Okay…let me just go ahead and shock you before we get started. I did NOT use Citra-solv for this image transfer project! Don’t get me wrong. I LOVE my Citra-solv, but I was stuck in a rut of sorts. So time to experiment…
So here is the transfer medium for today’s project:
Since I live in the middle of NOWHERE, I opted for the convenience of purchasing from Amazon.
I was just going to transfer the image to a panel of canvas fabric, but decided instead to put it onto the body of a canvas tote. I’m in the process of replacing all those ugly grocery store totes. Yes, they were only 99 cents, but….they look like they cost 99 cents. Anyway…two projects in one.
Now this WILL NOT surprise you. I headed over to The Graphics Fairy to look for an image. This was my choice….
I printed it in reverse since it had lettering. Oh, how many time have I forgotten to do that!!! Anyway, this image seemed so appropriate for our current political season. Yep, I am a political junkie. I inherited this illness from my father.
I cut out my tote bag and got ready to transfer the image. First you need to brush a generous amount of gel medium onto the image:
Then place the image down onto the fabric. I used this lovely little wallpaper tool (from a kit I bought at the $ store) to smooth the image and remove air bubbles. But you can smooth it with your hand or the back of a spoon.
Now…you wait…and wait…and wait for it to dry COMPLETELY!
Then you forget to take pictures of the next step. You KNOW that I am THAT blogger! Stop acting surprised…Really though, the next step is easy. Wet the paper….some people use a spray bottle. Personally, I just get a small paper cup of water and dip my fingers in and wet them and use them to wet the paper. You can be pretty generous with the water. The point is to wet the paper so you can remove it from the image. I just rub the paper with my fingers or an old cloth to remove it. Actually I got pretty aggressive. My finished image is NOT perfect (it usually won’t be with this method). But even with my aggressive rubbing of the paper, very little of the image came off the fabric.
So here is the transfer medium for today’s project:
I was just going to transfer the image to a panel of canvas fabric, but decided instead to put it onto the body of a canvas tote. I’m in the process of replacing all those ugly grocery store totes. Yes, they were only 99 cents, but….they look like they cost 99 cents. Anyway…two projects in one.
Now this WILL NOT surprise you. I headed over to The Graphics Fairy to look for an image. This was my choice….
I cut out my tote bag and got ready to transfer the image. First you need to brush a generous amount of gel medium onto the image:
Then you forget to take pictures of the next step. You KNOW that I am THAT blogger! Stop acting surprised…Really though, the next step is easy. Wet the paper….some people use a spray bottle. Personally, I just get a small paper cup of water and dip my fingers in and wet them and use them to wet the paper. You can be pretty generous with the water. The point is to wet the paper so you can remove it from the image. I just rub the paper with my fingers or an old cloth to remove it. Actually I got pretty aggressive. My finished image is NOT perfect (it usually won’t be with this method). But even with my aggressive rubbing of the paper, very little of the image came off the fabric.
Here is my finished tote. If you click on it, you can open a larger image and see a little more detail.
Okay….ready for a do-it-at-your-own-risk bonus? I decided to see if the image could survive the WASHING MACHINE. It did! But first, I ironed the image (before I made the tote) by placing an ironing cloth on my ironing board (to protect the cover) and ironing the reverse side of the fabric with a HOT iron. My hope was to set the ink, while praying that I didn’t melt the medium. IT WORKED! I have only washed it once in cold water, but I did NOT use the gentle cycle.I DID let it air dry, but…..so far, so good.
Until next time,
Sammi
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