ODBD Polyshrink Mobile Tutorial for Christian Paper Crafts Design Team Delights Sneak Peek!

Happy Monday, everyone!!!! Today it's my turn to share a sneak peek of what's to come this week when the Christian Paper Crafts Design Team Delights Gallery opens on the 15th! This month's gallery theme is "Sweet Summertime".......what better way to celebrate summer but with butterflies in flight!! Below is a tutorial showing how I made this Polyshrink mobile using cutting dies, stamps, and punches.


Though I ended up using a few more items than shown here, these are the basics I used for this project. There will be a complete product list in the post below.

Step One:
Use a sanding block or soft sandpaper to sand vertical and horizontal lines on a sheet of Polyshrink plastic. By scuffing the surface, the stamping ink will adhere much better than it would on a slick surface.



Step Two:
Using Stazon Royal Purple, I stamped onto the Polyshrink with the "Butterfly Single" and "Crocheted Background", both by Our Daily Bread designs. The cutting dies were taped in place so that they will not move during the die-cutting process.



This shows the flip side, with the cutting side up. I placed a piece of scratch paper between the Grand Calibur base plate and cutting dies just in case any of the ink wants to rub off under the pressure. The cutting plate goes on top of this and it's ready to cut.



Step Three:
Run plates through the Grand Calibur. I love how easy it is to use the Grand Calibur....the cranking is so smooth and it cuts very efficiently, even through the Polyshrink. Plus, with the larger plate surface, you can cut many items at the same time!!!



Step Four:
After cutting out the Spellbinders Lattice Pendants and five butterflies with the ODBD "Butterfly Die", I also punched some Martha Stewart Monarch Butterflies from the remaining stamped Polyshrink. Note: If you are making jewelry or tags with Polyshrink, make sure you punch your holes before heating. After shrinking, the plastic would be too thick. So, I punched holes in the ODBD butterflies. I went ahead and put all of the die cut leftover pieces on the baking sheet too to see if I could use them for another project later as embellishments.




Step Five:
After pre-heating your oven to the specified temperature on the Polyshrink package (300 - 350 degrees), insert the baking sheet and get ready for a show!! The plastic will start curling up, so don't be alarmed! After a minute or less, all of your items will be shrunken down to about a 1/4 of their original size. Some may have a little "curl" to them.....while they are still hot and pliable, you can still flatten them....I use a piece of paper with a hot pad on top of it to press down on them. If you don't use something smooth, you may press the fiber imprint into the plastic.



I forgot to include the dies in the photo to show the size difference....sorry! But here are the pieces after heating. Even the tiny pieces came out great....the largest ones I will use as embellishments....the smallest I will save to make a shaker card later!



To assemble the mobile, I used white embroidery thread to tie the butterflies at different lengths. The Spellbinders Lattice Pendants were a perfect base for the mobile. After knotting each end, I used craft glue to smooth out the knots. The tag in the center was made using the ODBD Tag Die, along with "Kind Hearts", a new stamp released this month from Our Daily Bread designs.



This was a very fun project....I enjoyed it immensely! The toughest part was tying the thread and balancing the butterflies at the same time. I would love to make another mobile soon, but think I may have to visit JoAnn's or Michael's to find some jewelry making supplies.



Here is a complete list of items used:
Stamps: Our Daily Bread designs 'Kind Hearts', 'Crocheted Background', 'Butterfly Single';
Ink: Stazon Royal Purple (Note: you will need a permanent ink for Polyshrink);
Accessories: Polyshrink Plastic Sheet, Our Daily Bread designs Tag Die and Butterfly Die, Spellbinders Lattice Pendants, Martha Stewart Monarch Butterfly Punch, Embroidery Thread, Craft Glue, 1/4 inch hole punch.

If you have any questions, please send me an email at angelladcrockett at yahoo dot com. I'd love to hear from you! (Just make sure to put a recognizable subject line on your email so that you don't end up in the spam box!)

If you'd like to see more sneak peeks from the Design Team at Christian Paper Crafts, check out the CPC Creative Blog.....check out our weekly challenges while you're there! Also, don't forget to create a 'Sweet Summertime' themed project for our monthly blog hop on the 22nd.....this month's hop is sponsored by Pink Persimmon!! Check out all of the details HERE. Can't wait to see you at the hop!!!
Have a blessed week!!!