Image Transfer in 4 Easy Steps!

It’s not everyday that I make a project that brings my family to tears in my bathroom.  Yep, you heard it right.  At least they are closer to the tissue.  A couple of months ago we changed the colors of our bathroom and I bought some towels that I love.  The towels are teals in three shades that create a hombre effect in my towel closet.  With brown walls I feel like I’m at the beach in the sand and the waves.   To add to this feeling I decided I wanted to capture an image of my kids at the beach when they were young by transferring a photo to a wood board and sanding it to look like weathered wood.  Yes, this is where the crying comes in.  They are so cute when they are little.

I loved the way these turned out and the directions of how to create them are below.  Of course all the supplies can be purchased at your local Craft Warehouse.  I hope you have fun.  I know I did.

Supplies Used:

Decorating Your Life Vinyl
Americana Décor Chalky Paint Treasure & Primitive
Americana Décor Image Transfer Medium
2 Sierra Pacific Wood Canvas’
Sand Paper
Foam Brushes

Directions:

Step One-Prep the Board:  When the photo is transferred to your board, the board will show through any places on your photo that is white or light in color.   I decided I wanted the wood grain to lightly show through my photo.  To do this I coated the bottom layer of my Sierra Pacific board in Primitive Americana Décor Chalky Paint and let it dry.  (This paint is amazing.  I kept coming back to the board to pet it.  It was so soft. ) Then I placed my Decorating Your Life vinyl saying on the layer of Primitive and then mixed Treasure Americana Chalky Paint and Primitive Chalky Paint to match my towels and painted over the vinyl  to layer the words under my photo for a weathered look.  Then I sanded the board with some fine-grained sandpaper to get a distressed look and see the wood grain.

Step Two-Prep the Photo:  You will need to print your photo on regular copy paper on a toner printer.  Make sure to reverse your image so local landscapes or words do not appear backwards after transferring.  You can easily print these photos at your local office supply store.  Lastly, trim the photo to remove any of the unprinted white edges.

Step Three-Transfer Photo:  Lay a thick layer of the Americana Décor Image Transfer Medium over your project and your photo.  You want to make sure every piece of the photo touches the medium.  Then lay your photo face down on the medium on the board and smooth out your photo making sure not to puncture your photo and to get out any bubbles.  I used a rolling pin then rubbed it down with my fingers.  Wipe away any extra Transfer Medium from the edges with a damp rag.  (Don’t forget to wash your tools)  Let dry overnight.

Step Four-Remove Backing and Apply Finish:  It’s time to get messy.  (After looking at my floor, I should have taken this outside for this step.)  Get a wet rag and lay it over your project until the paper is wet enough to start seeing the image then carefully rub the back off your photo.  If you want a distressed look, feel free to use an old washcloth.  If you are going for a clean picture with no nicks or scrapes use your fingers and carefully rub it off.  You may have to repeat this several times to clean off all the backing.  After you gently remove all the paper backing and your vinyl, sand if desired and coat the project with one more layer of the Americana Décor Image Transfer Medium to prevent scratches.

Step Five-Don’t Show Your Mom:  If you do, you may end up making two sets…

 

- Elizabeth