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Since I've turned into Polyshrink Goddess (you can all just call me Poly), I thought it was time to try and use the package I bought for some reason (probably thinking I had to HAVE EVERYTHING to stamp)....I haven't checked out the technique forum, but was curious about this stuff. I know how it works, just don't see it on any cards?
Was this a fad a ways back and is not used much anymore?? I was planning to use it for tags.
Would anyone care to share their 'shrinking' experiences??
I got my shrink plastic to make swaps for girl scouts. Stamp an HERON (girl scout, state map,(Wis) etc) onto prep plastic, color the bird in shades of blue, punch a hole, add a split ring, bake it, add to a pin & swap with others at Girl Scout events. I am from Girl Scouts Great Blue Heron in Wis.
I got a scissors charm in my last swap which I just love. You stamp a shape (flower, etc) onto the plastic. Add your name to the other side and cut it out, punch a 1/8" hole, add the jumb ring and bake it. Add the charm to an elastic cord with beads, etc. and attach it to the scissors handle and you don't have to worry about losing your scissors at a workshop. (My sister lost her scissors at one).
Add the charm to an elastic hair band (rubber band) and call it a water bottle maker.
Add the charm to earing wire or memory wire with beads and you have a wine glass maker.
Add the charm to a eyeglass ring (O ring) and you have an atena charm for your cell phone.
Add to elastic cord, beads and a claw closer for jean charms.
You can make buttons, earings, pins, charms, jean charms, cell phone atena charms, cell phone hinge (?) charms, drink charms, water bottle makers, scissors makers, family pins, and much more.
Remember to punch the hole and than bake.
I add the jumb or split ring and than bake.
Sandpaper the plastic, than stamp and color in.
Use the correct ink, stazzon or brilliance (if you have 36 hours to let the ink dry) reg color pencils not watercolor pencils.
Some months ago I did a search on the forums and I think I put in shrink art or something like that and came up with tons of information. Try some different things to enter in the search fields and I'm sure you'll come up with lots of information.
Margaret
I used the polyshrink to make tops for pushpins that I coordinated with a stamped cork board, embellishments for little chipboard frames and cards. I have also seen folks who have made dangle bracelet charms - they were very cute. I love polyshrink.
I LOVE the polyshrink! I went to a stamping store and the owner used a tag punch, punched out the tag fron the polyshrink. She then used the heat gun to shrink the tag. this is the cool part...while the tag was hot she used a stamp and stamped the image in the tag. Then used some sort of liquid color stuff in a tube to give a hint of color. It is really cool the way the tags looked after being shrunk.
I used mine to make wine glass charms in class. I used markers and Stazon ink. The only problem that I ran into is if your stamped image is too large it can fold over onto itself and stick. And a long time ago I remember hearing about putting baby powder on it to keep it from sticking.
Love shrink plastic. It's one of my favorite things to stamp on and play with. I've made wine charms and used them in cd shakers, but I usually use them as embellishments on abc (anything but a card) stuff.
I sand, stamp, color (usually with colored pencils, but I have also used markers and future floor wax with pearlex), cut out (also punch hole if needed), then heat. I use my heat gun to shrink it.
here are some examples:
a) cd shaker - I put a little dab of glitter glue on the flipflops after shrinking
b) geckos were colored with pearl ex and future floor wax before shrinking
c) leaf was stamped directly on shrink plastic with brilliance ink
When the shrink plastic is still hot you can bend and shape it to some extent. Carefull when hot. I use a toaster oven, stazon inks or brillant inks, and color pencils.
As for makers, some work. I have seen where people use sharpies.
Always do one first to see how things work out. When it has cooled for an hour or so, run it under water to find out if your makers worked.
I started out doing this for GIRL SCOUT SWAPS. Since the swap gets pin to a hat, etc., I did not want it to run onto the hat if it rained out. Also you don't want your wine charm or bottle makrer to run onto a table, clothes, etc, it it gets wet.
Does anyone know a good source for the new poly shrink that you can run through the printer. I've waited forever for this!! I have several images I'd like to "blow up" then put onto shrink and bring them down to size (they are too small initially to do what I want to do). I saw the laser poly advertised somewhere, but have not found a source for it. And to show my age - my sister and I did poly shrink before they had actual poly shrink - we used cool whip lids and such. I remember the fun we had! Thanks, Cindy
I used mine to make wine glass charms in class. I used markers and Stazon ink. The only problem that I ran into is if your stamped image is too large it can fold over onto itself and stick. And a long time ago I remember hearing about putting baby powder on it to keep it from sticking.
If its curling, that means you didn't heat it long enough.
