Designing

• As you prepare the art on your Shrinky Dinks for baking, bear in mind that they will, according to the manufacturer, shrink to about one third of their original height and width while gaining nine times their original thickness. Be sure to plan accordingly if you are doing your own drawings. You can preview the exact shrinkage beforehand by scanning your image into a computer image editor and shrinking the picture (simply divide the number of pixels by three).
  A computer can help your Shrinky Dink designs in other ways, too. You can trace a printed graphic onto a Shrinky Dink plastic sheet by placing it under the plastic, or you can print directly onto the plastic if you buy the special type of Shrinky Dink plastic designed for this.
  If using standard Shrinky Dink plastic, be sure to use permanent markers, such as Sharpie pens, to draw and color your images. Use thin lines, since they will become thicker in relation to the size of the piece as they shrink. Be sure to color in your shapes thoroughly and densely, since any inconsistencies may mar the final result in unpredictable ways.
  You can also color your plastic with acrylic paint, though this will make the color opaque, unless you use a transparent acrylic such as that sold in craft stores for painting glass.
  
  

Cutting

• Since it gets thicker during baking, any rough edges or burs in the plastic when it's large will be magnified when it bakes. Therefore, cut very carefully: use a pair of sharp, strong scissors and trim away any frayed bits to create the smoothest edges possible.
  Also, be sure to cut any holes you might want in your finished piece before baking. Remember that they will shrink along with the finished piece, so make them larger than you want them to end up. For the best-looking results, use a hole punch or something that will make a neat-looking hole.
  If your finished piece has any rough, lumpy or sharp edges when it's fully shrunken, you can fix these by sanding it. Use a small corner of a fine-grain sandpaper and rub in short, brisk strokes.
  
  

After Baking

• When using your finished Shrinky Dink pieces in crafts such as jewelry, keep a few things in mind. Shrinky Dinks make excellent pins and broaches, but you'll want to use a strong craft glue when attaching the bar pin setting, such as hot glue, quick-set epoxy or a brand like E600 or Goop.
  If you've decorated your Shrinky Dinks with ink, it's a good idea to spray them with a fixative or varnish to preserve the color. Even so-called permanent marker color will fade fairly quickly if you don't do this, plus the varnish provides an attractive sheen.