Tutorial: Silhouette Charm Bracelet

Silhouettes are everywhere and they are only getting more and more popular. When I was seven years old my 2nd grade teacher made silhouettes of each child in class. I still have that construction paper silhouette of my chubby little face and long, braided hair. I love it. Silhouettes are timeless and classic. They preserve a memory of what a child's face is like when it is rounded by the softness of youth. They capture little baby curls that will someday be made straight with a flat iron and cowlicks which will soon be tamed.

- 1 sheet black shrink plastic (available via Amazon here).

- craft knife

- cutting matt

- small hole punch

- parchment paper/silpat & cookie sheet

- chain link bracelet

- jewelry jump rings

1. Take a photo of your subject from a 90* angle. For my wiggly toddler, it helped me to have a visual fixed point to instruct her to look at while I snapped 3-4 photos. You want to take them from slightly different angles to make sure you get that perfect 90* shot.

2. Change to black and white and crop photo so that the top of head to bottom is 2".

3. Print picture out on regular white printer paper, not card stock.

(NOTE: the following photos are from a time I made a silhouette that was large sized. Just pretend that I am working on a 2" silhouette)

4. Cut a 3 inch border around edge of silhouette and use scotch tape to affix on top of a piece of black shrink plastic.

5. With a cutting mat beneath, use a fine tipped craft knife to cut around the silhouette edge. Make sure to keep the craft knife straight up and down and to press firmly enough to go through the layer of paper and the layer of shrink plastic.

6. Use a ruler to cut an angle from nape of neck to top of chest if desired.

7. Use a small 1/8" hole punch (available at craft stores) to make a hole in the top of the head about 1/4 inch from the edge.

8. Preheat oven per shrink plastic instructions and prepare a baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper or a sil-pat.  Do not skip this step and bake right on a baking sheet...the shrink plastic will stick and create a warped finished product.

9. Place shrink plastic on sheet and bake per directions.  Plastic will curl up and then begin to flatten.  Have a flat bottomed object handy right next to the stove.  I used a paper plate.

10.  When plastic is mostly flattened remove sheet from oven and immediately use float bottomed object to completely flatten silhouettes by applying firm pressure straight down onto shrink plastic.

11. Remove from baking sheet, add small jump ring through punched hole and attach ring to charm bracelet.

You're finished!  That was easy, right?!