Then select the Print Then Cut version, and click “Upload.” You can double-check the outline version to ensure all the cut areas are in the right place. Next, you can use the tools on the left to remove the background from your shrinky dinks image if needed.

DIY Shrinky Dinks:

I used Sharpie markers to trace and colored pencils to color. If they are still really curled and they won’t press down, you can put them back in the oven to bake a little longer. Kids will love seeing their handprint shrink and this makes a perfect keepsake gift for Mother’s Day too! ‌ You’ve just made yourself a pair of eco-friendly, adorable earrings, perfect for Earth Day — or any day, really. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and place the smiley faces onto the paper.

For more great eco-friendly projects for kids (or anyone!), check out these 10 Fun Crafts You Can Make Out of Trash.

If you like, you can spray the Shrinky Dinks with an acrylic sealer to make sure the images don’t smudge. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and place the Shrinky Dinks, ink side up, on the pan. The vintage postcards were perfect for Shrink Dinks, as they have a faded, vintage look. I decided to use some of vintage postcard imagery from the New York Public Library’s digital collection to make my Shrinky Dinks Christmas ornaments. I just loved watching the paper curl up and shrink in the oven. It’s never too early to get a jumpstart on your Christmas crafting.

Cutting Out Shrinky Dinks

This project is a great way to add some festive flair to your accessories collection and is perfect for the winter season. These earrings are perfect for adding a touch of seasonal charm to your outfit, and they make great gifts for friends and family. These pins are easy to make with Shrinky Dink plastic and can be customized with your favorite emojis to express your mood or personality. This is a fun craft to do with kids, as you can create a keychain with their footprint. This one is perfect for all the donut lovers out there!

Start by drawing or tracing your design onto the rough side of the sheet of shrink plastic. Shrinky Dink paper is perfect for creating lightweight, customizable earrings. With the right tools and a bit of creativity, you can create stunning, one-of-a-kind plastic earrings that showcase your personal style. If you’re looking for a fun, easy, and customizable way to make your own jewelry, Shrinky Dink earrings are the perfect project. Pick your favorite emoji to wear or give them as gifts with the free printable “flair” cards. Before we start- I did write up a big blog post with the shrink material I bought and how I do it- plus free tracing treats!

  • Shrink film is so much fun, there’s really a lot of different ways you can create with it – it’s not just for kids!
  • Place the plastic shapes face up with parchment paper on a baking tray.
  • Plastic Shrinky Dinks can be used to create a variety of craft projects.
  • Leaving it as a solid shape will help it shrink better and result in fewer chances to stick to itself.
  • So, gather your supplies, unleash your imagination, and start creating your own miniature masterpieces!
  • The handprint will curl up and then flatten as it shrinks.

How to do Shrink Art, Like Shrinky dinks

There are hundreds of companies that have teamed up with design and printing companies to create printable downloads. It is a lot easier than you might think to create a printable download. Then I dripped ink on the plastic wrap until I liked the combination of colors and the plastic was mostly full of color. Then I cleaned my bowl with rubbing alcohol on a paper towel and removed the sale sticker from the bottom. I started with some sailboat blue drops that I spread out with the canned air. I opened up my laminating pouch, and I chose a rainbow of ink colors.

Homemade Shrinky Dinks Supplies

This will keep your DIY shrinky dinks from sticking to your pan and ruining it. Now you’ll want to arrange your designs on a sheet pan, with a sheet of parchment paper underneath them. And don’t make them too tiny, they might end up sticking together during the heating process (more on this later) Keep in mind, colors will be more intense when the designs shrink up, so use that knowledge to your advantage. Make sure your plastic is really clean and dry before getting started, especially if you’re using old take out containers. That’s why you’ll need permanent markers for this project.

If you create more intricate shapes, a pair of fine-tip scissors may be handy for precision cutting. Once you have finished drawing your designs, it’s time to carefully cut them out. Keep in mind that the designs will shrink to about one-third of their original size, so make your drawings larger than the final size you want.

Bake at 325°F for 1-2 minutes, watching the pieces as they bake on parchment paper. You want to be able to watch the pieces bake as they will curl, and then uncurl when they are done baking. You don’t have to use an ink jet printer—you can simply draw on it with felt-tip pens or colored pencils. Later, large toy companies including Milton Bradley created kits and other products for commercial sale. Shrinky Dinks were invented by Betty Morris and Kate Bloomberg, two mothers who created the craft as a project with their sons for Cub Scouts.

Click "Duplicate" to make another circle slightly smaller to form the inside of the circle. To add a circle to your Canvas, click the Shapes icon and pick a circle to add it to the Canvas. Remember that holes shrink in size as the material bakes, so do not use a starting hole any smaller than .25” or you will likely not be able to use it! Now we need to add a circle for the keyring or keychain to loop through.

For more shrinky dink patterns for all occasions, check these out. There’s something about Shrinky Dinks that pairs perfectly with summer break. I used a purchased printable image from Lindsay Letters 12 Days of Christmas collection on an ornament. For these Christmas ornaments, I don’t recommend printing more than four images per page. Keep those ratios in mind when choosing images for your ornaments. The finished ornaments will be a third the original size of your image, and 9 times thicker.

Take them out when they are pretty much flat. You can leave a space in the unpainted part to put a hole in case you don’t want to put a hole in your image. But if you are kiddos are little, you might just want to do colored pencils for mess sake!