking thread.

[Kishiko]

I used pigments from tkbtrading.com (http://Www.tkbtrading.com) with my latex top. The pigments are gorgeous and there are over 250 colors and shades. They are also less expensive than pearl ex. Mermaid Wesley is also using these for her silicone tail! They are pure mica pigments(: Also, they're customer service is awesome! I forgot to create an account when I checked out so I wasn't able to track my order, I emailed them about it and though they weren't able to link the order to an account, they offered to add a rush order to it For FREE! hope this helps (:

[Mermaid Wesley]

Yep yep! They're gorgeous! I might have to order some more actually and I'll be going back to tkbtrading

[LittleTreasure]

Thanks for your quick responses! I am actually going to be using a similar method to PearlieMae's with her prior permission. I just hadn't seen much info about it in a while and hadn't been able to find it again! Thank you again. :)

[PearlieMae]

Always test, first!

That's my mantra!

Also, be careful when using artists' pigments, whether from TBK or the art store, because you never know what they might use to get a particular color (sulphur IS a pretty yellow!), and it may cause cure inhibition.

Test! Test! Test!

[Mermaid Wesley]

Thanks pearlie :)

[Kishiko]

Always test, first!

That's my mantra!

Also, be careful when using artists' pigments, whether from TBK or the art store, because you never know what they might use to get a particular color (sulphur IS a pretty yellow!), and it may cause cure inhibition.

Test! Test! Test!

Great advice pearlie! Deffo always test!

PS. The ones from TKB aren't artist pigments, they're actually for like makeup and soap and cosmetics, so I haven't seen any of them that contain sulfur or other chemicals like that. That would be HORRIBLE for your skin! And they seemed to work just fine for my project and I love the colors!

[Aziara]

I just went look at those pigments--so many colors! All of the colors include an ingredient list if you click on them, and all the ones I've checked so far are minerals safe for skin use. Shouldn't interfere with silicone curing.

[PearlieMae]

Cool! I'd love to try some in my next tail!

[lasserine]

How are the color changing pigments? The purple/green one does peek my interest.

[Atlantisblue]

I spoke with tkbtrading and they said the only micas that have sulfur are the ultramarines or anything that contains ultramarine. I'm going to buy some other colors from them and give it a go

[PearlieMae]

Yeah, ultramarine pigment will mess up your silicone!

[PaolaMF]

how much amount of diluent necessary? to be added in Part B with pigments? diluents such as naphtha or tuolene? thanks