Proofing Laser Engraved Mat Board Today

I am proofing a laser cut mat board today. The image is from an encaustic piece I made a year ago. I imported a photo of the encaustic piece into Gimp (open source SW--free!!--kinda like Photoshop), increased the contrast, then sent the file to the laser machine. The brown that you see on the mat board is actually the inside of the board. It's been toasted a little bit by the laser. I coated the back of the mat board with 100% gloss gel medium, the front with 2 coats of diluted medium--just brushed on, so I'll probably see evidence of those brush marks on the final print. (I'm concerned about the eyes--they look pretty dark on the plate so they may just be a black mess. Check back in to see the proof!)

Oh, some good news! Six Grackles are now available at Davis & Blevins Gallery in St. Jo, TX. I'll be raising my Etsy prices the first week of June on previous listed birds so they match D&B's prices. If you were on the fence on the Grackles, now is the time to buy!