Sunday, May 17, 2015

How to Bend Acrylic and DIY a Shelf!


I love acrylic shelves. I bought one the other day at the Container store, then I thought I might be able to make one myself. I was right. I was actually able to make it with the help of my dad. My dad is a genius when it comes to working with acrylics, and he did very well with an aquarium pump he created out of acrylic and sold. He taught me everything he knows. Lucky me!

I took a piece of 1/8 inch plexiglass that I got from www.regionalsupply.com, out of the scrap bin. They charge $1.20 per pound, and it is great deal! You will pay WAY more at the home improvement store. I don't think I even paid a dollar for this shelf.

These are the scrap bins:


They sit kind of by the entrance of the store.

You get the piece of plexiglass, and cut it into the size you want. You can use whatever saw you like, just make sure to use as fine a blade as you can. This will make for smoother cut, and decrease the likelihood of chips. 

You then sand the edges. A tip for sanding plexiglass, is that you need to keep the sand paper moist. I did this project with my cute dad, and we used his belt sander. He just misted the sander as we went to keep it moist. This helps stop the plexiglass from chipping. Next, drill holes where you want them to be. When drilling, you need to use a plastic bit, or a forester bit. You get the plastic bit from Regional Supply, and the Forstner bit from Harbor Freight. Go slow as you drill. A white film will develop. Make sure to wait until it cools to break it off.



Next, I am going to share a clip of how we bent the acrylic. We heated it with a heat gun for about 60-90 seconds before we bent it. Sorry this clip is sideways. I don't know how to turn it.



You can see how easy that was. All I had left to do, was pull the plastic coating off, and hang it on the wall!


It is perfect for displaying the darling robot my grandma made for my son before she passed away.


  I have a couple more acrylic tutorials coming your way, so be sure and check back!

Thanks for stopping by.

Have a Happy and Creative Day!

Risa

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