Challenges of living in Queensland - Heat
Living in Brisbane Queensland has it's advantages but with my resin creations I am limited to only pour when the temperature is right.
The optimal temperature is 25 degrees.
In my little none air conditioned studio, it doesn't allow for me to create all year round unfortunately :(
Disadvantages in the heat - it reduces your working time - I have had resin 'go off' in a short period of time and starts to harden in the mixing cup, then you can't pour with it and it is wasted.
It can take longer to cure - it usually is best to leave items for minimum 7 days for the resin to cure. This can delay creating a large piece, if you need to do several layers.
Living in Brisbane, Queensland has its perks, but as a resin artist, I've discovered that the Queensland heat presents some unique challenges that directly impact my creative process. When you work with resin, temperature control isn't just a preference—it's essential to your success.
The sweet spot for pouring resin is around 25 degrees Celsius. In my non-air-conditioned studio, hitting that target consistently throughout the year is nearly impossible. This means my creative calendar is dictated by the seasons, and there are stretches where I simply can't work on new pieces. It's frustrating when inspiration strikes but the thermometer says "not today."
The heat creates a domino effect of challenges. First, it drastically reduces your working time. Resin has a pot life—the window during which it remains workable after mixing. In hot conditions, this window shrinks dramatically. I've watched resin begin to harden in the mixing cup within minutes, becoming unusable and wasteful. There's nothing quite like the disappointment of losing materials and time to a batch that's gone off before you've even started pouring.
Then there's the curing phase. Resin typically needs a minimum of seven days to cure properly, and heat can actually slow this process down in counterintuitive ways. When you're working on layered pieces that require multiple pours, those extended cure times stack up. A project that should take a couple of weeks can stretch into a month or more, which impacts both my productivity and my ability to fulfill orders on schedule.
It's a reminder that working with resin isn't just about artistic vision—it's about understanding and respecting the material's needs, even when Mother Nature isn't cooperating.