Methods for transferring images from paper to wood. The easiest way to transfer any image to fabric or wood How to make an image on wood
I translated an image printed on a regular laser printer. In the future I'm thinking of looking for an inkjet printer to print color images. In this case, you must not forget to mirror the image horizontally. Well, I also made a small tone correction in the light direction.
The surface on which the image is transferred must be smooth. I used 120 grit sandpaper.
Main element technological process- gel medium. When I found a craft store in my city and asked the seller to give me a gel medium, he asked me a question that puzzled me: “Which one do you want?” “Well, well, on the Internet it’s written simply - gel medium. Let me translate the pictures.” Then it was the seller’s turn to be surprised. It turned out that translating pictures is just side effect, which the seller had not heard of before, but in general the gel is used for various effects “under glass” and “with rhinestones”. From all the many gels, I chose a transparent glossy acrylic medium. It turned out I was not mistaken. The gel itself is similar to sour cream. And consistency, and color, and just as opaque.
Glue the sheet with the image and use a roller to push out the bubbles.
The idea of the method is that top layer paper carrying the image is pasted into the medium ( liquid glass). After complete hardening (we left the workpieces to dry overnight), you only need to remove the layer of paper. To do this, the paper is soaked and rolled with your fingers. I used the hard side of the dish sponge. Here you must not overdo it and damage the image itself. But this does not pose any particular problem; the image is quite stable.
We have conducted many experiments on paper removal. The sponge showed itself with best side. But when the paper was rolled up with your fingers, a small paper pile remained, which rose when the varnish was applied.
After removing the paper, all that remains is the printer ink glued into the liquid glass. Moreover, after drying, the gel became transparent and the structure of the wood was clearly visible.
I must say, the technology is quite effective. The whole process takes two evenings. The image is translated clearly and does not blur. One jar of gel with a volume of 125 ml and costing 480 rubles was enough for 9 A4 sheets. The only inconvenience is that the image may be damaged when the paper is removed.
All that remains is to cut off the excess.
Now that you have the technology, you can think about its application. For example, decoration of boxes or original labeling of products.
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Have you ever thought about “printing” your photographs on wood or has such a thought even occurred to you? One way or another, if you like the effect described, you can easily do it yourself by following simple steps described below.
Step 1 - What is required?
Below is a list of items needed for the job. You do not have to use identical tools, except as noted below.
Photo printed on a laser printer
Wooden board the same size as the photo
Gel medium (it must be acrylic)
Brush for applying gel medium
Knife for butter or any other flat tool to smooth the photo onto the wood
Wood paint (optional) and rags
Soft paraffin or matte ModPodge decoupage glue to smooth and cover the image
Paraffin brush
Picture hanging brackets
Step 2 – Selecting an image and its future appearance
Obviously, you first need to decide what exactly you want to transfer to the tree. More often than not, bright, clear, high-resolution photos won't look too stylish on wood. In our case, this photograph of an airplane was processed in Lightroom to give it a vintage look - converted to monochrome, contrast was increased and film grain was added.
Step 3 – Print the Photo and Find the Wood Base
Very IMPORTANT - the image must be laser printed, if this is not the case, you don’t even have to try to do the rest. Then you need to find the right one wooden base, smooth and of appropriate size.
Step 4 – Applying the gel medium to the wood
This is extremely important point. Cover the entire surface of the wood with one layer of gel medium, not too thin, but not too greasy. If the layer turns out to be too thick and dense, it will be difficult to remove the image after the procedure. A layer that is too thin will most likely not allow the image to transfer to the wood in some places. Try to create an even, high-quality layer.
After the gel medium has been applied, you need to position the photo front part on the tree. There will definitely be bubbles in the photo, so do your best to reduce and smooth them out. In our situation it was used plastic tool, which came to hand, but it could be a butter knife, a ruler, a roller, or any other item that you think would be suitable for this purpose.
After the image is placed on the base and smoothed, leave it overnight and don’t let anyone get close!
Step 5 – Remove the Paper
This is a very interesting stage. To remove the paper, we just need to wet it and scrub it with our hands. This is a rather messy process and there may be another way, but we found fingers to be the most suitable tool. Some parts of the image will be easier to remove than others, but keep in mind that by the end of the procedure your hands and fingers will definitely be tired. The procedure may have to be repeated and in total it will take from up to 30 minutes. But this extremely exciting moment is to see how the photograph appears on the tree. Have your vacuum cleaner ready to clean up the mess you're sure to get from this step.
Step 6 – Finishing Touches
At this stage you can show your creativity. Since we were going for a vintage look, we gave it one coat of wood paint. Be careful not to let the work become too dark or take on an undesirable color. After application, you can soak the surface with a rag to remove excess.
We then lightly sanded the edges to remove any excess gel and smooth out the wood surface. We also used a product called Pigment and sponged it onto the edges to create a vignetting-like effect.
Tree - excellent material For decorative finishing and for construction, since it is durable, environmentally friendly and adds a certain charm to the external treatment of walls and floors in rooms.
