turtles

Every year, 6.4 million tonnes of plastic are dumped into the ocean, killing over 1 million marine animals. A My Plastic Footprint turtle is created from 2.7 grams of single-use plastic waste, and represents one of the many animals lost due to plastic pollution.

 

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I need to make 9,339 plastic turtles to represent my annual plastic footprint. 

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Until I have the opportunity to exhibit the turtles somewhere (and have created enough), I'm posting photos of individual turtles to Instagram. 

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  • Instagram

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Shop

Turtle prints are available to purchase on Redbubble. 

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Plastic turtles are not for sale as they will be used in a future exhibition.

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make

Step 1: Pick the right plastic type

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After some trial and error while experimenting with different plastic types, the turtles are made from Low Density Polyethylene (LDPE). This plastic types has a relatively low melting point and emits little in the way of fumes when heated.

 

Some plastic types should never be melted at home because of the toxic fumes they emit.

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Step 2: Gently heat to soften

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Because LDPE plastic is generally light, it can get blown around if not weighed down when put in an oven. Including an initial melting step (before working with a mould) helps create a more manageable plastic material.

Step 3: Pick a mould

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Picking a smaller mould helps to get a more uniform finish. When I tried using some bigger moulds, the plastic didn't melt evenly.

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I get all my silicone moulds from Crazy Nature.

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The moulds pictured have been used a lot but are still going strong.

Step 4: Shape into moulds

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This step involves a bit of back-and-forth from melting to moulding, until the plastic fits the mould correctly. 

Step 5: Remove from mould

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Make sure the plastic is cool before you remove it from the mould. Taking it out too soon will destroy the smooth finish. There will be some bubbles - this is the nature of the plastic used.