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You can check with your craft stores for resin. Make the molds using different color for the different cells.

Cell Model Ideas

How about making shrink film cells? Just take a piece of shrink film, draw the cell on the film with markers, then put it in the oven to shrink it! The shrunken pieces become thick pieces of plastic! You could even make the model three dimensional by shrinking several plastic pieces, then fitting them together. PolyShrink film (such as http://www.escapadedirect.com/polyshrinkt.html ) works great! Do a Google image search for the cells you want to model to help you with your drawing. Shrinky fun!

I hope this helps!

I like the shrink film idea ! :-)

Here are a few other options that you can combine in any way you see fit [some can be used as is for the various organelles within] :

* styrofoam or thermocol

* nuts, bolts, screws

* rods, pipes, straws, toothpicks

* threads, yarn, twine, string, gimp, ribbon

* scrap fabric, netting, mesh

* crumpled paper, etc.

* biscuit & cookie molds [the plastic ones in which they come wrapped]

* cookie cutters

* pencil erasers - as is, or sculpted to any shape you want

* beads, buttons, glitter, sequins

* dried flowers & herbs [as in a potpourri] & twigs

* plastic molded cups & plates, etc.

* wood chips/shavings

* papier mache

* pasta in diff shapes & sizes & colors

* walnut shells, peanut shells, etc.

* sea shells

* whole grains [eg. kidney beans for Golgi bodies?]

* seeds & whole spices

You can even make the main body using transparent take-away containers or molded wrappings that come along with cakes, biscuits etc. You can fill it with gelatin solution [use food colors if you don't want transparent cytoplasm] within which will float all the organelles.

Add : Place a sheet of plastic [or cling wrap or greased foil...]. Use PVA glue to make any kind of webbed or mesh structures - including part of the cellular wall or neuronal/vascular network. You can add simple poster paint to the glue before laying out your mesh. Allow it to dry completely; then simply 'peel' off & you have a beautiful 3D network that can be used as required.

Hope this helps too

Have fun :-)

Hand sanitizer is good; petroleum jelly might be a little thicker, at least if you have to move your model from place to place. In fact, if you buy A&D ointment, which is a diaper rash ointment for babies, that would be a thick form of petroleum jelly. Might have a smell, but that won't last long.