For some, the transfer technique can be both tricky and frustrating! The question was raised as to how to succeed in doing this technique. There were members that were very helpful in their reply. Here are a few of the tips that were mentioned.
If you have a heat tool – it works beautifully with laser prints.
Tammy H.
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Over the years I have done a lot of transfers to T-shirts and canvas. I use my regular photo copier to copy the image I want to transfer (I do not own a color photo copier). It is important to remember not to make your copy until you have everything ready…the transfer works best if it has been freshly copied. For T-Shirts, I place a heavy cardboard, about the size of the front of the T-shirt, inside the T-Shirt, and fold back the excess fabric to make the image area taut. I generally take painter’s masking tape and tape the excess to the back of the cardboard. I then make the photo copy (not inkjet or laser, btw)….place it (image down) in the area you want it, then Iron the back of the image paper. Use a firm press, gently move, motion. If using a regular iron, turn off the steam. I use fabric paints to then color in the image, being sure to paint inside the lines, so you don’t obliterate the outlines. Leave the article (as is) for a couple of days to thoroughly dry, then place white copy paper over the colored image to heat set it. Then it will remain intact when washed. HTH.
Hugs, Gayle
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I used watercolor paper. I liked that one the best of any in
of the techniques in this grouping.
Thanks!
Tammy (Red)
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I tried several times to get the inkjet transfer with water on watercolor paper to work and never got a decent result. I played around with a couple methods, and found that using an inkjet transparency with water onto watercolor paper gives a different look than the other methods, and it worked extremely well! I just wet the paper, put the transparency face down, used the brayer and there was the transfer!
Hilery
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I think you can use nail polish remover that contains acetone or you can use a certain kind of blender pen.
Anne
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I used soft gloss gel and transferred to the watercolor paper. I went back and did a second transfer with the same image and it came out better than the first one. I guess less ink makes a better or more crisp transfer.
Cathy
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I have a heat tool designed for use in wood burning. Mine has a flat little attachment that works well for transferring not only to wood, but to paper and fabric as well. I LOVE using it for transfers, it’s practically fool proof. You just have to be really careful because it gets about as hot as a soldering iron – and I always worry about burning the house down! LOL!
Tammy (Red)
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Try soft gloss paper. I just tried it with my HP inkjet and it worked great. Well, not great….lol, but I have an image and I had no image when I used the regular photo paper with. Just wet your paper and lay your image very carefully on the watercolor paper so it doesn’t smear.
Cathy
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Gel medium works great with a laser printer. We have a black/white lazer printer and I love making and tinting gel medium transfers with it.
WarmHugs
~ Tyra L.Smith
http://netnet.net/~cloud9
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I had better luck with the transfers if I put the gel on smoothly with my finger, directly on to the image, not to the ATC. But that didn’t work with my previous printer because the inks smeared. My new printer has water resistant inks so you can smear them with wet gel – BUT you can’t do the water transfer. You CAN do transparency transfers if you work quickly.
Some of you had problems with some colors not transferring. If your original looks fine but the transfer lacks some colors, that is due to your printer, you are not running low on a color. Some printers in more than one pass, and the top color transfers but the bottom colors may not.
If you have a laser printer you may be able to make a heat transfer or an acetone/solvent transfer. Use a craft iron or heat transfer tool on high (cotton) and place your image face down on the ATC. Rub on the back. Acetone and other solvents may work too. But it’s not your fault if it doesn’t work. The newest toners are printed with higher heat and use less toner and they are absorbed into the paper so well that they don’t always release with heat or solvent. Old copy machines usually transfer beautifully with these methods. You can do gel transfers, but instead of lifting the image while still wet, you until it has dried and rub the paper off from the back, like you would with a packing tape transfer. This only works if the ATC can tolerate the water. I cover my whole ATC with gel, smooth it with an old credit card “squeegee”, then place the trimmed image where I want it. Then once it has dried thoroughly you can wet the back of the image and carefully rub the paper off. You’ll get a fairly good image, but it’s always hard to get all the paper fuzzies off without removing some image. I’d love to hear from others if they have fairly new laser printers.
Debbie K
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A photo blender pen (contains Xylene and is tres toxic) works perfectly to transfer laser prints (print on copyweight paper and color the back of it when you have it on wherever you want to transfer it).
Alternatives are fingernail polish remover (I’ve used with and without acetone with equal success) applied with a cotton ball OR you can use a hot iron!
Basically all the same transfer techniques that work to transfer black and white laser prints to carving material!
Rabbit
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You know how hard it can be to get rid of all the paper fuzz when you
do the transfers? Clean off as much of the paper fuzz that you can.
Make sure your transfer is completly dry, then go over it with a light
colored Copic marker. Somehow it seems to make the paper fuzz
disappear. I learned that little trick in a class last year. Wish I
had that marker! Guess I will have to buy one of my own….lol
Cathy
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I have tried just about every way, shape or form to try these
transfers. this is what I found works the best It took a little of
these techniques and transfer techniques from “Artist Journals and
Sketchbooks” by Lynne Perrella,
Ink jet print image onto “ink jet transparencies: do not use laser
transparencies for copy machines.
Lay down gel medium onto surface and put transparency face down.
Burnish with bone folder. If transferring onto muslin, do not rub too
hard. Then lift image. I have got some amazing transfers with this
method. especially onto muslin.
Carrie Todd
(Click on photo for larger view)
