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Tuesday, March 19, 2024
March 19, 2024

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Transfer favorite images for gifts

Three methods yield varied results, but all are easy to do

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A photograph, top left in both photos, was used to make wooden coasters. The methods, clockwise from the top right, involve freezer paper, temporary tattoo paper and gel medium.
A photograph, top left in both photos, was used to make wooden coasters. The methods, clockwise from the top right, involve freezer paper, temporary tattoo paper and gel medium. (Photos by Holly Ramer/Associated Press) Photo Gallery

CONCORD, N.H. — Consider me your new craft-test dummy.

Do-it-yourselfers don’t have to look far to find tutorials for almost any crafting technique imaginable. But the online options can be overwhelming, and there often aren’t reviews by others who’ve tried to replicate the projects. I’ll be bridging that gap here, pulling together a few different methods to produce the same result, testing them and sharing the findings.

First up: transferring images to wood.

Gifts featuring family photos are always a hit, and can be given a bit of an artsy boost by transferring pictures to wooden coasters, ornaments or boxes. Here are three techniques I tried with both black-and-white and color images, rated from 1 to 10 by cost, ease of execution and overall results (with 10 as the least expensive, easiest and best results.)

INK JET-FREEZER PAPER METHOD: This method is similar to many others that essentially involve using an ink-jet printer to print an image on some kind of slick surface (freezer paper, parchment paper, transparency film) and then rubbing it onto the wood surface. I followed directions found on instructables.com (http://bit.ly/1QvzEkp), taping a piece of freezer paper to a regular sheet of paper and feeding it through my printer. I then flipped the printed image over onto the wood and scribbled on the back of the paper with a marker to “press” the ink onto the wood. (The original tutorial calls for using a credit card to rub the paper, but I wanted to make sure I covered every bit of the image). Keeping the image still to avoid smearing the ink was tricky, and the results were disappointingly grainy and faint, with much of the detail lost. That said, it might produce an interesting rubber-stamp-like effect with less-detailed images.

COST: 9

EASE: 5

RESULTS: 2

LASER PRINT-GEL MEDIUM METHOD: This technique, featured on the Photojojo! blog (http://content.photojojo.com), requires either photocopied images or images printed on a laser printer. The image is then coated with a layer of matte gel medium — used by artists to change the consistency and transparency of paint — flipped over onto the wooden surface and allowed to dry.

Later, the paper is moistened with a wet rag and rubbed away to reveal the transferred image. While time consuming, this technique produced fairly impressive results. There were a few spots, however, where the image did not transfer completely or was accidentally rubbed off, so this may be best for applications where you’re going for a more rustic look.

COST: 6

EASE: 7

RESULTS: 7

TEMPORARY TATTOO TECHNIQUE: My hands-down favorite transfer method was also the easiest, though it also was the most expensive. The instructions (http://bit.ly/1HIswtF) call for using a Silhouette digital cutting machine to cut the images, but that is not necessary. Basically, the image is printed onto special temporary tattoo paper, cut out and then glued to the wooden surface. The paper backing is then moistened and peeled away, leaving behind a thin film with the image.

While the Silhouette brand tattoo paper includes adhesive sheets, I found it much easier to spray the printed image with adhesive and avoid the trouble of smoothing a sticky sheet of adhesive onto the image. The results were crisp and clear, though the tattoo paper is pricey — about $7.50 for two sheets at craft stores.

COST: 3

EASE: 8

RESULTS: 9

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