Demetrius Zeluff wrote:

> If you wish to experiment there are plenty of resources on the www about
> molding with alginate and plaster and silicone.
>
> I can try and dig some out if you're interested. You should be able to get
> a glossy finish from silicone.

Thanks, but I'm interested in buying molds or hiring a mold maker
to make one for me, not getting into mold-making myself.
It's making chocolate that I'm interested in.

OTOH, if I _did_ get into mold making, I think the right way
is to sculpt the original, then coat it thickly with a thermal metal
spray process, saw apart the shell, weld on any hinges or flanges,
grind the mating surfaces absolutely flat so their won't be any flash,
then electroplate the whole thing with compatible metals. By
the time I put that much work into it, the cost of gold would
be small compared to the cost of my labor, so I'd gold-plate
the whole thing.