Sometimes wood is also used to place it on different images, which can serve as individual paintings or be placed on the walls as decorative elements. Having said that, making an image on wood or transferring it from a regular photograph is quite simple with some tools and common substances on hand.
Transfer Methods
But how to transfer a photo, picture or pattern onto a wooden surface so as not to spoil it, but to get a beautiful result? There are several common ways to transfer an image onto wood with your own hands.
Most often, a certain type of paper is used, a drawing or photograph in electronic format, as well as a ready-to-transfer wooden base- a board on which you need to transfer the picture.
Methods for transferring pictures:
- sublimation paper;
- paper and iron;
- PVA glue;
- gel;
- film for decoupage.
Sublimation paper leaves the image on wooden surface fast. Therefore, the method of how to transfer an image using it does not require a detailed description. Simple instructions for using it will suffice.
In all cases, before transferring a photograph to wood, it is processed in a photo editor, and only then applied to paper. Depending on the type of paper, certain substances are used to transfer the image onto wood.
Preparing to transfer the drawing
It is important to properly prepare the wood surface before transferring the design onto wood.
Preparation for transfer is usually the same for each type of transfer and includes the following steps:
- Cleared first work surface. It is better that it is light and purified. The color of the wood can affect the quality of the future design, so you need to consider what kind of material and type of wood is selected.
- To get the perfect pattern, you need to sand or process it with sandpaper. wooden board so that its fibers do not distort the image quality.
- When translating pictures you need to use mirror image drawing. In almost every case, you need to take into account the method of translating the image, since often correct drawing from paper requires mirror reflection.
- If possible, photographs should be in high resolution digital form. This does not always guarantee a good result, but otherwise it can lead to distortion of the drawing.
- Texts and numbers should always be mirrored before transferring the picture onto wood. If portraits or landscapes can still be left as is, then the readability of the text directly depends on the location of the text on the transfer paper.
Transfer with a hot iron
This is the most cheap way transfer the image onto a wood board. It is best suited for transferring simple images followed by surface treatment.
For this method, before transferring the drawing, you need to have a printout of the image from a laser printer, as well as a surface for the drawing that has been sanded with fine-grained sandpaper or a sanding machine.
First, the pattern or design is stretched to required sizes, and then print it out. A sheet of paper must be placed on the board in the place where the transfer will be carried out and fixed. After this, iron the paper with an iron.
Paper for better transfer The pigment can be pre-moistened with a small amount of acetone, but you must follow safety rules so as not to inhale the fumes. A gauze bandage should be used, and the room where the image is transferred to the tree should be well ventilated.
Typically, this method is used to burn out patterns and simple images using a wood soldering iron. The pattern can also be drawn by hand and using carbon paper to apply the design onto paper and then onto wood, or directly through a piece of paper and carbon paper onto the surface.
Transferring the image with PVA glue and gel
When transferring an image with glue or acrylic gel medium, the procedure is practically the same. It is recommended that before applying the design, degrease the surface and sand it smooth.
The difference is in the procedure for applying the glue or gel. In the first case, glue is applied to the photograph, after which it is placed on a wooden base. In the case of gel, the substance is applied directly to the board, after which an image is placed on top of it. In any case, it is important to apply the substance in an even layer, not thick, but do not leave gaps or dry spots.
After this, the surface of the photograph or paper with a pattern can be leveled, air bubbles expelled and fixed in the desired position. In this case, a roller is used to smooth the sheets, like, for example, wallpaper on the walls after gluing.
It may take 12-24 hours for the glue to dry or the gel transfer to completely transfer the photo onto the wood. After a day, the sheet can be removed. In the case of glue, you can slightly moisten the paper with a sponge so that it can be better separated from the wooden surface. The glue has to be carefully rubbed off with your fingers. It will be much easier to separate the paper from the gel - just roll it up.
The gel needs to be given a little time to dry, after which it is covered with paraffin. PVA glue also needs to dry somewhat, after which it is varnished.
Transferring with film for decoupage
This is a good way to transfer images onto wood without the help of glue or gel, which already leaves quite rich colors and bright designs.
In this method, the surface of the board prepared with sandpaper is used, onto which it is applied. acrylic paint white. The paint is first diluted slightly with water, after which one layer is applied to the surface of the board in longitudinal direction, and later - a second layer in the transverse direction. After this, the paint is allowed to dry.
At the same time, decoupage film is used, on which a photograph or the desired image is printed. First it is soaked in water room temperature for about half a minute. After this, it is placed on the surface of the board, and then the base is removed.
By treating the film with a sponge, excess moisture is removed from it so as not to rub the pattern. After it dries, you can use a marker to correct image defects. The board takes on its final appearance after it is coated with varnish.
From all the available examples, it becomes obvious that transferring an image onto wood with your own hands is not so difficult. It is enough to have careful hands and, perhaps, some skills in working with photo editors, as well as at least a little good color taste.
After creating a design on wood, it can be placed in any room of the house or used as a decorative element, multiplying it several times.
Some masters have turned this simple activity into a good business. But first of all, the main task of such a transfer is a beautiful drawing on wood, the creation of a beautiful object, gift or decor that will bring pleasure to its owner.
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