'Early Bird registration is now open for Mixed Media retreat!

by Mary Lou 'LuLu' Haynes



Welcome,

Do you want to learn and play near Chicago this summer?

Come join us at this new mixed media retreat in the US!

Make IT! Mark IT! Mask IT! Mixed Media Midwest - Chicago Retreat!

Thanks for stopping by - please become a Follower - and come back soon.

Peace,
Mary Lou

'FREE TUTORIAL: Image Transfer using Contact Paper!'

by Mary Lou 'LuLu' Haynes

Howdy and Welcome,

Here is another free tutorial. This tutorial I wrote describing my process for an IMAGE TRANSFER. There are many, many different image transfer processes out there in cyber space. This is one of the processes that worked well for me.

 
Note: Soft Gel medium (gloss) was not used for the image transfer - but soft gel medium (gloss) was used to adhere the contact paper to the artwork after the image was transferred.

SUPPLIES LIST:

• clear contact paper (I got mine either at Target or Menards - don't recall which)
• inkjet image to take to copy shop (I prefer to use copyright free artwork - for example, antique images, my own artwork or my own photos)
• toner copy of above image from copy shop (reversed, if it has text you want to preserve as readable in final art piece)
• shallow container of hot water, larger than image
• soft gel medium (gloss) or other 'plastic-to-paper' glue, like '3-in-1' (Beacon)
• clear gesso or soft gel medium (matte) - optional
• palette knife, old credit card, or sponge brush to apply soft gel medium
• paper towels (dry and slightly damp)
• wet wipes (optional)
• workable fixative  (optional)

Note: Skip the copy shop steps if you print a toner copy of your image on your home laser printer.

Note: You can also skip the copy shop step if you 'fix' your inkjet image by spraying  it outdoors with 'WORKABLE FIXATIVE' (Krylon). The disadvantage of using WORKABLE FIXATIVE spray is that it can only be used with ventilation in specific temperatures and specific humidity's. I live in Chicago. So I'm limited to spraying  WORKABLE FIXATIVE outdoors in 5-7 months a year. But I can take my inkjet image to the copy shop all year... 

Important: The reason we do not use an inkjet printed image directly in our wet artwork is that the ink will smear. Inkjet printer ink is water-soluble, therefore it will smear with moisture. However, if you WANT your artwork to have smeared images then you do not need to use WORKABLE FIXATIVE or a toner copy...

PROCESS [over several days]

My clear contact paper transfer process follows, which I accomplished over several days: 

1. scan antique color image into computer and reverse image using image editing software (I scanned it first because I want to keep this image on my computer)
2. print reversed color copy on home inkjet printer
3. take color inkjet image to local copy center and have them make a 'toner' color copy (also the copy shop can reverse the image if you prefer them to reverse it)
4. 'fussy cut' toner image out of paper leaving small margin all around the image (leave about .25 inch)
5. cut contact paper a little larger than the image
6. apply clear contact paper to toner image and burnish contact paper (I let image set overnight after burnishing)
7. fill a shallow plastic 'Tupperware style' container with very hot water
8. plunge image to soak for a minute or two, until paper is saturated
9. remove image from pan and lay it onto a paper towel -  paper side up to absorb excess water on bottom.
10. rub off wet paper with finger, gently - rub and rub. Moisten paper with drips of water if it dries in this step. Don't rub too hard! WHen all the paper is rubbed off there will be a slight white film.
11. dry overnight [or longer] after all paper is removed. (I made a whole batch of image transfers on one day. When they were all dry, I stored them in a drawer labled 'Image Transfers: READY'...)

