Making Keychains Using Heat Shrink Plastic Inspired by Flow

Hi everyone!

This month didn’t go at all as planned. I had every intention of publishing new content in March, but a few things got in the way. First, a video I was working on (where I bind a physical copy of a fanfic) had to be put on hold due to permission issues with the author. And to make things worse, all the supplies I had ordered earlier this year got stuck in customs, thanks to the ongoing strike at Brazilian customs. So, yeah… things kind of spiraled.

But something good came out of the delay: I went to the cinema and watched the animated movie Flow (2024), and it completely stole my heart. The story, the visuals, the characters, I fell in love with everything. I left the theater feeling inspired, and decided to make a small tribute by turning some of my favorite characters and making keychains using heat shrink plastic.

This was my first time trying out this material, and honestly, I had no idea what I was doing. But that’s also what What Carol Makes is all about: trying things out, figuring it out on the go, and sharing the process with you all.

Tools and Materials I Used

Here’s what I used to make these charms:

• Colored pencils and Posca markers

• Scissors

• Regular hole punch

• Heat shrink plastic (craft-specific, rough on one side)

• Heat gun

• UV resin + UV lamp

• Key rings, jump rings, eyepins, head pins

• Beads, wire, swivel clasps

• Small pliers and jewelry-making tools

  
  

Drawing the Characters

I sketched the characters directly on the rough side of the shrink plastic with colored pencils. Since I’m still learning how to draw, these are more loosely inspired versions of the ones from the movie.

One of the biggest challenges was drawing the secretarybird. This version you’ll see in the video was actually my third attempt. I have a weird fear of birds (and feathered animals in general), so staring at reference photos was… an experience. The drawing came out a little derpy, but I kind of love it anyway.

If you're trying this yourself and don’t have heat shrink plastic, you can also use recycled plastic, just look for packaging marked with the number 6 inside the recycling triangle. That’s the kind that shrinks safely with heat.

Cutting, Hole-Punching, and Shrinking

Once the drawings were done, I cut them out with a 3mm border around the edge and punched a hole at the top before shrinking them with a heat gun.

Important tip: make sure your work surface can handle heat! When you start heating, the plastic curls up in terrifying ways and looks like it’s ruined, but hang in there! It flattens back out. Once it’s almost flat, I used a hard, heat-safe object to press it down and smooth it out. Careful though—the plastic stays hot for a while.

Sealing with UV Resin

To protect the art and give each charm a glossy finish, I applied a layer of UV resin and cured it under a UV lamp. It made the pieces sturdier and shinier, perfect for keychains.

⚠️ Safety tip: Always use UV resin in a well-ventilated area and wear gloves and a mask to avoid exposure to fumes.

Assembling the Keychains

This was my first time making anything related to jewelry, so I just figured it out as I went. I used pliers, findings, and a mix of local and leftover supplies (still waiting on my AliExpress order from January…).

Also… I accidentally sealed the capybara charm’s hole with resin. Oops. So for now, it’s off to the side, waiting for me to borrow back my mini drill from my mom.

Final Thoughts on Making Keychains Using Heat Shrink Plastic Inspired by Flow

This project combined fan art, experimentation, and plenty of trial and error. Even though I wasn’t sure how it would turn out, I had a great time creating something inspired by a film I truly loved.

If you haven’t seen Flow yet, please go watch it! It’s beautiful, heartfelt, and visually stunning. I won’t take responsibility if you come home wanting to adopt a black cat afterward…

Thanks for reading (and watching, if you came from the video)! I promise the next project won’t take this long. In the meantime, if you’ve ever made anything with shrink plastic, or if you’ve been inspired by a movie lately, let me know, I’d love to hear about it.

Thanks for reading! 💛