We’ll also need parchment paper and heat-resistant gloves (oven mitts work, too!) to craft safely. The temperature is low enough that harmful chemicals aren’t released, but make sure to follow my settings! Once the DIY shrinky dinks are cut, I’ll show you my best tips for perfectly shrinking your keychains or shrinky dink crafts jewelry in an oven.

FREE printable cards:

Ultimate Shrinky Dink instructions for perfect results every time! What a perfect gift for Mother’s Day or Father’s Day. Another awesome Shrinky Dink craft from Heidi and this is probably my favorite (mainly because I love donuts!). Your tween or teen can create a keychain that expresses their personality and passions!

Cut circles or squares out of the plastic. It’s fun for kids to watch them start to shrink in the oven! We used the frosted version of shrinky dinks, so 1 side is frosted, which is perfect for using pencil crayons.

Shrinky Dinks Materials

Then you can make Shrinky Dinks straight from your computer with special inkject shrink film. Other types of plastic don’t shrink well, turn weird colors or worse — release smelly chemicals. Draw whatever you want on it with permanent markers, pop it in the oven and PRESTO! Use small bins or drawers to organize markers, colored pencils, scissors, and hole punches.

Flattening your shrinky dink

You can also use permanent markers (like Sharpies) to color in your Shrinky Dink creations, however, colors may darken when baked. We used colored pencils to color in our design and it worked perfectly. Colored pencils and permanent markers (such as Sharpies) are the best for drawing and coloring Shrinky Dink designs. It should only take a few seconds to get it to flatten out nicely. Longer, narrow pieces are more likely to curl up and stick to themselves.

They are suppose to curl and then fully uncurl as they bake. You can also use acrylic paint pens or colored pencils. You want to see them curl and then fully uncurl, that’s when they are done.

And since the transformation happens so quickly, it keeps children focused and excited from start to finish. The colors become darker and more vivid, and the final piece is thick and sturdy. You can tie them into holidays, art lessons, gardening themes, dinosaurs, letters, numbers, or even create adorable keepsakes for families. Easy step-by-step ideas, tips, and creative shrinky dink projects perfect for home, daycare, or classrooms.

What To Do With Your DIY Shrinky Dinks

– The colors may intensify slightly during the baking process, so keep that in mind when choosing your color palette for the designs. – While the non-plastic materials may not be as flexible as traditional plastic, you can still experiment with different shapes and sizes to create unique 3D designs. You can also lightly grease the parchment paper for added protection.

• It curled up like crazy but eventually flattened.
• Shrinky Dinks are popular arts-and-crafts plastic sheets that people use to create designs.
• If you are using #6 plastic, or you no longer have the instructions for your store bought shrink film, below is my basic shrinky dinks making procedure.
• The plastic will twist and turn all different ways but once you’ve properly melted it all, it should lay mostly flat.

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and place your designs on top. Use colored pencils on the rough side of the film. Line up the shrink film over your template and tape it down so it does not move. We found the best temperature to cook plastic shrink film is 325°F for 1-3 minutes. Use our free template to create a one-of-a-kind magnet or keychain to show your State pride. Check out this fun list of 25 modern shrinky dink crafts.

Therefore, we’ll make large-sized rainbows so that when they shrink, they’re perfectly sized for those little ears. We know how girls love everything glittery, colorful, and glitzy; therefore, why not turn their favorite things into a fun craft? However, even with the correct plastic, achieving a completely flat shrinky dink can be challenging. By following these steps, you’ll be well on your way to making unique and personalised shrinky dink art!