Thursday, February 17, 2022

Rock Painting Tutorial #15 - "Fairies in Love"

"Fairies in Love"


Hi and welcome to my rock painting blog!  Thank you for joining me for this rock painting tutorial, it is my hope that you will find it fun and informative.

If you follow the directions outlined below, you will be able to create a rock just like the one pictured here...


Fairies in Love
Hand-Painted Rock by nancymaggielee



Before you begin

with the detailed STEP #’s below, you should do the following…

1.  Find a rock you want to paint, making sure it's the right size and shape for your image.  Wash and dry your rock.  If you need help finding a rock, read this article.

2.  Paint the rock with two coats of white acrylic paint using a foam paint brush.

3.  Select a picture you would like on your rock and print it out onto wax paper.

You may want to watch the videos and read the articles in the section below for more information about these pre-steps...

____________________________________________________________



REFERENCE ARTICLES & VIDEOS for more detailed information on the steps above

To learn how to find and download any image into a word processing document, resize it and print it out refer to the following article:


“Learn How to Find and Print Pictures after Downloading into Word Processing Documents” https://www.craftygirlsrock.net/2020/07/learn-how-to-find-and-print-pictures.html


Learn how to make your own wax paper sheets (from a roll of ordinary kitchen wax paper) to print on, watch this video:

How to Make Wax or Freezer Paper Sheets for your Inkjet Printer https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0EYCIbkP9lo


Learn how to transfer an image using freezer paper:

"Making Freezer Paper Sheets" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tD2YLpSrsaY 

 

“How to Transfer an Image to a Rock Using White Acrylic Paint and Mod Podge” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkw4RLWs_sk


*Please note the following:

- The video links above may also be linked below in the STEPS, however, I just wanted to group them together in the beginning of this post so that you can get a general idea of what the procedure is.

-  Also noteworthy, the video links above in this section will most likely be from different rock painting tutorials, so while the image may be different, the procedure will be the same.  This is just pre-information linked together for your convenience and to reference throughout the tutorial.

____________________________________________________________


So, now that you have a general idea of what is involved and you have watched some of the above videos, you are ready to begin!

Are you ready to paint a beautiful rock???  Let’s go…

 


STEP #1:

   Deciding on an image and designing the rock in your mind


There are so many fairy images available on the Internet that this may very well be the hardest part of your rock painting!

I love painting flowers and fairies on my rocks, you may like to paint birds and butterflies.  There is no right or wrong way because there are no mistakes in crafts! 

For this rock painting tutorial, I will be using fairies as the subject of my rock painting.

Whatever you want to paint on your rock, using the method outlined in this blog post will require finding an image to transfer first and in order to do that, I have linked an article below this paragraph for your reference on this process...

“Learn How to Find and Print Pictures after Downloading into Word Processing Documents” https://www.craftygirlsrock.net/2020/07/learn-how-to-find-and-print-pictures.html (you may have already read this because it is included in the pre-steps section)

After you have found the image, you are going to transfer, you will print it out onto wax paper (see STEP #2 below).

This is the image I chose for the rock painting "Fairies in Love" featured in this blog post...




You can find many pictures of fairies on Pinterest.
I have a collection of fairy pictures linked here
 if you would like to view them.

You will notice from the picture of the finished rock at the top of this page that I flipped the image horizontally before I printed my image of these fairies onto wax paper.

It is not necessary to flip the image, but just keep it in mind that the image is going to be transferred face down onto the rock's surface and will be opposite of the image on the screen when you print it out onto the wax paper.

You can flip an image in two different ways. 

The first way is to use the 'Format Picture' commands at the top of the word processing page.   After copying and pasting the image into the word processing document, 'right click' on the picture with your mouse and a black line will appear around the image.

At the top of the page, you will see 'Format Picture' in the choices.  Go to 'Rotate' and then select 'Flip Horizontal'.  You can also use these 'Format Picture' commands to resize your image by moving the mouse back and forth on the black line around the picture.

The second way to flip the picture is in your computer's print commands.  Use the 'Advanced Features' in your print command and select 'mirror image' before sending it to the printer.



STEP #2:

   Print your image onto wax paper and transfer picture to your rock


Paint your rock’s surface with two coats of white acrylic paint, allowing each coat to dry in between.

Using your word processing program, print your image onto wax paper.  Allow it to dry for about 30 seconds before placing it face down onto the dry white paint surface of your rock.



This is what the wax paper will look like when it's secured to the
computer paper with Scotch tape.   Place an arrow on it too 
in case you want to re-insert the wax paper and print over
 the image 2 or 3 more times to get more ink on the wax paper
to make the transferred image more vibrant.



Wax paper sheet in the rear tray before printing image.






