woman outside wearing jungle leaf earrings

Use Take-out Containers to Make Shrinkie Dink Jewelry

Week 10

Sometimes take-out is a necessity, and while some containers are recyclable, not all are. For instance salads often come in #6 plastics, but those aren't always accepted in curbside recycling. Instead of sending those #6 plastics to a landfill, you can make cute, on-of-a-kind jewelry!

What You'll Need:

  • #6 Plastics - only clear #6 will work, like clamshells
  • Sharpies - you can use pencil colors too, but you'll have to sand the plastic first
  • Scissors
  • Scrap paper for making stencil
  • Hole Punch - I used scissors, but if you have a hole punch it will make things cleaner and easier
  • Jewelry findings
  • Oven

Let's Make Shrinkie Dink Earrings!

  1. clear plastic clamshell container

    Grab a clear #6 plastic container. I see them used most for salads and berries.

  2. scissors cutting into plastic clamshell

    Cut out the flat areas of your clamshell. I had one from the top and one from the bottom.

  3. leaf outline drawn on white paper

    Use a scrap piece of paper to draw a stencil that is the appropriate size for your plastic pieces.

  4. plastic piece over stencil with green marker drawn over black stench lines

    Trace the stencil onto your plastic piece.

  5. two sharpies and two plastic pieces with green jungle leaves drawn on them

    Use sharpies to color in your image. You can also use pencil colors, but you'll have to sand the plastic first.

  6. pair of scissors and plastic cut out in the shape of jungle leaves

    Cut out the design you wish to shrink.

  7. close up of plastic leaf with hole punched in the top

    Use a hole punch (or scissors) to put a hole in the plastic, wherever you would like add the jewelry findings. Make sure to put it no more that a quarter of an inch from the edge.

  8. two plastic jungle leaves on a piece of plastic

    Preheat your oven to 325°. Put your plastic on a piece of scrap foil, marker side up, and bake for 3 minutes. Let cool before handling.

  9. final product of shrinkie dink jungle leaf earrings

    Add jewelry findings to complete I made earrings, but you could make keychains, charm bracelets, necklaces... anything you want!

Asking a Restaurant for More Sustainable Take-out Containers →