Portraits on Wooden Plaques

I've been itching to get away from stencils and lettering lately. (I'll keep that up - just wanted to try something new after all of the bow holders I've done recently.) I found a cool tutorial on this gal's blog that uses a gel medium to transfer an image onto something and decided to give it a whirl. I tried three right in a row. I'll tell ya', this technique is a little touchy. It takes a combination of the right amount of medium, the right photo, and the right amount of patience. So here's what I ended up with:

1st Try: Jack

Original Photo

Plaque Transfer

What I Learned: The photo was too light on the right side, so the copy machine did not pick up much pigment there. That meant there wasn't a lot to transfer so that part of Jack's face didn't turn out. I realized I need even, darker photos. Also, I put the medium on the plaque instead of the photo, which caused me to use too much medium. So some parts of the photo didn't touch the plaque and didn't transfer. Also, I used just my finger to smooth out the photo - not a great idea. I did allow it to dry all the way before rubbing off the paper. This caused me to rub too hard, and I ended up rubbing off splotches of ink. Jack's one eye ended up looking okay...I could see how this process was supposed to work. :)

2nd Attempt: Carter

Original Photo

Plaque Transfer

What I Learned: I loved this color combination (French blue, harvest green, & parchment). I chose a photo with even lighting across Carter's face and with definite lines. My problem came with the transfer process. I had read somewhere else on the Internet to not wait until the medium was completely dry because that might make it too difficult to rub off. I suppose I didn't wait long enough in this case. I went to rub off the paper only to rub the left side of Carter's head off. Oops. Also, instead of using my fingers, I used the back of a spoon to smooth out the photo. That still left blobs of medium between the photo and the wood, so that ink didn't transfer. (That's what many of those blotches are.) But, between the colors, the wording I chose, and the fact that Carter's sweet nose, mouth, and eyes transfered nicely, I didn't think this was a total bust. There's definitely room for improvement.

3rd Time's a Charm: Presley (my daughter)

Original Photo

Plaque (yay!!)

What I Finally Did Right: I'm thankful I practiced before doing this one as this is going to be a gift for my detail-oriented mother-in-law when I visit in a week. Using my finger, I rubbed just the right amount of medium on the photo instead of the wood. (I did this in Carter's too, which is one reason why his turned out better than Jack's.) Also, I used a rolling pin. (Yes, I know I need a brayer.) But the rolling pin worked perfectly. I waited longer than Carter's but less than Jack's (about 20-30 minutes), and then slowly began rubbing the paper off. I did this gently until I knew for sure the image had transfered. Bingo! The right amount of medium, the right photo, and the right amount of patience did the trick.

And now I can sell them.

A Bow Holder & Personalized Nursery Art

Rylan's Bow Holder...Check

Loved, loved the colors. Was not happy w/ how the glitter looked on top of the pink. 

Jaclyn's Baby Shower Gift...Check

Really liked how this turned out. Very romantic, like her name. I was originally going to paint the roses but just couldn't get them right. So, I used my new Photoshop program to watercolor them instead. After the antiquing process, I was in love with the result. I'll use decoupage more often on these. And what do you think about my new stencil font?

Pudding Painting & A Bow Holder

So G left for his almost six week stint for work in Kurdistan (northern Iraq), which means I'm on Presley duty by myself. It's been whirl-windy for the last few days, but I kind of like it. My house is a wreck, and we're eating leftovers several times a day. But I'm painting and creating and never realized how much I love doing this.

The bow holder that I shipped today was for a more modern, less girly nursery. I was inspired by the nursery pattern and was really excited to try something new. This is what I came up with.

While I worked on that, Presley worked on her own painting. Her medium was pudding and freezer paper.