It’s hard not to be intrigued by the Death’s Head Moth… beautiful yet haunting. A fascination I developed immediately after being captivated by the Silence of the Lambs! This delicate moth was the perfect image for this week’s trash to treasure transformation….
After last week’s Metamorphic Skull Mod Podge Image Transfer project, I was inspired to work on some more image transfer methods. I had ordered some Waterslide Decals for another project, but never ended up using them… so I figured what better time to give them a try.
I wanted to start with a small image…. and when I found this metal book stand at a thrift store, I knew it was a great candidate. It had a small, flat, removable metal decorative inset…. it was screaming for a macabre makeover! For this project, I am working with metal…. you can find all kinds of decorative metal objects at thrift stores…. as long as it has a smooth surface to attach the decal.
Here’s what you’ll need:
- Decorative object of your choice with a smooth surface
- Paint (as needed)
- Waterslide Decal Paper
- Printer
- Polycrylic Clear Spray
or Acrylic Coating Spray
Tweezers or micro pliers
- Bowl of Water
or 
Tweezers or micro pliers1. If your found object is dark in color or already has a design you’d like to cover over like mine did… you’ll need to paint it. When choosing the color to paint your project, stick with a light color. I know, I know… hell has frozen over.. I’m not using black paint. Truth be told.. when I started this project, I did actually paint the metal disc black… but I learned the hard way that waterslide decals are a transparent decal, so unlike a sticker, if a transparent decal is laid over black.. you can’t see it!! DUH!! However.. these decals look amazing on a white background. See for yourself…. I used waterslide decals to create these Cyanide and Belladonna Coffee Mugs. Needless to say, I sanded the disk and repainted it white.
2. Now for the decal…. select an image for your project. I found mine by typing Death’s Head Moth into Google Images.
3. Paste the image into whatever image program you are comfortable with. I’m a Photoshop girl, but Microsoft Word basically works fine too. Resize the image to fit the surface of your project. Feel free to leave a comment if you have any questions about preparing your image for print, and I’d be happy to help.
4. Because I had such a small surface to cover, and I really wanted my image to be on a black background, not a white one…. I added a black background to the image before printing…. Your ability to do this will depend on the program you use for image editing.
5. Print the image on the glossy side of the decal paper. I have an ink jet printer, so the following steps are specific to ink jet. If you have a laser printer, you can follow the directions on the waterslide decal package, and skip a few steps.
6. Let dry completely. This is critical. Do not touch it… just let it dry. The ink easily comes off of the paper if it’s not dry… just a fingerprint will lift the ink. In fact, I printed several of the same image on one page, just in case one got damaged accidentally.
7. Using the polycrylic or acrylic, spray the image.
8. Let dry completely! You may use a hair dryer for this step if you need to speed up the process.
9. Repeat with the spray two more times, letting the paper dry completely between each spray.
10. Once the decal has 3 layers of polycrylic or acrylic, and is completely dry, you are ready to make the transfer.
11. Cut the decal out of the paper, trimming 1/8″ or less around the image.
12. Place in a bowl of lukewarm water for up to 20 seconds. Pay close attention to this step, and have your pliers ready. If you leave the decal in the water for too long, it will begin to curl, and become difficult to manage. Watch for the decal to begin to become separated from the backing. As soon as you see this happen, remove the entire image.
13. Immediately place on your metal surface, and slide the backing off. You may need to smooth out some bubbles… but be very gentle…. the ink will still come off if not handled carefully.
NOTE…. because I used so much ink to create the solid black background, some of the ink cracked a bit when I was smoothing it over the disk surface. I actually liked the crackle effect, and decided to go with it….
When I first attempted this project without the black background, using a smaller decal, I didn’t have an issue with the ink cracking. Here’s a view of what it looks like when kept small… I added the decal to a cordial glass to get an idea of what it looks like in it’s natural state.
If you try this project, please send me pics… I’d love to see what you all come up with!
Another great DIY project for your kitchen is the Horned Beast of Wine Bottle & Stopper. Or… if you’re interested in other methods of image transfer…. try using Mod Podge in the Metamorphic Skull Wall Hanging tutorial…. or Cricut vinyl in the Ouija Board Serving Tray tutorial.
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