What Ink Can You Use on Shrinky Dinks?

Inks for Shrinky Dinks

• Colored pencils, acrylic paints or any other permanent media can be used on Shrinky Dinks.

What doesn't work

• Because Shrinky Dinks are made of plastic, water-based inks or grease-based pencils will not work well. These types of media will be destroyed in the baking process that's necessary to create the finished product.

Shrinky Dinks and printers

• Shrinky Dinks makes a special product that can be used with ink-jet printers. This type of Shrinky Dink has a coating that allows the printer's water-based inks to adhere and dry. Shrinky Dinks cannot be used with laser printers, as the heat required will destroy the plastic and may even ruin the printer.

History

• Shrinky Dinks were first sold in October of 1973 at a shopping mall in Brookfield, Wisc.

Function

• Shrinky Dinks are made of a stretched polystyrene that, when heated, shrinks to its original size.