Monday, October 25, 2010

DIY Shrinky Dinks, Halloween Decor and a Witch Craft Giveaway!



This year Halloween is all about DIY. We are not just creating holiday decor -- we are creating memories. And what better way to celebrate the season?

Already this year we made our skull and bone display. I also fashioned an eyeball in a beaker*, you know, just for fun. And I'm marching around in my skull knit hat. The final piece of the puzzle is our Shrinky Dink Beetlejuice Jar inspired by my Halloween Snow Globe project from Witch Craft.



Shrinky Dinks are a really simple DIY project that is fun for the whole family.

Ingredients:
Salad containers or other #6 plastic
Permanent markers
Aluminum foil
A clear glass jar
Water
Food coloring
Ribbon (optional)

Instructions:
  1. The first thing you need to do is gather up #6 plastic. This is the type of plastic used at most salad bars -- the clear plastic containers. I've also found most of my store bought fresh herbs come packaged in #6 plastic. Just look for the number printed on the container (often on the bottom inside the recycle symbol). If you ask nicely your grocer may give a few of these salad containers on the house. If you are using used containers make sure they are clean and dry before starting your project.
  2. Gather up a set of Sharpies. You will need to use permanent markers as others will not survive the baking process.
  3. Cut your plastic so that you have a flat surface to work on (in other words cut off and discard all the bumpy sides).
  4. Find an image you would like to trace (I got mine from The Graphics Fairy). If you are particularly artistic you can draw your own image. Keep in mind we will be shrinking these quite a bit so plan your drawing accordingly. My original image was about 4 inches x 3 inches.
  5. Trace your image and color in as desired.
  6. Cut out your image
  7. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F
  8. Make a little baking sheet out of aluminum foil by rolling up the edges
  9. Place your images on the foil sheet and place the sheet in the oven
  10. Turn on the oven light and watch the show -- within a minute or two your images will shrink before your eyes. Initially they will curl up. Be bold. Be brave. Leave them in a minute longer and they will usually flatten out again.
  11. Remove your items from the oven. In the first couple of seconds they are still pliable so you can flatten them a touch more if desired -- be quick!
  12. Place your designs in a jar, add food coloring and decorate with a ribbon and tag. Voila! Beetlejuice for the holidays!
Now of course this project is not limited to Halloween -- it would be great for any time of the year. Happy shrinking!

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Now as promised -- a giveaway! To two lucky readers I am giving away a copy of Witch Craft. This is an amazing and fun book chock full of craft projects and halloween inspired recipes. This is a book you will want to refer to year after year (and I'd say that even if I wasn't one of the contributers). Seriously -- there is so much inside. My girls went gaga when it arrived!

And now, without further adieu, all you need to do to win is leave a comment on this post. Be sure I have a way to contact you should you win. I will pick two winners after 9:00 am on Wednesday the 27th. The books will be mailed asap with the hopes that they might even arrive before halloween.

For a second chance at winning send out a tweet and leave a second comment.

Happy Crafting!!

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

What a fun craft! I have to give this a try. I bet my daughter would love that book also :) I LOVE halloween crafts!

morgenflower@comcast.net

Anonymous said...

What a fun craft! I have to give this a try. I bet my daughter would love that book also :) I LOVE halloween crafts!

morgenflower@comcast.net

Anonymous said...

Sorry, I don't know why that posted 2x's. I tweeted too :)

Unknown said...

Fun, I remember doing shrinky dinks when I was a kid. The books looks awesome, thanks for doing a giveaway!
♥Jenny

Unknown said...

Ok, I tweeted about the giveaway too. :)

Natasha said...

What a stunning book...I'll be crossing my witchy toes and fingers! :)

Anonymous said...

My daughter and I poured over Witch Craft a few weeks ago while we were browsing in the bookstore. If I win, I will give it to her for a little Halloween present, and she will be so excited :) Thank you for a chance to win! xoxo

Holly said...

This is the first year I've been excited about Halloween in a long time...maybe because the boys are getting in on the fun. This would be the perfect addition!

Jen @ By Jen ❤️ said...

I am so excited about your book giveaway. I can hardly believe Halloween is almost here. So many crafts, so little time =)

Jen @ By Jen ❤️ said...

Okay, I even tweeted and I only tweet once or twice a year (I need to work on that, huh?)

Unknown said...

Okay, you inspired me to try this out because I loved, loved, loved Shrinky Dinks when I was a kid!