TO USE IMAGE TRANSFER

• When you want to use the transfer apply a very thin layer of soft gel medium (gloss)  on your artwork and on the back of your contact paper image with old credit card or foam brush.
• Lay the contact paper image, dry side up / wet side down, into the medium on your artwork. And, starting in the center of image, gently press out any air bubbles with your fingers towards the outer edges [several time]. Before each pass, with a wet wipe, remove any medium from your fingers. Carefully blot up any excess medium if it squishes out the sides with slightly damp paper towel. Dry overnight.
• Because the contact paper is slick, you'll have a glossy image on your artwork. If you don't want glossy, apply a thin layer of clear gesso or a thin layer of soft gel medium (matte) to the transfer, or to your whole art piece, as you like.

TEST, TEST, TEST!

  

I tested this transfer process (and many other image transfer processes) before using it on my 'good' artwork.

CONTACT PAPER VS. PACKING TAPE? WHICH PRODUCT TO USE?

Packing tape and Contact paper made identical image transfers in my tests. So you might ask, why use clear contact paper instead of using clear packing tape? Which product you choose to use depends on the size of the image that you want to transfer. 

• clear packing tape is useful for small images
• clear contact paper is useful for larger images.

My test results of various image transfer techniques, including inkjet print on deli paper, showed that the contact paper and packing tape images came out the best (clearer and crisper).

LET US SEE YOUR IMAGE TRANSFERS!

Would love to see your results if you try my Image Transfer Contact Paper process. In the comments of this post, please send me a link to the post on your blog.

Would love for you to comment on this post.

Thanks for visiting and please come back soon.

Peace,
LuLu
http://www.lulu-too-beaucoup.blogspot.com/

'WOYWW - 01/25/2012 - Happy New Year! Image Transfer tests in art journal!'

by Mary Lou 'LuLu' Haynes

Howdy and welcome,

Been gone a while over the holidays. A lot has happened and a lot of artwork has been produced. For WOYWW thought I'd share a few pages from an art journal.

I'm practicing image transfers again - this time using magazine/catalog photos and Golden's soft gel medium (gloss). I spread 3 thin layers on the image (horizontally, vertically and again horizontally) in addition to spreading a thin layer on the journal page.  Placed  image face down on page. Burnished all over with my fingers.  Transfers seem to work better if the gel medium dries for at least 30 minutes. Then spritzed water and rubbed away paper layer. Don't peek...This technique worked great! I found this technique on youtube.com, books and mixed-media mags.

SOME STUFF I DID SINCE MY LAST POST

 

• Created  53 custom Note cards/Blank Greeting cards and gave 50 as Christmas gifts
• Enjoyed luxurious post-New Year's Day dinner with hubby - he prepared lobster tails and crab legs - and made a special trip to Bakers Square for carrot cake slices!
• Won my first contest of 2012 on New Year's Day - a scrapbook layout contest! Will post pic later.
• Endured outpatient breast surgery - pathology report was normal/benign - thank God! Slowly healing...
• Crocheted 4 long 'Dr Who' scarves. Will post pix later.
• Crocheted one beret - I hate it and plan to take it apart and re-do it. LOL :-)
• Prepped tapes (Scotch removable, clear packing, beige masking) with acrylic paint for my custom stamped designer tapes - not tissue tape. Pix later.
• Received a dozen yellow roses from hubby today for no reason!

Have you ever crocheted a beret/tam/cloche? How did your first crocheted hat turn out?

Do you ever use designer tape (7 Gypsies, Tim Holtz)? I love how translucent they are on my art journal pages!

Thanks for stopping by - please sign up as a Follower - and check my other posts for freebies!

Visit WOYWW here for more artist studios!

Peace,

LuLu

'Deep in the throes...' Thank you, Sting and George Lucas!

by Mary Lou 'LuLu' Haynes

Howdy and welcome!

I'm deep in the throes of re-organizing and purging in my 'winter' craft studio. Not much fun, but I'll sure be happy when I can focus on making art. While I'm busy with that task and up to my neck in errant art supplies, here's a spread I created in an altered book art journal - from last fall.