This is a picture of my print commands screen in
my word processing program.  Yours could be
the same, but if not, it will be similar.  This is
the screen where you can change the direction
of the image before printing.  Look for something
in your 'Print' menu like 'Printer Properties'






STEP #3:

   Place the Freezer Paper Image onto Rock’s Surface to Dry


Turn your wax paper image upside down onto your rock's surface.

Try not to move the paper at all because this will smudge the ink.  Once it is in place, secure the paper to the rock using Scotch tape to hold it steady so that it won’t slip.

Rub the back side of the paper gently with your fingertips and smooth out the paper and try to make sure every part of the inked surface of the picture is touching the rock’s surface.  Push out all bubbles that might have formed.




This is my rock with the wax paper image
placed face down before I burnished it
with my flat edge
.


Place a piece of wax paper over the image that's face down.  You will do this so that when you use a credit card or flat edge over it hopefully it won't tear. 

As you may know, wax paper is thin, so adding an extra layer of wax paper provides extra protection for your printed image by allowing you to push the paint onto the rock's surface with a little extra pressure using your flat edge or credit card.

Now use your flat edge to go over the wax paper sheets that are on your rocks surface; this is called burnishing.  Make sure you go over it several times for best results.



 

STEP #4:

Reveal the Image by Peeling off the Paper


Once you have burnished your image, gently peel the wax paper back to reveal the transferred image!  What fun!

I hope it turned out great, but if you have any questions or problems, please leave them in the 'Comments' section on this post and I will be happy to get back to you.

Use your paint pens to add color to your painting.  You can add definition to the image by using extra fine black Sharpies. 

You might also want to stencil some flowers onto blank spaces onto the rock to add more color and decoration.  Trace the flowers with the stencil and color them to your liking!

Apply at least three coats of Mod Podge with a foam brush to finish your rock. 

Your rock is now ready to enjoy for yourself, give away as a gift, or sell at a craft fair.

I hope you had fun, enjoy!



SOME SUPPLIES

Rocks for Painting https://amzn.to/2YmClyT

Inkjet Printer https://amzn.to/391bXx7

Computer Paper https://amzn.to/3ir89L1

Mod Podge Matte Gel Medium https://amzn.to/2Xh1idD

Painting Flowers on Rocks https://amzn.to/2Zwl87g

White acrylic paint https://amzn.to/3b4d00G

Paintbrushes https://amzn.to/3d6uScL

Arteza Paint Pens https://amzn.to/3cqpEYt

Sharpie Permanent Markers https://amzn.to/3eStQ4a

Sharpie Ultra Fine Black Marker (for outlines) https://amzn.to/2DOIkot

Art Markers https://amzn.to/30waJIX

Shuttle Art Markers https://amzn.to/31p8SoI

Peel and Stick Flower Stencil https://amzn.to/2C83JZo

Leaf and Ivy Stencil https://amzn.to/3km2vv7

Deco Art White Paint Pen https://amzn.to/2DzQX6D

Paint Markers https://amzn.to/2XGYzep

____________________________________________________________

Supplies Sidenote:   Not all of the above products will be needed for this particular tutorial. I have linked to some supplies that I use in my rock paintings so that you can have access to some of my favorite products, but you can find most of these in your local craft store.



Here are the links to other rock painting tutorials on this blog:

ROCK PAINTING TUTORIAL #1 - A Basket of Pansies

ROCK PAINTING TUTORIAL #2 - Gardening Animals

ROCK PAINTING TUTORIAL #3 - Red & Orange Poppy Flowers

ROCK PAINTING TUTORIAL #4 - Little Boy in a Bunny Costume

ROCK PAINTING TUTORIAL #5 - Mama Bird & Chicks

ROCK PAINTING TUTORIAL #6 - Fairies & Bunny Spring Rock

ROCK PAINTING TUTORIAL #7 - Beach Bunnies Family Rock

ROCK PAINTING TUTORIAL #8 - The Candy Corn Family

ROCK PAINTING TUTORIAL #9 Daffodils Rock

ROCK PAINTING TUTORIAL #10 - Fairies & Daisies (Coming soon)

ROCK PAINTING TUTORIAL #11 - Strawberry Fairy Rock

 


Some of my PINTEREST boards that may interest my crafty friends:

Hand Painted Rocks by nancymaggielee 

Stained Glass Painting & Glass Crafts

Rock Art 

Image Transfer

Water Color Clip Art 


Looking for a fun gift for someone in your life? Check out my Zazzle store... I have t-shirts, coffee mugs, Christmas ornaments, phone cases, office accessories, just to name a few!

Please visit my WEBSITES for more information about ROCK PAINTING:

Crafty Girls Rock

Hand-Painted Flower & Fairy Rocks

Hand-Painted Rocks

Painting Rocks!


Thanks again for visiting!  I hope you enjoyed this tutorial and hope to see you again soon.  And remember...

Be creative and be happy!

You can now buy rocks online!

You can now buy rocks online!
These are great for a rock painting party! (click on picture)