I found a stack of five little dessert plates at Goodwill so I finally placed an online order for waterslide transfer sheets.  I have been wanting to experiment with water slide decals for a long time.

I purchased water slide decal sheets specifically for inkjet printers.  I have a lot of fun making my own graphics with my photo software.  For this plate I got a clip art image of the wagon and I personalized it for my friend Laura.

Step One:  Print out the image on an inkjet printer.

Step Two:  Apply three light coats of clear acrylic spray paint waiting about 30 seconds between each coat.

Step Three: When the acrylic is completely dry. (I waited an hour) Cut out the image and trim close to the graphic.

Step Four:  Put one of the graphics in a bowl of warm water for about 30-45 seconds. When the image slides on the paper when you touch it, pull it out of the water and slide the image off the paper on to the plate.  Dab it with paper towels or a dish towel to remove the water underneath the decal.

I found a really nice video tutorial that helped me through the first time: Waterslide tutorial

It’s fun to make personalized gifts that are OOAK, just get on the internet to find free printables.