I was recently contacted by a representative from the Grafix company about an opportunity to experiment with some new products in the plastic film line. As some of you may recall, Grafix was kind enough to sponsor a previous craft project and product giveaway in which I made a lovely vintage inspired charm bracelet. So as you might imagine, I was pretty excited to give these shrink films a test run.
For those who may not recall the magic of shrink film from their youth, or never had the pleasure of playing with little bits of plastic, let me give you a quick refresher. These sheets of plastic can be printed, painted, drawn on, and cut to your heart's desire. You then bake these bad boys in the oven, or heat them using an embossing gun (my preferred method). They then harden and shrink down to 20% of their original size. It's such a simple concept, yet so much fun to execute. Being a fan of vintage photographs and ephemera, I tend to use scanned images of advertisements/snapshots/post cards/books as inspiration for jewelry and other craft projects.
So when I received the new metallic shrink film (3 sheets of gold and 3 sheets of silver), I knew just how I was going to use them.
I wanted to utilize an 1800s children's book from my collection as an inspiration for a seasonally themed pair of earrings. I found this piece of sheet music for a song called The Winter Rose in the book. I loved the lyrics and the drawing. And while it obviously cannot be perfectly recreated with an inkjet printer and shrunken plastic, the results are pretty amazing.
And in addition to this golden little piece of vintage sheet music, I decided to make a style upgrade to my little Charlie Brown Christmas tree. Two years ago, rather than shell out the money for a standard size tree we opted for a small $5 table tree that I dressed up in vintage gift box ornaments and garland. But with golden shrink film at my disposal, I decided to spruce up the little guy. (SPRUCE up! Gotta love a good tree pun). And all it took was a handful of stars and some hot glue to make it happen. Adorable!
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And so, thanks to the generosity of Grafix, I have created not one, but two fun holiday craft projects. And if you're looking to get crafty this holiday season, here are the supplies I used and already had in my home office:
- a scanner and ink jet printer
- scissors
- an embossing gun (or oven, if you prefer)
- a hot glue gun
- earring posts and backings
- acrylic sealant spray (optional)
- and Grafix Shrink Film, of course!
I can't wait to dream up more craft projects using both the metallic and colored shrink film. Thank you Grafix for the opportunity for this product review. It certainly will be a merry little Christmas with this shrink film.
I know. Again with the puns.
But in all seriousness, I'd like to wish everyone a healthy and happy holiday season. Go thrifting, get crafty, and enjoy your time with family and friends.
XOXO Jackie Jardine
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