Have you ever given a piece of furniture a makeover only to find, you can’t find suitable doorknobs to finish off the look?   If this is you then this post could be the answer.  Not too long ago I bought some epoxy resin to put on the surface of a wine barrel table that I made. If you buy the resin in larger quantities, it works out so much cheaper, but you also have a lot of resin leftover. I was looking for ideas on how to use it when I can up with the idea for these doorknobs/ drawer pulls. 

How to make Epoxy Resin Doorknobs

Items needed for doorknobs.

**This post may contain affiliate links. Which means I earn a small commission on links used at no extra cost to you. Please see my disclosure policy for more information.** I had ordered some steampunk charms from China which were a lot smaller than I wanted when they arrived, but they would work perfectly for this project.

• Steampunk Charms
• Epoxy Resin
• Silicon Moulds
• Nuts and bolts
• Chopsticks
• Measuring jugs
• Creme Brule torch

Find suitable moulds.

I knew I had some Silicone cake Molds in my cupboards that I had never used because I am a rubbish cook.  But for this project, they would be perfect.  If you are going to do this project the silicone moulds, come in many shapes and sizes so you can be more creative.  I try and make all my projects using mainly recycled materials, so I used nuts and bolts I had in my recycled tin.  The ones you use just need to be long enough to go halfway down into your mould with enough room left over to go through a cabinet door. Make bolt supports. To hold the bolts in place I used wooden chopsticks that I taped together and put the bolts in place and added more tape so that the bolts do not move. You don’t have to use chopsticks, pencils or whatever you have on hand will work. It is a good idea to have this set up ready before you mix the resin, so you have more time to work with the resin.  The head of the bolt should be at least a third of the way into the mould. This will allow for a thick layer of resin needed to withstand all the pulling when you open and close the cupboard and drawers. The add supports on each side of the chopstick to hold them in place while the resin sets. I just used the plastic containers my screws came in.

Add charms to the silicone moulds

Because this was a test run, I wanted to try and make some with steampunk charms and some with unicorn Spit Stain and glaze.  Place the gears randomly around the shape of the moulds.  For the Unicorn Spit ones, I just added a few drops of each colour.

Mix the Epoxy Resin

My epoxy resin is 2:1 ratio so I mixed a small batch of 200 ml resin and 100 ml hardener.  Not all epoxy resins are the same so follow the instructions on the product that you are using. Measuring and mixing the resin correctly is very important or the resin will not set, or it will have a sticky layer along the top that will never dry. While you are stirring make sure that you scrape the sides and the bottom of the containers.  I poured mine into separate containers and then mix them all together in another container. To be more accurate you can use an electronic scale.  I poured my resin very slowly down the back of a plastic spoon so that the gears did not get washed away by the resin flowing in too fast. The unicorn spit in the mould was given a stir to move the colours around.

Add some colour pigment.

I thought the colour of the unicorn spit knobs was too plain, so I added a few drops of resin colour pigment. In hindsight, I did not mix it enough and the colours did not blend as well as I would have liked. So, mix the Unicorn Spit into the resin first and then add the colour pigment. Next, you can add the bolts to the resin supporting the chopsticks on the sides.  Double-check that the bolts are deep enough, and they are centred in the resin.

Removing the bubbles

Once the resin is poured, after a short while you will see lots of bubbles on the surface which will make it look white.  You need to remove theses bubbles, or your project will be spoilt.  For a project, this size you can just blow on the resin through a straw, your breath pops the bubbles but a creme brule torch works better. Just a couple of passes over the resin and the bubble were gone.  Be careful not to scorch the resin. The resin will look clear once all the bubbles are removed.   Then you need to leave your project to dry, some resins I have used, take 12 hours I left mine for 24 hours. To remove the doorknobs from the mould you can just turn the mould inside out and they will pop out. If you zoom in on the image above, you will notice that the edges of the back were a bit rough.  To smooth mine out, I used sandpaper wrapped around a wooden block using 100grit to remove the bulk and 240grit to smooth it out. The doorknobs I made using the unicorn spit did not really work the way I had hoped they would.  There were lots of very fine holes in the top.  I am assuming that I did not mix it correctly.   But the steampunk knobs exceeded all my expectations and I loved them. There are so many uses for these knobs and here are just a few ideas.  The possibilities are endless as to what you can add to the resin.

Ways to use the doorknobs.

They would make great hooks for a coat rack, great for hanging up your necklaces and many more. If you are looking for storage ideas for your jewellery, check out this Jewellery cupboard that I built using recycled materials.  Looking for unique jewellery storage ideas have a look at this vintage display box that I repurposed into a hidden jewellery box. I fitted mine to my buffet unit so you can see how cool they look. I did have to shorten the bolt at the back of the door. If you are looking for any of the items used in this project, please consider using our links. By clicking on the links, we will earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.  Which helps us come up with new and exciting ideas to share with you. Please feel free to share or leave a comment we would love to hear your thoughts.