Gel Medium Photo Transfer Craft Attempt.

You may be wondering why I am posting a craft in a kitchen blog, but not all activities that occur in the kitchen, are cooking related.   This adventure takes place at my kitchen table.

So yesterday, I thought it would be a good idea to try to transfer some of my photo's onto Canvas.

Since I work at a Craft Store and people have been coming in to get the Gel Medium to do photo transfers, I figured why not do one and try it out.

I read up on it on the internet, and all websites said it was easy-peasy.   Heck, I figure.  I can do this! 

Supplies Needed:

Picture printed on regular paper with a laser printer

Canvas

Acrylic Gel Medium (Gloss)

Foam Brush

Spray Bottle

Water

Basically instructions say:
Print out picture using a Laser Printer on regular paper.
Evenly spread Acrylic Gel Medium on canvas.
Place picture face down on top of wet Gel Medium.
Let dry well.  Perhaps over night.
Spray Paper with water. 
Let sit for a few minutes.
Gently rub paper off canvas leaving ink bonded with gel medium.
Let dry.
Repeat the wetting and rubbing process until all paper is rubbed off of canvas.  You will have to do this drying, wetting and rubbing process a few times before the paper comes off.
Give picture another coat of Gel Medium to seal it in and bring out the color.

My manager thinks this is a great idea, and why not do up a demo for the store?  Sure I bravely tell her!  I can't wait!

Yeah....   Another brain wave and attempt to scale the unknown that leaves me wondering why I started.

My Manager kindly printed out some black and white pictures on the Laser Printer at work.  (The instructions said to use a Laser Printer.)  This is done on your regular printing paper.

Yesterday after work, I coated my canvas's with Acrylic Gel Medium, then pressed the photo's onto them smoothing out all the bubbles.

With great anticipation, I allowed them to dry over night!

Waking up at 5:30 in the morning, my first thought is "Oh Goody!  I can reveal the magic!"  

I lay the pictures on the kitchen table on a towel and spray them with water to soften the paper so I can rub it off.  "Let the magic begin!"  Sure.  Maybe for the average person.  Not so for me.  The ink that is supposed to stay on the canvas is rubbing off with the paper.

I let it dry again, so I can see the missed paper.

 I spray with water and do more rubbing, taking off more of the ink in the process.  Oh, and I forgot.... if you have any writing of the picture it will show up in reverse... just so you are aware if you are also going to attempt this.  Make sure that you reverse the image before you print it out.

Here's one I tried of my daughter.  This picture is after I have already removed some of the paper and have let it dry.  You will have to repeat this step a few times. 

I wet the paper again, and like magic she appears.

And do more rubbing.... more of the ink is coming off.  Bet by the time I am done, she will disappear.

After more soaking and rubbing, Yep.  She is pretty much gone.  Not acceptable at all.  So I will paint a coat of Gesso over her hand start over.  

I get pretty much the same results with the Pocket watch picture.  I noticed in areas where the Gel Medium is thickly coated it worked better.   This to will get a coat of Gesso and a do over.

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So with these ones, I tried printing them from my home ink jet printer from images that I scanned.  I put the setting on the 'colour' setting. 

Here I am coating a canvas with Gel Medium

I try and spread it fairly thick and evenly.

With this picture it is one that I scanned and printed with my ink jet printer set on the Black and White setting.  It is stuck face down onto the Gel medium, and because the paper is most from the medium you can faintly see the image.

Retrying the pocket watch image.  I use an old gift card from work to smooth out the paper.  I want to point out that this is on one of those Canvas Boards instead of a stretched canvas frame.

Here is the pictures that I printed from my ink jet.  The left hand side one is from a scanned image in colour, and the right is also a scanned image that was black and white, but printed on the colour setting.  As you can see, the 'Black and White' one bled green ink, and is green tinged.   I have just finished pealing the paper off of them and they are still damp.  I will have to do this a few more times I think.

Here are the Pocket watches.  The one on the right was from a print from a Laser printer, and the one on the left was from my Ink Jet printer set on the 'Color' setting.  Note the green tinge.  This is the first paper peeling, and they are still damp.  The Laser Print is much nicer. 

Here's the picture of my daughter that I printed off my Ink Jet, with it on the Black and White setting.  Still damp from the first peeling.  This was on a stretch frame canvas.  You can see where the canvas was stretched over the frame across her forehead.  The ones on the Canvas Boards don't get that.  They come out ore even.  The stretched ones get damp and loose feeling.

I wet, rubbed and dried my experimental ones a few more times, and really wasn't impressed with the detail, or colour quality of them and decided not to continue on with them, all though the detail on the above picture isn't too bad.  

The Laser print one came out much better though, and I decided to keep it to bring into work for a demo.

I gave it a couple coats of Gel Medium.  The first one I went lengthwise with the strokes, let it dry then the next one, I went horizontal.  It looks cloudy, but will clear when it dries.

Pretty much dry here.  There is a bit of glare on it from the light.

I zoomed in on it so you can see the detail.

I like the way it turned out, and will definitely be doing more pictures up this way, making sure to use a Laser Printer, and a good thick coat of the Gel Medium.  I imagine that my transfer skills will only improve with time, and I'm rather excited about thing it out on other surfaces.  Thinking a Milk Jug would be pretty cool... hmmm....