Every once in a while you need a break from your normal routine to try something new and different. Syndee Holt, a well-known polymer clay artist and photographer, shared the following technique. Transfer may be used in paper crafts, jewelry and room decorations.
Open your digital photograph in a photo software program such as Photoshop Elements. Depending on your software, covert photo to gray scale and use your program to create a line drawing. (In Photoshop
Elements syndee suggests – covert to grayscale, use Filter and go to Blur to select Smart blur, then use Stylize and select Find edges, Voila a line drawing). Once you create a line drawing you can flip it horizontally.
Print the image using a laser jet printer on a heavy copy paper. If you don’t have a laser jet printer you can print on your injet printer and bring to a copier center (or you library) and a have a copy made on a copier that creates toner based copies. Some copiers work better than others so you’ll have to experiment.
Condition the clay for 2 to 3 minutes. Roll clay into a flat sheet about 1/8” thick using a pasta machine or Acrylic roller.
Trim the transfer to about ¼” around the image. Place the image face down on the surface of the clay and using the cotton ball soak the back with the alcohol.
Rub the alcohol soaked surface with the back of a spoon making sure to rub out any air bubbles.
Allow the alcohol to dry and then re-soak the transfer again.
Slowly lift the corner of the transfer, making sure all areas have transferred. If you see an area that hasn’t transferred you can lay the transfer back down and use the back of the spoon to rub that area.
Once the paper is removed you may gently use alcohol to clean the transfer and remove any bits of paper that may have stuck to the clay.
Trim the clay around your transfer and bake at 275° 15 minutes.
Allow the baked transfer to cool completely.
Now have fun coloring your transfer with colored pencils.
Transfers are great in scrapbooks, on journals, baby books, guest books, make fun magnets, may be framed or added to the top of a wood box.
