If you love photography and like to decorate your space with pictures you have taken yourself, then transferring photographs onto stretched canvases is a lovely alternative to the more common option of displaying them in frames.
What you will need:
– A canvas in the size you want
– A heavy gel medium (a milky white product that dries to a clear, transparent finish, available from shops that sell iconography/art/hobby supplies)
– A laser print of a photograph of your choice, in the size of the canvas
– A paintbrush
– A spray bottle filled with water
Steps:
1. Make a laser print of your photograph, bearing in mind that applying it to the canvas will produce a mirror image.
2. Cover the surface of the canvas with the gel medium, using your paintbrush. Apply a fairly thick layer.
3. Place the photograph on the canvas with the image face down against the gel, so that you can see the paper backing. Press down and leave it to dry for several hours, ideally overnight.
4. Once it is completely dry, use the spray bottle to wet the surface of the paper, that is, the back of the photograph.
5. Rub the surface with your fingers until pieces of paper begin to peel away, revealing your photograph. This stage calls for patience and care: if you rub too hard, you may also remove part of the printed image. Keep going until the photograph is fully visible.
6. Finally, cover the canvas with one more coat of heavy gel medium to seal the surface and protect the photograph.
The creator’s note on the project: The transferred image may come out imperfect, but that is part of the charm of the result! Still, it is a good idea to choose a photograph without too much “detail”, especially at first.
Editing: Natasa Lianopoulou
Source & photos: abeautifulmess.typepad.com