"...growing up is optional!'
Inkjet transfer/transparency, gel medium, Acrylic wash, gel pen,
colored pencil, vellum, rub on, custom embossed foil tape with acrylic paint

My 60th birthday is rapidly approaching and the sentiment on the left page reflects my feeling perfectly this year. (Sting and I are nearly twins - his 60th birthday is a few days after mine! I'm a big Sting fan - and going with another couple to his concert in November. Sting is releasing his 25th anniversay CD collection on my birthday. I'm also a huge Star Wars fan - and George Lucas is releasing his Blu-ray collection of the Star Wars saga on on my birthday. Isn't that so nice of those guys to give such great 60th birthday presents? :-)

The past few weeks I've been assembling a list of 60 items (places to go, things to buy) - one item for each year on planet Earth! I'm also adding ideas to the back half of an altered book art journal that I started in May of this year - to chronicle our 35th wedding anniversary celebration.

What do you do on your milestone birthdays? Do you plan to do anything special to celebrate your milestone birthdays? I'd love to hear what you've done for your milestone birthdays.

Thanks for stopping by. Please take some time to look around my blog - there are all sorts of neat things to see - and come back again soon.

Peace,
LuLu 

'WOYWW 95 - 03/30/11 - Image Transfer Prep!'

by Mary Lou 'LuLu' Haynes

Howdy and welcome,

For WOYWW this week, there are only two projects in my sights - both of them are organizing tasks. You know how I love to organize!

This is a drawer made from a re-used printer paper box lid. It contains some inkjet printed transparencies, notes for image transfer techniques and a new roll of packing tape. (This new packing tape I found at Michaels - it tears easily with your fingers! So easy to use.)

I'll organize the drawer contents by separating the transparencies from the techniques. The new tape (and the old tape on the left side of the photo) will go in my designated 'tapes' drawer - which is soon to be overflowing. But I'll deal with that another day!

Usually, I cut out the images in a batch, while doing a session of 'fussy cutting' - a term borrowed from the quilting world. During another session, I tear the tape, apply it to the images and trim down the edges. In another session, I burnish the tape onto the image, soak/rub off the paper and layout the tape to dry. When dry, I put the tape transfers in another drawer labeled 'Ready - Inkjet transfers.'  Inkjet transfers and toner transfers are kept in separate drawers because I want to be aware of how they behave in my art. I like to do most of my prep work in batches, so that when I'm ready to create, I can just grab what I want - everything is ready to go.


Around the drawer perimeter, you'll spy a water spritzer and a few bottles of paint glazes. These are remnants of some 'wetwork' I did yesterday. I was toning some blank pages in altererd journals, and glopping down another layer of glaze on some previously painted and gessoed pages in an altered book.

I'd love to see your comments about this post. Do you apply image transfers in your artwork? What are your favorite supplies amd media for image transfers?

Thanks for stopping by and please come back soon. My giveaway for Followers is rapidly approaching!

Peace,
LuLu

P. S. For more workstations visit WOYWW "What's On Your Workstation Wednesday" players here.

'Icon Saint- art journal pages'

Howdy and Welcome,

This is an original art Journal page containing an image transfer test on clear Contact paper of a religious Icon/Saint. This was from an antique book of icons I found while on vacation in Galena, IL.

Page also contains my experimental lettering in foreign languages: Greek, French, German and Cunieform.

Mesh tape on tinted gesso background and masking tape. Dots with white Sharpie paint pen.

What do you think of this transfer? I'm not completely satisfied with it, but it was the first test.

Thanks for visiting. Please stop by again soon.

Peace,

LuLu

'Happiness is...No Rules!' - art journal page

Howdy and Welcome!

What do you think of this art journal page?

Closeup

Closeup - Microsoft DIE negative

Full journal page - showing image transfer using gesso of my original zen-doodle and some printed text

Closeup - Microsoft DIE negative

Closeup

Closeup

Closeup - Microsoft DIE negative and diffuse glow

Closeup

Thanks for visiting - and don't forget to leave a comment.

Peace,

LuLu