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I'm trying to make some Turkey Day wine charms that someone posted in a thread earlier this week and I am not having terrific luck.
Let me tell you how I did it and then you all can tell me where I've gone wrong. First, I'm using white shrinky dink paper from Mike's. Second, I'm using pigment ink (don't have any Staz On) and I thought that since I was heating the paper that it would heat set the ink (wrong).
I set the cut out image on a cookie sheet and put it in the oven at 250 and watched it like a hawk. One piece curled under and the other curled up. I thought I saw that I could flatten them manually so i removed them at this point and tried to flatten them but failed.
The good news is: Once I wiped off the ink, I dropped one and the cats are having a field day with their new toy.
Is there a VIDEO tutorial of this...not exactly of the wine charms but of stamping with shrinky dinks all together? I've only been able to find written tutorials and I think I need to see it done correctly.
ANY input would help because right now, I'm coming up goose eggs and it's a week till Turkey Day!! Thanks, all!
__________________ Sophia I got a reality check but it bounced.
It's normal for it to curl - and usually it will uncurl again itself.
It's funny you found the ink didn't set - I quite often use Brilliance, because I have more colours in that than StazOn, and I've always found that it was fine - so long as I didn't smudge it while cutting the shape out before shrinking. Like Kat, I use a heat gun, with my plastic on a silicone mat, and a spare wooden block for flattening them after shrinking.
Keep trying - it's such fun when it works, and once you've mastered it you'll find the next time much less stressful.
Hopefully I understood what you said, when its in the oven, it will curl and uncurl IN THE OVEN. You cant take it out when its curled or it will harden like that. So, it will curl, then watch, it will uncurl, you can then take it out and I usually just put a wood block/stamp on top of it, to make sure its flat.
Lightly sand your plastic both ways first before you even stamp it. I havent made any in a long time but I dont even think I used any special kind of ink. I also just colored with pencils, before it went in the oven that is
I too use the heat tool for my shrink plastic, I also put it in a shoebox lid to keep it from going all over the place too. After it's shrunk, I'll take the back of a mount and flatten it out a bit more.
I'm trying to make some Turkey Day wine charms that someone posted in a thread earlier this week and I am not having terrific luck.
Let me tell you how I did it and then you all can tell me where I've gone wrong. First, I'm using white shrinky dink paper from Mike's. Second, I'm using pigment ink (don't have any Staz On) and I thought that since I was heating the paper that it would heat set the ink (wrong).
I set the cut out image on a cookie sheet and put it in the oven at 250 and watched it like a hawk. One piece curled under and the other curled up. I thought I saw that I could flatten them manually so i removed them at this point and tried to flatten them but failed.
The good news is: Once I wiped off the ink, I dropped one and the cats are having a field day with their new toy.
Is there a VIDEO tutorial of this...not exactly of the wine charms but of stamping with shrinky dinks all together? I've only been able to find written tutorials and I think I need to see it done correctly.
ANY input would help because right now, I'm coming up goose eggs and it's a week till Turkey Day!! Thanks, all!
I use alcohol inks for coloring the plastic. The clear works better. Rememember it's going to get darker as it shrinks. the metalics by ranger worked good also.I didn't like the finished results of other media on them
I put a timer on them,1 min'sfor small pieces,2 min .'sfor bigger pieces, i flattened them out w/ a stomper from my canning set right away. make sure U punch a big hole in the plastic it will shrink 60%.I keep sewing needle on the table * insert it while hot so the hole doesn't close up U have to experiment w/ them,then they are more fun to play with
__________________ I luv to cut,color & paste.I must not gotten enough of this as a kid. This is my excuse to play w/ my toys in my room. It's cheaper than therapy!!!
I've only ever used the Stazon and colored with Sharpies. And the others are right, it curls in the oven but then it uncurls. You have to leave it in there.
Wow! I woke up this morning to a whole page of great Shrinky Dink advice!
I didn't realize it would "uncurl" itself, I thought I was supposed to attempt to do that myself so when I try it again, I will leave it in the oven until I see it uncurl. Also, I did try using my heat gun instead of the oven but that just seemed to make it curl and squish together in a way taht I didn't think could be fixed but I will give it another shot with the heat gun, too.
I wanted to mention that the shrinky dink paper itself is almost glossy and I wondered if I purchased the wrong kind and that's why my ink wasn't sticking.
Off to try, try again! Thank you for the wonderful input!
__________________ Sophia I got a reality check but it bounced.
Wow! I woke up this morning to a whole page of great Shrinky Dink advice!
I didn't realize it would "uncurl" itself, I thought I was supposed to attempt to do that myself so when I try it again, I will leave it in the oven until I see it uncurl. Also, I did try using my heat gun instead of the oven but that just seemed to make it curl and squish together in a way taht I didn't think could be fixed but I will give it another shot with the heat gun, too.
I wanted to mention that the shrinky dink paper itself is almost glossy and I wondered if I purchased the wrong kind and that's why my ink wasn't sticking.
Off to try, try again! Thank you for the wonderful input!
If your shrinky dink is glossy and the ink doesn't seem to stick to it after you heat it, take a light grade sand paper and sand the sheet lightly in both directions it should help the ink stay after heating.
