Acrylic Image Transfer Technique

Hey peeps! I hope you're all having a wonderful day :)

Got lots of good things done so I'm a happy camper.

I mentioned on Sat. that I had another image transfer technique to share with you and I'm so excited about it...this was another happy accident technique discovery during play time - LOL!!

Actually I was sorting through one of the boxes of projects from the book ~ you know...sorting supplies, putting 1/2 finished projects in a box, sorting out finished examples, etc. I came upon the bags of items I had from one of the charm sections on acrylic charms.

As I was sorting I noticed I had gotten some Glossy Accents on the front of a couple of the acrylic pieces sometime during the repacking at the photo shoot. I decided I was going to clean it off. I squirted the charm several times with water and tried to get the GA off... Needless to say once GA is on something it's sort of hard to get it off. Well during this process the back of the charm became saturated with water - DUH!!!

I was so mad, I tried to wipe the excess water off but some of the backing paper peeled off!!!!

EEEK!!!!!!

I put it in my "pitch pile" because I was sure I had ruined it but then I noticed that I could see through the area where the paper came off!

Shazam ~

Acrylic Image Transfer was born!!!!!

WOO HOOO!!!

SNAP-O-RAMA, jump for joy, do the happy dance,

another image transfer technique to share - LOL!!!

I know some of you out there are thinking what a ding dong getting so excited about an image transfer technique. Well, the reason I'm so excited is I have such a tough time making a neat edge on some of the acrylic pieces when I'm trying to trim off the excess paper. I don't know how Tim Holtz does it and makes it looks so nice and even...one of life's little mysteries. Anyway, mine never look that great so this is a savior! It doesn't matter how nasty my edges look....I can fix 'em right up with this technique. ;)

Now one word of caution before you begin....you MUST I repeat MUST let the charms dry for a few hours before begin with the water step. If you don't let the Glossy Accents cure the whole image will wipe right off. Trust me on this....once I figured out it worked I got impatient and messed up more than one charm getting in a hurry.

(Note: Sorry ~ a couple of these pics are a bit blurry but I wanted to get this on here at a decent hour and didn't have a chance to re-take them.)

Supplies:

Acrylic Charms - Tim Holtz Ideaology

Collage Image (examples used - Southern Blackberry Designs, Altered Pages)

Glossy Accents - Ranger

Water

Finger (borrow one if you don't have one handy)

Instructions:

1. Apply a bit of Glossy Accents to the back side of an acrylic charm.

2. Place the charm Glossy Accent side down onto your chosen collage image.

3. Let the charm dry at least a couple of hours to let the GA cure.

4. Once the charms have dried completely, trim the excess paper away. Now this doesn't need to be perfect so don't freak out if you can't get the edges to look nice. As you can see, mine are FAR from perfect!

5. Saturate the paper backing with water and let it set for a minute or two so the water has a chance to soak into the paper (less if you're collage image was printed on thin paper).

6. Now begin to rub! Keep rubbing until most or all of the backing paper has been removed. You can add additional water if necessary.

7. Wipe off the charm and let it dry. If you notice there are left over paper fuzzies simply rewet and rub till they are gone.

8. Once you're satisfied with the image, apply a thin layer of Glossy Accents over the image with your finger. This just helps protect the image from scratches and dings.

Now here is what the charm will look like after it's finished!

Way cool huh?

You can see by the sunset charm (center right) what happens if your charm isn't fully glued down to the image. I wasn't going for the look but it does add some character being distressed and all ;)

Now the charms are usable as is OR you can take it a step further and add some cool paper to the charm. I just slid a piece of sheet music under a few of the charms to show you what they might look like.

Like I said...very easy and way cool :)

NOW, since I'm so excited about this way cool image transfer technique I want to share in the fun....

I have a baggie of collage images and acrylic pieces waiting for a new home.

All you have to do is post what you think of the technique and you'll be entered to win!

You have until May 3rd to post.

Good Luck and Happy Day!!!