Every piece at The Cozy Collective starts with powder, water and a bit of patience. But getting to this point took quite a few experiments, plenty of air bubbles and a growing collection of pieces for my daughter to colour in!
I thought I’d share a little of that journey, along with what happens behind the scenes when I’m making your pieces.
It all started with a lovely lady who made similar pieces. She mentioned using eco resin, which sent me off researching what it was and how it worked. That led me to gypsum based materials and my first attempts at making something of my own.
Those early attempts? Not quite what I’d imagined.
The plain gypsum I tried was soft, flaky and took days to cure. It wasn’t giving me the solid finish I was hoping for, so I kept looking. Eventually, I found a product through Shein that worked well. Once I realised buying three kilograms at a time wasn’t going to be enough, I found a bulk supplier who could ship to me here in New Zealand.
Then came more experimenting. Working out the right ratio of powder to water, adjusting how I mixed and poured, and figuring out how to get those stubborn air bubbles out.
It was harder than I expected. Plenty of pieces didn’t work out, and being a bit of a perfectionist, I wasn’t exactly thrilled about that!
Ariya, on the other hand, thought it was wonderful. She happily coloured the unsuccessful pieces with her felts, so at least someone was pleased with the situation.
When I finally demoulded a piece that had worked, it was a mixture of excitement, relief and a dash of astonishment. It had actually worked! After all the experimenting and failed attempts, that felt pretty bloody good.
These days, I have a much better rhythm with my eco gypsum.
I start by weighing the powder and water, then mixing everything together. There’s a bit of tapping and fussing to help release trapped air before I slowly pour into the mould, working in small amounts and gently tapping as I go.
Then comes the waiting. Many pieces can come out of their moulds after around 30 minutes, while the more fiddly ones need longer before I can safely release them. I’ve learnt that trying to hurry this part can end in a broken piece and a disappointed face.
Next is my favourite part: demoulding.
I slowly release each piece and get that first proper look at how it’s turned out. Even now, there’s still that little moment of anticipation before the reveal.
Each piece gets checked over, and some need a little sanding. Anything that doesn’t pass my checks goes into the seconds pile, where Ariya is usually happy to help give it a colourful new purpose.
Once a piece has passed its checks and had time to finish drying, it’s ready for its next chapter. That might be getting photographed, joining a display or being carefully packed for an order.
There’s been plenty of trial and error along the way, but the excitement of seeing a new pour come out of its mould hasn’t worn off.
I think that little reveal will always be my favourite part.
Mariska 🤍