Simple Sun Catchers
How-to:

I am not really sure where I came up with this idea, but the basic premise was to find a way to create a sun catcher that you could hang in a window that featured my own photography or Photoshop creation.  With that in mind, here are the basic items you need for this project:

1. Some digital imaging software (Anything from Picture it! to Photoshop will do as long as you can define the printed output size in inches.  I actually used Picture It!)
2. An 8" or smaller craft ring or craft ring (Available at Wal-Mart and craft stores. I used a 5" ring so I could print two images per transparency sheet)
3. A 300 dpi image file that is at least as big as your craft ring that lends itself to being cropped into a circular shape
4. A suction cup hook large enough to hold your craft ring
5. Transparencies for your printer (I used Great White Inkjet Transparencies from Wal-Mart)
6. Craft Glue (I used Tacky Glue, but I solicit your suggestions for a better choice.  A glue gun will work, but it is a pain to get a good even bead of it and it usually doesn't dry completely clear.)
7. Hole punch or fine tipped soldering iron. (Soldering iron makes a small hole and can be done after assembly.)
8. Scissors

Steps:

1. Select a 300 dpi image at least the size of your craft ring that you can crop into a circular shape and edit for printer output at your desired size

   Start with an image larger or equal to the size of your craft ring with 300 dpi as the resolution.

   Crop the image to a circle shape.

   Resize the image to match the size of your craft ring.

   Apply any filters and adjust the colors as you feel appropriate.  It is probably worthwhile to do a test print on plain paper to to get an idea of what it may look like.  Remember, if you have a great deal of very dark colors or black in your image you may want to lighten them so they will be more transparent once printed on the transparencies.  Use pure black only if you want to block all light from that portion of the image.
    

2. Print the image on your transparency

   Check your printer settings and make sure you have selected transparencies as the paper type and select best quality.

   If you have craft rings smaller than 5", you can print two images per sheet if your software supports this feature.

   Print the transparency and check the quality.  You may have to play with printer settings  and colors/transparency to get the best result.

   Once the final version is printed, let the transparency dry thoroughly before continuing to the next step.

   Note: if you don't have a small tipped soldering iron, you will now need to use your hole punch to create a hole where a suction cup hook will go through when the sun catcher is hung in your window.  I prefer to use a soldering iron for this later in the process so I get the hole next to the ring.  This allows the ring to bear some of the weight of the completed sun catcher.
    

3. Glue the transparency to the craft ring

   Lay the craft ring on a flat surface with a sheet of paper or paper towel below it.

   Take your your glue and run a small bead of glue along the rim of the craft ring.  Your glue needs to be thick enough that it stays in a small bead and doesn't run down the sides of the ring.

   Lay your transparency on a flat surface with the printed side facing up.

   Carefully lift the ring off the paper; hold it in your hands by the very edges and turn it over so the glue is facing down.  You should be able to do this without getting too much glue on your fingers.

   Align the ring over your image on the transparency and slowly lower it into place until it comes in contact with the transparency sheet.  The glue should allow you to make minor adjustments to center the ring around your image and a little movement will insure the glue is distributed between the ring and the transparency for a tighter bond.

   Allow the ring and transparency bond to dry until the glue is completely clear.  During the drying process, if your craft ring is not completely flat you should add weight to the top by placing a heavy object such as hard back book on top of the ring while it dries. (Note: The rings at Wal-Mart tend to be the most flat and seldom require weighting during the drying process.)
    

4. Trimming the sun catcher, melting the hole, and hanging the sun catcher

   With a good pair of scissors cut away the excess  transparency around the outside edge of the ring.  Don't angle your scissors too much during the cut and get too close to the glue joint.  You should be able to leave enough transparency around the outside edge to insure your glue bond remains tight and yet not have the transparency around the outside seen when the sun catcher is displayed.

   Hold the almost complete sun catcher by your thumb and index finger on the ring where you think the top of it should be.  Adjust your grip until you feel comfortable with how the sun catcher hangs.  Note this location and lay the sun catcher on a table with the portion where the hole will go extended off the edge of the table.  Now, take your hot soldering iron and melt a hole just inside the ring for the hook.

   Finally, stick your suction cup on a window, hang your sun catcher and enjoy.

Variations:

Use something other than a round craft ring as your edge support.

Warnings:

Soldering irons are hot and can burn.  Scissors are sharp and can cut.  Glues can be toxic and misused.  Water will cause inkjet inks to run.  UV rays may cause the dyes in your inkjet ink to fade over time.  Even a pillow is dangerous in the right hands.