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Peter & Shannyn – Handprint Keychain

Peter & Shannyn – Handprint Keychain

Shannyn stumbled across a great DIY project for your kids for Father’s Day – a DIY Handprint Keychain!

You’ll Need:
Shrinky Dinks plastic (preferably the “crystal clear” kind)
GLOSS acrylic craft paint
Paintbrush
Sharpie
Scissors
Hole punch
10mm Jump Rings
Split Ring Keyring
Gloss mod podge
Parchment Paper (or non-stick silicone baking mat

  1. Directions

    Paint your child’s entire hand. Coat it well enough to be all wet, but not so drippy that you loose the details of the print.

  2. Gently guide their hand onto the Shrinky Dinks plastic. Firmly press down all their fingers and palm to get a good imprint. Press the plastic against the table with your free hand while you carefully peel your child’s hand off.

  3. If you mess up, don’t worry! I did too. It took me a couple tries to get the paint thickness just right. Good news is that you haven’t wasted your plastic, just remove the mess-ups with rubbing alcohol and a paper towel.

  4. After you have good handprints, wait for the paint to dry completely. Then, flip the plastic over and add your kiddo’s name, age or year to the other side with a Sharpie. A child that is old enough can even write their own name. (Do the handprint on the rough side, name on the shiny side)

  5. After the Sharpie dries, carefully cut out the handprint with small sharp scissors (Cut down in between the fingers, but don’t make them too skinny.)

  6. Punch a hole before you bake them! One standard size hole punch will shrink to the perfect size for your jump rings.

  7. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Place your handprint paint side up (sharpie side down). 

  8. Pre-heat your oven to 325°F (a conventional or toaster oven—do not use a microwave). Once heated, place your cookie sheet and handprints inside. DO NOT FREAK OUT when they start to curl and flip and do all manner of crazy things. This is normal.

  9. Cook for 2-3 minutes. You’ll know it’s done when the handprint stops moving and has gone mostly, if not completely, flat again.  Once the handprint has cooled, it is 9x thicker and very durable.

  10. Coat the painted parts with glossy mod podge & let dry.

  11. Use small pliers to loop a jump ring through the punched hole, onto your keyring.