experiments in photo transfer

This past weekend I took a photograph of my dad and his sister (circa 1927) and tried four methods of transfering it to something that allows me to use it as fabric.

First I printed four copies of the sepia-toned photo onto plain paper using a color laser-jet printer. Laser prints don't run like ink jet prints.
Then I used four different transfer methods. I numbered the photos in the upper right corner but it's not as easy to see as I'd hoped.

For #1 I applied clear shipping tape over the photograph. I had to use several pieces to cover it all and I overlapped them slightly. I burnished it with the side of a wooden ruler and the smooth rounded end of a letter opener. Then I set the photo under a stream of cool running water and wet it thoroughly. The paper rubbed off of the back easily and it was easy to see where I'd missed spots so I could go back and get them. This was hands-down the quickest method and it provided a good, clear copy of the photo. This is the first time I've tried this method and I haven't applied the piece to fabric yet. I probably will use gel medium. I think it would be difficult to stitch through by hand.

#2 has three layers of Wonder-Under fusible ironed onto it, one on top of the other. I used a teflon pressing sheet over and under the piece and fused the webbing on one layer at a time to control it. (I've tried one layer and it simply disintegrated.) Once cool, I soaked it in water and rubbed off the back. This took a few tries because it needed to dry for me to see missed spots. It also took more care because the webbing is still fragile and it was easy to rub off too much. I do like the tattered and worn effect. I have applied it to fabric with both glue (gel medium) and ironed-on fusible. Both methods work fine and can be sewn through.

For #3 I simply placed the image face down onto a piece of fabric (smooth cotton) and ironed it. I set the iron as hot as it would go and I sprayed my cotton ironing-board cover with water beforehand to add a little steam. I burnished it with the edge of the iron (hard to do without the design shifting--basting it to the fabric might help). I pressed hard. The image is soft and ghostly, which could be good for certain projects. Since it's on fabric, it can be stitched, fused or glued onto another piece. I put it on a large piece of fabric, thinking that I might make it the center of a crazy quilt square.

Last, I made a gel transfer. I used Golden Gel Medium and painted several layers over the photograph. I let each layer dry in between applications and I alternated the direction of the brush strokes. The brush strokes will be visible in the finished piece, so for the top layer I made shorter "painterly" strokes. I let the final coat dry for 24 hours. Then I soaked the piece in cool water and rubbed off the paper from the back. You have to do this on a smooth, flat surface and take care not to stretch and tear the gel, which is like a soft plastic. It will stretch a bit as you work but if you're careful, it will snap back into shape. I had to let it dry completely and rewet and work at missed spots several times with this method and it is possible to over scrub and loose image. For the most part, though, this method retains the color and provides a clear image. I have both glued and stitched down gel images. You have to be careful when stitching through the gel but it works okay.

more transfer experiments

Last night I came home to the new issue of Stitch with the Embroiderer's Guild magazine. I love this publication and they have a great website.

After reading it over, I set up the ironing board and tried one of the techniques in the article on transfering text and images onto fabric. I just put one of my color laser printed copies face down onto fabric and ironed. And ironed and pressed and ironed. I got some ghostly faded images and some pretty good ones.

I realized I need images I can show. I've been using images I got when I donated to Art e-Zine and I don't feel comfortable sharing them unless they're firmly imbedded into a piece of art I make.

So today I printed out multiples of one of my photographs and I plan to try all of my experiments on that, repeating the ones I've already done, and then I can post them to show.

Pink

Here are my first attempts at making 2" pink squares for the Pink Artist doll challenge by Monica Magness.

The pictures were from magazines and I used fusible hem-webbing to capture the image. I wet and rubbed off the paper and then fused the design to gingham. I then used fabric markers and Sharpies and a gold gel pen to color in the images and shade the edges a bit to blend them into the fabric.

The words were clipped from some law texts I'd rescued from the trash heap. The other trims and threads were things I had hanging around.

I backed them with the same prequilted fabric I used for the TIF piece. It provides a nice body to them and isn't too thick.

Last week I printed out two pages of faces for an experiment with a variety of small faces on each page. I coated one page with acrylic gel medium from Golden. I layered several thin coats, letting it dry in between. Then I let it dry for about 24 hours. I soaked it in cool water and rubbed off the paper from the back. The dried gel stretches so you need to be careful to work on a smooth, flat surface and mostly in a gentle circular motion to keep it from stretching too much. When it dried, I could see spots where I'd missed paper bits so I wet it again and rubbed some more.

The images are embedded in the clear gel. I know I can use the medium to glue them onto paper or fabric. I'm not sure how the gel will hold up to stitching. I plan to cut them apart and use them in projects as yet unknown (maybe some more pink squares).

I learned this technique back in the 70s in college. I made a collage from magazine photos, trimming them carefully to avoid overlap (so there was no glue on the back of the paper). I coated my collage with the medium and built up several layers. After removing the paper, I used this as a negative to make a photo-etched plate and then printed my etchings.

The second half of my experiment was to take the second page of images and iron on Wonder-Under, then remove the paper. It wasn't a failure in that I learned what doesn't work. The Wonder-Under was just too light and fell apart when I tried to remove the paper.

I've seen this someplace on the Internet and Bond-a-Web was recommended, which appears to be the same as Wonder-Under. Of course I can't find the site now! I know the technique works from using it with the hem tape and the hem tape was a lot heavier than the Wonder-Under.

I have since learned there's a heavy-duty Wonder-Under that would likely be better. Since I already have the regular, I plan to experiment by layering a few sheets together.

I want to get this to work because I like the aged and worn look the fusible gave to the images. The gel images are exactly like the photos. So I'm off to experiment some more.