Is Powder or Liquid Pigment Better for Resin? How To Decide

Whether to use powdered pigment or liquid pigment in your resins has been up for debate for a while now in the resin art community.

This can make it challenging to figure out which one is better and which one you like the most.

Is powdered or liquid pigment better for resin? Powder pigments are cost efficient, come in a range of colors, and are easy to store but can be difficult to fully incorporate. Liquid dyes allow for good control, disperse well, and are ideal for achieving bold colors but do not store as well as powders. 

What are the benefits and cons of both of these pigments? Which are the best pigments to use from both sides? What else can you use to color your resin with?

You’ll find the answers to these questions and more in the following.

Powder Pigments For Coloring Resin

Powder pigments are used in many different aspects of the arts field, and they can be very useful in getting a unique look in your resin projects.

Let us have a look at some of the benefits as well as a few of the disadvantages of using powder pigments to color your resin.

We will also look at two of the best powder pigments on the market that you can use to color your resins. 

Advantages of Using Powder Pigments

Powder pigments do have some advantages over other options. Let’s go through some benefits of using powder pigment.

First, powder pigment is generally cheaper to buy compared to other resin pigments.

Powder pigments also have a longer shelf life compared to other resin pigments as they do not have anything in them that can deteriorate making the pigment useless.

In addition, powder pigments can be ground into a very fine powder, giving the powder the ability to create a nice, naturally shiny effect in the resin. 

Powder pigments are easy to use and mix into resin, making for a great user experience for the artist, and they are easy to store for later use.

Disadvantages of Using Powder Pigments

Powder pigments do come with some disadvantages as well; let’s go through some of them so you can decide whether powder pigments are the way to go for coloring your resin.

Powder pigments do not always mix thoroughly into the resin; this can make for a bit of a blotchy look in sections of the resin.

They could also give your resin a granular look, which some people do like, but not everyone. 

Because powdered pigment does not always mix thoroughly into the resin, the color may not be as bright or light as you want it to be.

You can only buy powdered pigment in a small quantity, so if you have a big project or want a nice rich color, then you may need to purchase multiple packs of pigment. 

Powdered pigments are also quite tricky to mix together to make custom colors for your art.

Best Powder Pigments for Resin

Mica powder is a well-known pigment that is used by many resin artists.

This powder is a natural, safe, nontoxic product that gives your resin a unique shine that many people love.

Some powder pigments are better than others when it comes to quality and color, so here are some excellent quality powder pigments that are considered to be the best for resin. 

Hemway Pigment Powder

Hemway Pigment Powder is a color pigment that is available in many different versions.

This particular brand offers the standard color style as well as a matte, fluorescent, and even metallic style that has a good amount of shimmer to it. 

Baltic Day Pigment Powder

Baltic Day is another good powder pigment that is used to color resin.

This particular powder pigment is nontoxic as well as 100% natural, and it is also friendly to the environment and cruelty free.

This pigment is a strong pigment that does not fade or change over time, and you’ll be amazed at the 60 colors included in this set.

Liquid Pigments for Coloring Resin

Liquid pigments are becoming very popular among resin artists, and there is a reason for this.

Let’s go through the benefits and the cons of using liquid pigment in your resin.

Advantages of Liquid Pigments

Liquid pigments have some advantages when you use them to color your resin; let’s have a look at a few of them.

Liquid pigments can be perfectly dispersed into the resin, which impacts the strength of the color in the resin, meaning that the color is deeper and richer when you use a liquid pigment.

You do not need to use a lot of liquid pigment to get your desired color as the pigment mixes really well into the resin, so one bottle of pigment can be used for multiple projects.

The liquid pigments are easy to use and mix into the resin. 

You have plenty of control with your colors when using a liquid pigment, and they are easy to mix together to create custom colors.

Disadvantages of Liquid Pigments

Liquid pigments do have their disadvantages as well, so let’s have a look at a few of them so you can decide if this pigment is for you or not. 

The liquid pigment does not have a long shelf life as its components can start to separate after a while.

You can give them a good shake to mix them back together, but this can affect the color of the pigment and make it less durable as time goes on. 

As the liquid pigments come in bottles, they can be a bit difficult to store as they need to be kept right side up, and you cannot place anything on top of them.

The liquid pigment is generally a more expensive option to use to color your resin.

Best Liquid Pigments for Resin

Just like with the powder pigments, there are some liquid pigments that are better than others, so let us go through the best options that are available to you. 

Let’s Resin Epoxy Resin Pigment

Epoxy liquid pigments by Let’s Resin are an excellent choice as they are relatively cheap compared to other liquid pigments, and they are superior in quality.

They also have a large variety of color options and styles to choose from.

With this particular set, you’ll receive 18 vibrant colors that will mix easily together to create your desired shade.

Let’s Resin Alcohol Ink Set

Alcohol Inks are a good way to color your resin; they are a liquid pigment that leaves the resin with rich saturation and excellent effects.

Let’s Resin makes rich, saturating color easy to achieve with their 18-Pack Alcohol Ink Set. These inks are a bit thicker than other alcohol inks, so a tiny bit will go a long way.

If you prefer heavily saturated color and cool effects in your resin are, these inks are perfect.

Things To Consider

To start with, you should have a general idea of how many times you are going to be coloring resin.

If you are only going to be using the pigments every once in a while, then you may want to choose a powdered pigment as it stores better. 

Another thing to think about is what you want the look and style of your resin to be.

Some people like the granulated look that powdered pigments bring, and others prefer the saturated and sleek look that liquid pigment offers. 

What are you using the resin for? If you are using it on a wooden table, then the granulated look of the powdered pigment may add a nice texture here. 

Related Questions:

Conclusion

Which pigment to use is completely up to personal preference, and there is no right or wrong answer; as long as the pigment works for you, then keep using it.

Both pigments have their good side and their bad side, but they are both still a viable way to get a good color saturation in your resin.

The only difference between them is their shelf life, the amount that you need to use, and how easy they are to store.

Sources:

https://acrylgiessen.com/en/mica-powder/

https://balticday.com/blogs/news/how-to-color-epoxy-resin

https://www.artresin.com/blogs/artresin/what-can-you-use-to-color-clear-resin

https://resincraftsblog.com/color-resin/

Epoxy & Resin Pigments