Shrinky Dink Baby Footprint Keepsakes

Activities & Days Out / 25 September, 2024 / Nanny Anita

There seems to be a revival of the shrinky dink craze that happened in the 80s/90s. My child minder used to make them out of crisp and sweet wrappers for her daughter and myself. I remember being totally amazed at seeing the wrappers shrink down in size, so I was really glad to see shrinky dink projects start popping up on my screen.

To jump on the bandwagon I thought it would be fun to turn BB’s footprints into keepsake key rings. I did originally think to do BB’s handprints, but it is much harder to get one of those than a footprint.

Make sure you follow my homemade gift boards on Pinterest for more ideas, and don’t forget to save the pin for later.

To make your own shrinky dunk baby footprints you will need:

• Shrinky dink sheets*
• Key Rings
• Acrylic paint
• Hole punch
• Sharpies
• Wipes
• Pliers

* You can buy sheets of shrinky dink paper or you can actually use plastic from food containers, as long as it has the number 6 in the triangle symbol on it.

There are two ways that you could do this:

1st Method

When painting your little ones feet make sure that you use acrylic paint rather than poster paint or it won’t adhere properly. The plastic also makes it very slippery so be warned the foot is likely to slip slightly. It took myself and someone else a couple of goes before we got it right. She pushed the foot down while I pressed the toes down.

When you have done enough prints write your little ones name and age on the print.

Next cut out your prints and use the hole punch to make a hole at the top.

2nd Method

If the first method proves a little difficult then this method is far easier.

Rather than trying to make the footprint on the shrinky dink sheet, do it onto a piece of paper.

Once it has dried lay the shrinky dink sheet over the top and use a sharpie to trace over it. Then colour it in.

For Both Methods

Heat your oven to 175°c and place your shrinky dinks on a baking tray.

After a couple of minutes of it curling and twisting it will lie flat. Once it is lying flat take it out of the oven and press a tablemat or book on it for a few moments.

Finally once it has cooled add your key ring to it.

They make really sweet presents and we are actually planning on giving them to BB’s Godparents as gifts.

Pin for later: