Coasters for a White Elephant Gift

Texan Tree Bark Coasters

My family did a White Elephant for Christmas gifts this year and someone jokingly asked for coasters. Little did she know that I would actually do it! We are almost all from Texas, so I thought a Texas outline with the Texan flag would be a nice touch.

This is a continuation of my Woodburning Series.

 

Supplies

Tree bark coasters - Etsy link

•  Would've done this if I had trees nearby

Wood burning tool - this
Mod Podge to seal the final product -  this
Image to transfer - I used photoshop but any printed image works.

Photo editing in Photoshop

Don't forget to flip the image!

I started with an outline of Texas that I found on Google. I then put a Texas flag inside the outline and masked it with the outline. I thought the blue and red would look weird, or at least not as cool as brown so I went for a different color scheme than usual. I decided on Aggie Maroon for the blue and Longhorn Burnt Orange for the red. This works perfect for the family because we have Aggies and Longhorns! I flipped the image and copied it until 8 filled the page, save those trees!

Transfer!

Test complete!

The transfer worked pretty well, even with the color shift to a more yellow hue. The transfer wasn't perfect but I knew that was because of the changes in the wood's surface, which would not be an issue with the coasters.

Not too bad!

Transfer all 4 and that's most of the work! I decided against doing double-sided, partly because I'm lazy and partly because I knew I would freak if both sides didn't match up perfectly when you flip them. I calmed myself down by looking at all the coasters I own and realizing that they ALL have a top side to them. I did a double coat of modge podge on the top and sides with a single coat on the bottom. I doubt these will see much spillage, but they are protected if they do. Danish oil was something I considered, but I thought the stain would take away from the colors I had chosen. 

It's hard to tell, but the white parts of the image don't get any ink so they let 100% of the wood through. Pretty cool if you ask me! So just make sure you don't leave spots on the image that are almost white next to pure white, that would look blotchy.

Final Thoughts

The transfers were pretty fast for the coasters, about 20 minutes or so a piece. The color came out nice and matches wood color pretty well. A more brown town might have been offputting and the full saturation of the colors from my photo editing would have been too much. Now I know to expect the color of the wood to mix with the ink from the paper!

I learned that leaving a bit of paper on the edges that contain no ink is a great idea. It makes it easier to lift the paper without having to scratch at the coaster once the paper is stuck to the coaster. With wood this flat, you can easily leave scratch marks that are visible from an angle where the light is being reflected. I think the best approach is to have extra strips of paper that you place under these outside areas so that when the whole image is stuck to the paper you can just lift up from the corners. Also, only lift up half the paper at once! I had the paper come off entirely before and it takes some time to make sure you are perfectly lined up again.

The coasters were $19 with shipping, which is not at all a bad price! Most white elephants have a limit of $20 or so, so this is a perfect fit. I think one side of the coasters was slightly flatter than the other, most likely due to the bevel on the saw blade. It wasn't a huge change but something to keep in mind for the next round.

Photo Transfer for Skippy

Photo Transfer Success!

I set out to do a photo transfer to give to my girlfriend in memoriam of her pet that she had to put to sleep. I knew it had to be done well and kept secret until it was finished. This is a continuation of my Woodburning Series.

 

Supplies

Wood to transfer image to - used this - $3 with a coupon!
Wood burning tool - this
Mod Podge to seal the final product -  this
Image to transfer - I used photoshop but any printed image works.

 

Photo creeping on Facebook

Snuck around on Facebook until I found a good pic of the dog :)

 

Photo editing in Photoshop

Took the original image into Photoshop, cutout the shape of the dog that I wanted and went to town with filters. I added an edge detection filter to bring out the outlines, helps with a wooden piece like this and adds a nice look to the hair. Then I did some work with the color levels to make it more monochromatic and saturated.

 

Test the transfer process!

Laying out the test prints

Tests complete!

I did 4 tests to see whether I wanted to use the wood burning method or mod podge method. I decided on wood burning because I wanted to see the wood underneath the image. It also made the image feel more like a part of the wood. I also tested whether I wanted color, black and white or a grayscale image. I went with color since the dark black was not a nice look. I even tested a coat of shellac, man was that NOT the way to go or what?

 

Give it a whirl!

Finished product!

The process was pretty easy, especially with the perfectly flat surface I was working with. 

 

Final Thoughts

The perfectly machined wood from Michael's made a HUGE impact on the speed and quality of the work. I realized that I spent so much time trying to transfer the test images on to a bumpy piece of wood, but I basically transferred all I could transfer in the first few minutes. The flat tip of the wood burning tool doesn't go into the crevices of the wood and it leaves gaps. One could use a different tip if the bumpy wood was desired, it would just take more time and attention. I made the mistake of sanding the wood and I think that caused the lines in the face. :( Oh well, at least it wasn't too bad.

The paper moved midway through! AHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!! I was impatient and kept lifting the paper to check on the progress. Once I got below the eyes, the paper lifted completely off the wood! Luckily I found some unique spots on the ears that I could line up perfectly. Lesson learned, have patience and keep that paper stuck at all costs! I probably should have started going from the other direction midway through.

I didn't actually intend to use the basswood with bark, but it worked out better than my initial idea! I wanted an oval version of this, but they didn't have anything in the right size. Luckily, I left with the basswood and the bark actually really accentuates the colors in the printout!