Busy bee!

So today has been a shrink kinda day.

I got my paws on some shrink plastic a few weeks ago and finally got brave enough to play around with it today.

For anyone who doesn't know what shrink plastic is, it's a plastic that shrinks under heat, usually to two thirds smaller than the size it was before being put under the heat. 

You can draw designs on it that then shrink to small plastic charms like the images show below. It's normally sold in craft kits for kids with pre printed designs but you can also get hold of blank sheets which allow you to create any design you like.

I wanted to have a go as making jewellery is something I love to play around with and combining that with my artwork seemed like a fun twist!

So I then got a bit obsessed with bumble bees... blame the sunny weather and buzzy bees that have been flying past my window!

I tried to keep the design simple which is why they are a stripey ball with wings but I got so excited by them I had to try something more detailed.

It was a tense moment watching the plastic curl up as it shrunk but I'm really pleased with how they've all turned out and hope to continue this with more detailed designs.

I also got busy making some prints of my watercolour rabbits! I'd forgotten how much I loved this design!

And finally, a peek at something I've been planning and working on for a while. You may recognise my mama bear design here. I got hold of some jewellery findings and was able to print out some small mama bears which fit perfectly in to the frame. I'm hoping to make more of these and include some charms and have them for sale soon.

Got to spread the bear love!

Hopefully more will come from this!