The name Catch an Image gives you a glimpse as to what you might expect from this versatile ornament business. The only limitation to the ornament design is your imagination. Owners Danny and Mindi Searcy run the photo ornament business in which they put logos, pictures, wording of all kinds on sports and family ornaments. Danny modestly says that he makes pretty cool ornaments. I think you will agree that the Searcys have developed an interesting method of creating ornaments that has evolved from the scientific into the artistic.
They say that the process is pretty simple, but that it takes some practice to get it right. The ornaments at Catch an Image are made from pvc plastic with an air valve inside the ornament. The ornaments are not breakable, so there are no trips to the emergency room to get brightly colored glass out of your bare foot. The process involves capturing an image through taking a picture with an ordinary or digital camera, or using an image a customer emails, or using a printed photo which the staff scans onto a computer. Any image can be put on these ornaments, and the Searcys have designed ornaments for their customers that include everything from baby pictures to sports teams to weddings.
After the image is scanned to the computer, it is either inserted into a simple program template, or a new design is created especially to suit the image. Once the design is finished, it is printed on a special printer that uses transfer paper. The image is printed out in reverse so that when the image is placed on a ball or ornament, it is facing the right way. After the image is cut to size and taped to the ornament, it is put in a heat press, using various pressures. Next, the ornament is fitted with the hanger and sprayed with either a matte, or glossy finish. Now the ornament is complete.
Danny and Mindi both have full time jobs, but they really enjoy making ornaments and sports balls for businesses and individuals. Many of their customers put images of their pets on ornaments, and Danny says that he and his wife have even been asked to attend family reunions to make ornaments for entire families. For golden wedding anniversaries, they have had people bring them vintage pictures of their parents and ask him to design ornaments depicting the couple 50 years ago and another ornament with a present day image of the anniversary couple.
New parents send in their baby photos to put on ornaments and then send in a new photo each year, eventually filling the entire tree with pictures of their children from newborn to grownup. Now, that is a gift that Grandma would love.
Article and images used with permission from catchanimage.com