I shrink mine shrinky dinks all the time with a heat gun. It helps if you hold it in place with a paper piercer or other tiny object. Get the gun nice and hot first, then point at your shrink image. It will start to curl, but will flatten out in another 30 seconds or so. When it's just about flat is when I usually stop. I use Palette inks and the ink is always dry when I'm done.
Operation Shrinky Dink was a success!! I took all the advice you all gave me and everything I've done has turned out perfect!
I did switch from pigment to dye inks because when I did it with the pigment it WOULD NOT dry, even after sanding and everything.
Thanks to everyone for your advice!! It really helped and I'm so glad it's worked out. This is the most fun ever!
Thanks for posting your end result! I was wondering about this, and have always wanted to try shrinky dinks, but was afraid. So...now that I have seen your end result and it's working, I will give it a try!!
__________________ Leeci ------------------------------------------------------------------- God sometimes lets life turn you upside down so you can learn to live right side up.
Leeci - the only thing I would change is that I could only find the white shrinky dink paper and I wish that I could have found the clear. I think the clear would have worked better for what I was doing.
I looked @ Mike's for clear but they were out.
__________________ Sophia I got a reality check but it bounced.
I have worked with Shrinky Dinks in the past and I have found that the easiest and fastest trick is to print the designs from your PC. I had to make thousands of charms and printed sheet after sheet. I cut each design out with sharp sissors. To shrink, I used my toaster over set at 300 degrees...I laid a folded brown paper bag on the tray and laid the charms on the bag. Then I put in the toaster over and watched very closely...and yes, they curl then uncurl. When the charms flattened out again, I removed from the toaster oven and laid them on paper towel to cool. Worked like a charm (LOL) and it took me approximately one hour to make thousands of charms. Love this stuff.
I have worked with Shrinky Dinks in the past and I have found that the easiest and fastest trick is to print the designs from your PC. I had to make thousands of charms and printed sheet after sheet. I cut each design out with sharp sissors. To shrink, I used my toaster oven set at 300 degrees...I laid a folded brown paper bag on the tray and laid the charms on the bag. Then I put in the toaster oven and watched very closely...and yes, they curl then uncurl. When the charms flattened out again, I removed from the toaster oven and laid them on paper towel to cool. Worked like a charm (LOL) and it took me approximately one hour to make thousands of charms. Love this stuff.
Did you know that you can use #6 plastic that comes on food items to stamp on and then shrink it? The plastic covers that come on graham cracker crusts come to mind right now as being #6 plastic. I've made lots of butterflies for on cards using this plus other things.
WOW ! Great tip about the #6 plastic ! Also.....I've tried to print from PC on skrink plastic, but it won't load into my printer.....seems it's too rigid to make the "flip" as it enters the machine. Any hints there ?
Happy Thanksgiving to All !
Cheryl
Did you know that you can use #6 plastic that comes on food items to stamp on and then shrink it? The plastic covers that come on graham cracker crusts come to mind right now as being #6 plastic. I've made lots of butterflies for on cards using this plus other things.
Can this be done with a heat gun? I don't like the idea of heating plastic and/or ink in anything I cook food in (no idea if there is any validity to this but the idea is not appealing to me.)
I love shrink pastic!! We made scissor charms using the BigShot with Shrink plastic at the last Quarterly Downline Meeting and I made some earrings with it a couple of weeks ago, see blog post for pictures http://stampinwithk.blogspot.com/200...us-friday.html
Couple of helpful hints:
I have an old toaster oven that I comandeered for craft projects.
Use craft ink.
Purchase Frosted Ruff & Ready Shrink Plastic (I tried to sand it myself, but the ink kept bleeding into the lines that the sand paper left--the "ruffed" up plactic does'nt do that).
Line the pan with cooking parchment paper (I bought it at the grocery store--Reynolds makes it), once the shrink plastic has stopped moving I take it out of the oven, slide the parchment off of the sheet and lay an ink pad down on it to flatten until cooled.
I have used the clear plastic from deli containers also. I put a sheet of tinfoil on my cookie sheet just in case. Also, if you lightly sand the plastic with a very fine grit sandpaper, I am not sure of the number- 100-180 is considered fine, you can use colored pencils to color with. I don't think the deli plastic is as good as the shrinky dink plastic but it still works. I also have a smooth flat metal spatula ready to press it down on the counter, if it needs it.
I have used the clear plastic from deli containers also. I put a sheet of tinfoil on my cookie sheet just in case. Also, if you lightly sand the plastic with a very fine grit sandpaper, I am not sure of the number- 100-180 is considered fine, you can use colored pencils to color with. I don't think the deli plastic is as good as the shrinky dink plastic but it still works. I also have a smooth flat metal spatula ready to press it down on the counter, if it needs it.
Are your plastics labelled with numbers like they are over here. I think I read that in the States it's the plastics labelled with a 6 that can be shrunk, but I'm pretty sure it was 5 over here that I used. And boy, did I have trouble finding it - if it wasn't for a special recycling challenge I'd have given up.
I've posted this all over the internet, and I can't say enough... When you shrink your dinks or shrink plastic... Lay a piece of Reynolds Non-Stick foil down and then shrink it. Reynolds Non-Stick foil won't let anything stick to it. I've used this also with UTEE and everything that I'm melting. It works, after you shrink your shrink plastic take something heavy and smash it down after it's flatten. It's lifts right off, just like the Utee does and anything else that your melting.
arubberstamper
shrinky dinks
Shrinky Dinks
