Thursday, April 8, 2010

Failure

Yesterday, with my usual procrastination speed, I finally got busy on Tom's Mom Arlene's birthday gift. I had PLANNED it awhile back, got the items I didn't have on hand at Hobby Lobby. So, with less than 2 weeks before the gift should arrive in Ohio, I got busy "crafting" it.

First, download a number of pictures I had stored on Shutterfly. Then put as many of them as I can, by size, into a collage to print onto the transfer paper.
Oh wait. I have no idea how to use THIS (It was Paint Shop Pro) program on the computer.
So, wait until Ben has time to help me. This takes a couple of days.


Then, take two hours looking for the iron on transfer paper that I knew I had on hand somewhere.

I finally found it! Yay! Three packages... two opened, one unopened. One "Kodak", one "Avery", One "June Taylor Quick Fuse". Decide to use the open packages first, Avery and Kodak.

Next, load fresh ink cartridges into the printer. Align the cartridges.
Struggle with getting the printer settings adjusted. Waste two pages of colored ink, one sheet of transfer paper (Avery) getting things done just "so".

Test one of the cut out pictures... Success!

Iron on all of the pictures.

Discover only the AVERY transfers are peeling off.

Try warming the reluctant Kodak transfer. Some peel off, taking faces and body parts with the backing. Others refuse to peel off at all.


Decide MAYBE the backing can be soaked off the remaining transfers. Place the bag gently into the washing machine.

The backing DOES eventually soak off. But so do more of the faces, giving my family zombie like appearances.

Like they aren't quite "all there."

(OK, so maybe they already aren't all there!)

I also discovered, that despite the gentle washing, a hole developed in the seam of the tote bag. While I had decided the canvas tote looked quite sturdy, it obviously was NOT.

So, with no time left to traipse all the way back to Hobby Lobby (in another city...), I called my Dear Brother In Law. With a bit of persuasion, I talked him into taking his Mom out for her birthday, as she seldom goes out to eat anymore.

A couple of times while we have talked, she has mentioned that she hasn't been out for Chinese since Jack passed away. So that was my suggestion to the BIL. But MIL gets the final choice of where they will go.

It has turned off cold again. There was a thin layer of ice on my windshield this morning. Reports from co-workers claim it is supposed to be even colder tonight and tomorrow. But then Spring will bounce back again. Time For Spring, I say!

1 comment:

Truth said...

Why does that happen when you have like the perfect gift...that is if you could get it to do what it is supposed. My mom made Ethan some shirts like that which she'd done many times before. She said hers have never faded or anything. Well, Ethan drooled on his and it must have broken down the ink or something as the picture disappeared. My mom couldn't believe it. He must have good spit enzymes.