So if you keep on heating it with your heat gun the poly shrink will straighten out and go flat. Use tweezers and flip it from back to front and then while its cooling you can flaten it some more. I played with it a long time ago, and made lots of things too,,, maybe i should dig it up and play again.
I've found the printer shrink paper in Michael's. It's really fun. Last year I printed the Christmas card family picture that a friend gave me onto the shrink paper and made key rings for the parents. They loved them.
Good luck,
Mo
__________________ "In every job that must be done there is an element of fun. Find that fun and snap the job's a game."
Mary Poppins
Yes I was in many of Marlene's swaps for about the last 2 years. I loved them.
I am in a art to wear swap where I made jean charms. I had fun trying to make them. I am now trying to figure out how to make cell phone charms??
Moheron, I emailed you where I got my heron stamps from. I hope that helps.
Betty_s_k
Hi Betty, the cell phone charms can be made 2 ways. If there is a place to loop them, you can make them just like the scissor charms. If not, use an eyeglass holder end, attach the charms to that, then slip it over the antenna!
good luck!
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Shrink magic
Hi I am new on here today. I love shrink plastic and use it mostly to make embellishments for ATCs. I stick these on with Ranger's Glossy Accents or, make a hole before heating, and attach with embroidery thread, or fine metal chain.
I especially like to use bronze pigment ink on black shrink. My first efforts were with shrinking a crisp bag in the oven about 20 years ago. I ended up with a miniature crisp bag and made dozens of them into brooches for a summer fair. I think they have changed the materials now though as ones I tried recently just melted.
I love the polyshrink. I stamp my image with stazon, cut or punch it out. Then I color them with the chalks and a blender pen. It doesn't look like much at first but then they are heated, the colors are so vivid. I also heat mine with my heat gun instead of putting them in the oven. It works great. You do have to put something in the hole you punched to hold it in place otherwise the air from the heat gun will blow it all over.
Rochelle
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Yes, I use the heat gun now. It is much quicker and more fun to watch the developing embellishment. I hadn't thought of holding it still with something through the hole. What a useful tip. Thankyou Shutterbug. Now I can stop chasing it around the room.
Yes, I use the heat gun now. It is much quicker and more fun to watch the developing embellishment. I hadn't thought of holding it still with something through the hole. What a useful tip. Thankyou Shutterbug. Now I can stop chasing it around the room.
Laugh out loud! :mrgreen: I just picture you chasing that polyshrink all over the place! I too use a bamboo skewer that I plop in the hole to hold it place while using the heatgun. Thanks for the visual!
Georgia
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Sad Cat
I now use the bamboo skewer as advised, BUT....I now have a sad cat who used to love Polyshrink time when he could enjoy the chase across the table. He regularly "crafts" with me and is frequently known here as Glittercat, because glitter just seems to find him.
You can die cut shapes in shrink plastic as well as use punches. Decorative chalks (pastels) are nice to add colour as they are more delicate. As previously mentioned, any colour you add will intensify while shrinking.
One tip - stamp in the same direction on your shrink plastic if you want a pair (or more) of images. I made some earrings using a Penny Black mouse dangling from a snowflake stamp and I ended up with one mouse shorter and rounder than the other! I just had to make another one remembering to stamp in the same direction.
oh how I love shrinkie!!! I was so sad when they took it out of the SU catty as I used it often for classes but I still love it. I use the individual "heat tool" method of shrinking when I am doing just a few but if I am shrinking in bulk then I definitely go for the oven method. This is sooo easy and pretty fast and the nice part is that the shrinky doesn't go all crazy and jump around in the oven (boring but easier than trying to chase pieces in the oven). I only do this when I am doing lots and lots of them...like for convention swaps the year I made bulletin board push pins with shrink plastic toppers. They are soo much fun!!!
I tried using our regular markers to color them and they looked fine but when I picked them up with damp hands guess what, the color did run. So I stick with chalks or colored pencils to color them...the permanent markers work if you use a pastel or light shade but since the color intensifies so much as they shrink, using anything dark will end up looking black after it shrinks.
Definitely punch your holes first and punch them bigger than you think you will need as the holes shrink too. I love the idea of putting the jump ring in BEFORE you shrink it...how brilliant is that!
And speaking of Brilliance....if you use craft or Brilliance inks then yes, they will work but they definitely will take a long time as one of the other posters already mentioned. I don't have a lot of patience to wait for drying so when I do use those inks, I stamp them on the kitchen table (we have a ceiling fan over that table) and then leave them out on the table to dry overnight with the ceiling fan going on high. It doesn't blow them around and in the morning they are good to go.
Now I am going to want to go dig out my shrink plastic and play...can't you just see those fantastic Giga punch shapes on shrinky??? Jan
Anyone do polyshrink??
Hi,
