Gel Medium Transfer Tutorial

Hi all,
I have had several requests for a tutorial on the Gel Medium Transfers - so here you all are - please post any questions etc, your success stories/comments etc here in this discussion by 'commenting' I would love to see what you have created.

Enjoy - it's a wonderful technique which does take some trial and error to get right.

Here we go........

I use a polymer gloss for all my transfers, as some glaze pastes, gel mediums just will not work. So look for the Matisse Polymer Gloss one (we sell it in Scrappindipity) I have heard people having success with the Golden Gel medium too - but can't personally endorse that one.

Firstly you will need to have a good quality paintbrush to use, as a chunky low quality brush will leave too many brushmarks and spoil your overall look... that said though, if you want that look specifically - go for it.!

Choose toner based images (photocopies work best) some ink-jet printers that use durabrite inks also work.

Choose your base card - coat this card with a thin coating of the gel medium - this protects it for a later stage, when you start to 'rub off' your backing paper off the transfered image. I don't always do this, as long as you are very careful with your 'rubbing off' it can be ok to not coat the basecard.

Let it dry. (2 mins max with the matisse gel)

Coat your image to be transfered with the gel medium, (over the right side of the image)

(Some papers and cards require more or little gel medium so experiment with this)

Now lay this image down onto your pre-coated cardstock (gel down onto cardstock) and burnish the back with a popstick or bone folder for around 30 seconds.... this can be trial an error depending on how much gel medium you have applied... try and find out which works best for you - less gel medium or more gel medium.

Sometimes you can burnish the back of the image, and let it dry completely - leaving the 'rubbing off' part until another time.

Finding a corner of the image, start to peel off the backing paper carefully - you should see some of the paper sticking with the image attached to your base-card. So far, so good...

When you have removed this layer of paper, you get a glass/bowl of water, dip in your finger (not too much water needed) and slowly rub in circles over the transfered image to remove the excess paper residue/glue.
This is a slow process and can be done several times to remove the little white fibres. Once you have done this and the image dries, you will see more white fibres from the paper - again dip your finger and gently rub them off.

When you are happy with the look, you can then apply a coat or two, of 'Glaze Paste' (my favourite for sealing, as it finds it's own level and leaves NO brushstroke marks whatsoever!!) You can use the same polymer gel medium over the top too, it works, but does leave brushstroke marks. Or choose another sealer/varnish of your choice.

When you apply the sealer/glaze paste/ or gel medium over the transfered image, it will minimize any white paper residue - so this is the cool and fun part... seeing how your image is really going to look when finished.

When the sealer you choose (glaze paste/gel medium/varnish etc) has dried you can sit back and admire your work.

Get ready for some serious finger rubbing - oh an extra little tip I discovered.... a little wad of 'wet wipes or baby wipes' rubbed gently over the transfer can save your fingers from getting too sore!! But rub very carefully or you will remove your transfer.

Have fun, hope you enjoyed my tutorial - I would love to hear how you went.Thanks!

Lorri xo