Christmas Cards with Vodka transfers

USING ALCOHOL TO MAKE A TRANSFER

SUPPLIES YOU NEED:

pictures printed on INK JET printer (not lazer)

smooth or hot press watercolor paper

(I used Bee paper cut to 6 x 9)

Vodka, gin, or whiskey (rubbing alcohol doesn't work)

stiff brush

ink pen

watercolors

I got this idea from this book by Karlyn Holman, Watercolor, The Spirit of Spontaneity. It's a collection of methods used by different artists. 

First, lay your pictures upside down on your paper. A little at a time, start applying the alcohol onto the back of the print with stiff brush, rubbing and applying some pressure. Then go to the next area. If you oversoak the paper with alcohol, the ink will just run together.

When you are done, lift off the print, and you will have a reverse image of your print. It is usually not a perfect image. Some have a bit of a dry brush look.

Then dry the card. You can use pen and ink or watercolor to add details. 

On the cards below, I tore tape and taped off areas for the trees, then used a color picture to transfer only inside the taped area. On the right, I painted in sky, inked the outliness of trees, and painted in some birds. Also added soe gouache for snow on the tree and spatters of snow in the background. 

(the one on the left is not finished...I just took the tape off)

This one is the print with some ink added to bring out the ornaments. 

On this one, I made a stencil out of yupo paper, and just transfered inside the stnecil. Then I went over parts with ink.

On the bulbs below the tree I laid the print over the paper and only rubbed it with alcohol in some circular parts. I painted a green background and inked in the ornament shapes and some fir branchees.

In the ones below, I liked the transfer. They are on the Bee paper, and look a little dry brushed. On the left, I left it just as it came out. On the right, I inked the outline; added some yellows to leaves and flower; and added some darker shadows in the leaves with watercolor paint. 

The only caution is that, if you use words or numbers, you have to tell your printer to print them for transfer so they won't be backwards in the final print.

If you use 90 pound paper, be sure to flatten it after you finish, as it curls much more than 140 pound.