Finally!! Much ado about nothing.... or Photo transferring actually...

As I have been PROMISING to blog about this project for over
a month now I am finally sitting down to get it done! I found plenty of how to’s
and tutorials on Pinterest (and elsewhere online) but NONE gave me good, clear
instructions with troubleshooting on problems that you may run in to. I hope to
provide better directions and I will also explain the road blocks I hit…. Hopefully
you will get good results without much headache ; ) No, really!! This isn’t a
HARD project if you know the “insider trading secrets” from the beginning.
So….. let’s get started!!
1.
This project requires some drying time so don’t
plan on getting it done in one afternoon.
2.
I used blocks of wood I literally found in my
back yard, about 2” thick, I had the husband cut them to 10” length. I got
lucky that they were already about 8” wide. You can buy yours that way on
purpose. The thickness is only important if you want them to be free standing.
And you can do this project in different sizes too (4x6, 5x7 etc)
3.
As far as prep work….. NONE. I didn’t sand them
smooth or anything. As long as you knock any dirt or saw dust off you should be
good to go.
4.
You will need to print a picture the same size as
the board you want to adhere it too.
5.
Go into your printer preferences and switch it
to black and white.
6.

*ALERT!!!! TRICKY PART!!!* Some places said to
use laser printer only, others said to wet the picture first, some said to
dance naked in your yard while chanting, “ADHERE TO THE WOOD!!” (ok…. that last
part I made up but at one point while trying this project I would have tried
this if it had been suggested to me) Listen to me carefully here….. INKJET ONLY
PEOPLE!!! I will show you a picture of what my laser printed came out looking
like. So again, INKJET ONLY!!! Most home printers are inkjet and some smaller
work printers are too.
7.

Choose a picture with plenty of light spots in
it when you print it in b&w. By light I mean, lots of contrast. For example
the pictures of my girls worked GREAT because they have white in the
backgrounds and in their skin tones etc. Darker skin toned people I would make
sure to have a lighter background. It all just makes it stand out on the wood better.
8.

You will also need Gel Medium as shown in the picture below.
9.

Everything else you will need is stuff you already have around the house…..

*Oh!! I got almost finished writing this and remember this part so I zipped back up here to tell you…. also go in to your printer settings/preferences and click the “mirror image” setting.
I forgot to do this on Little Man’s picture and his LSU shirt ended up being a
USL shirt…..*

See here what I mean about light in the picture, there is PLENTY of light in the
pictures of the girls but in the pic of my Little Man…. not so much. That didn’t
come out so well and I will be redoing it in the future.

Here is the gel medium, it cost about $14 for me to buy this size and I used about
2/3 of it doing this project.

STEP ONE!

Cover the board with the gel medium, I mean really slather it on!!! Brush
quality doesn’t matter, I used both high dollar bristled brush and a $.99
cheapo sponge brush, either is fine. You may want to brush vertically the first
time then follow that with a horizontal coat for better coverage.



STEP TWO!

Place your photo face down on the board. Make sure to check that it is
centered. If you start from the bottom and work up (like I did here) make sure
those bottom corners are lined up before you smooth down the rest of the picture.

STEP THREE!

Smooth it down, removing air bubbles!! Be firm but not TOO crazy!! I
used a pot scrubber thingy but you can use a spatula, a credit/gift card…. whatever!!


Now you WAIT!!! And wait……… and wait…….. and wait……….

Overnight is good. 14 to 15 hours worked for me but I figure 12 would do and maybe even
sooner if you ran a hot blow dryer over it for a little bit. But if it is still
cold to the touch it is STILL WET UNDER THERE and NOT READY YET!!
(don’t ask me how I know that, just take my word for it)


STEP FOUR!

Fill a plastic bowl with warm (almost hot) water and find a sponge. Mine was sponge on
one side and abrasive on the other, you will use your fingertips for this part too.

STEP FIVE!

Now begin to wet the surface of the paper. The water will NOT hurt it.

Your picture will slowly begin to appear before your eyes!!

As the picture becomes saturated gently rub the paper away. GENTLY!! It doesn’t take much
pressure here but it does take repetition. If you get to a stubborn part change
the direction you are working in: up, down, back and forth and circular, every
which ah way!!

Hands work great too
but it DOES wrinkles your finger tips up like crazy!!!

Let it dry for a little while and you will be able to see any lingering spots of paper you
missed. Try to get most of it but some hazy areas will remain, that is ok.

STEP SIX!

Clear coat. Now I tried several different methods….. the gel medium itself and modge podge
but they both left the hazy areas sort of visible. So I was thinking to myself,
“Self, what will absorb in to that paper and make it disappear and give the
pictures a nice sheen, glow??” Self came up with…….. OLIVE OIL!!!! I know, I
know…. CRAZY!!! Self is like that sometimes!!

This is the final
look after the olive oil. I’m sure any kind of cooking oil would work, just use
a tiny bit on a paper towel and rub it in lightly. Wipe the excess away. (Note
this is not supposed to be a perfect project, some nicks and spots are going to
show)

And this is the final outcome!!

Like I said, I tried several different pictures of Little Man before
I found one that I am happy with (this one pictured is not it, too dark)
Overall I am THRILLED with how they came out and even more thrilled to share it
with you now that I have done some troubleshooting and ironed out the kinks!! I
really hope you give this project a go and share with me the outcome! If you
have any questions ask me in a comment! And if you are local I am thinking
about teaching this as a Craft/Pinterest Class, so let me know if you are interested!!
Happy Transferring!!!
Amy

P.S. THIS is the outcome of using laser printed photo after only gently rubbing

the first coat off....... not too hot, huh??