monotype print

Make Monotypes – online printmaking course – begins Jan

I am pleased to share that the online printmaking class, Make Monotypes will be offered in January. It is the only time that will be presented for 2018.

If you are looking to explore monotype printing with the gelatin plate, then check out the details and add it to you calendar for the new year.

 

Want the confidence, skills and support

to make beautiful prints?


Next Class Jan 8th to Feb 2nd, 2018

Regular course fee for 4 week class is $198.00

Early bird discount will be offered Nov. 15 – $158.00

Stay on the mailing list to get invite for discount.

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More info and a breakdown of the weekly lessons on the printmaking workshop page. Click here.

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One color Gelatin Plate Monotype prints

I have ordered a roll of Tyvek® from Material Concepts. I really love how durable the stencils are when they are cut from Tyvek®. I never thought that I would have the patience for cutting intricate stencils.

Tyvek stencil for monotype printing with the gel plate

But as you can tell by this wall of prints I have been cutting a lot of stencils.

wall of gelatin monotype prints with tyvek stencils

Today I printed some simple one color cards with the houses and trees on the hill stencil.

christmas card printed with Tyvek stencil and gelatin plate

I used neutral tone card stock and cyan speedball printmasters water based ink. I like how the holes in my gelatin plate created white spots in the print.

If you would like to explore gelatin printmaking with tyvek stencil check out current workshop.

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Dried grasses for gelatin Printing

Fall is a good time to find thin sturdy grasses for printing with the gelatin plate.

gelatin print made with dried grasses

 

When you are looking for good grasses and weeds to use as masking stencils look for:

  • very flat
  • very thin
  • good spaces between the branches
  • size that will work well with your plate
  • sturdy – so it does not fall apart on your plate

I always gather 3 to 5 pieces of different sizes, so I can have some variety and repetition with my imagery.

play with paper size when gelatin printing

The grass above has very interesting branches, but it was pretty fragile. So I probably will only get a few uses with it before it falls apart. I printed the image on long strips of paper. This is one way to vary a simple impression – change the paper size.

grass as masking stencil for gelatin printmaking

Another way you can make a simple impression interesting is to embrace and use the brayer marks as part of the design.

If you would like to transform some of your prints into gifts and you would like some help, then sign up for the online class Printed Gifts. It is available to you right now. This gives you plenty of time to make some holiday gifts.

Read the details on the printmaking workshop page.

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Dyeing with Rit Dye

I cycle through working with fabric at different times. Recently I was admiring indigo fabrics and thought I would give it a try.

shibori dyed fabric

I am super sensitive to fumes and chemicals, so I used the liquid Rit Dye. That way I did not have to deal with mixing powders. I was going to follow some of the indigo recipes and mix black and blue, but I found that I really liked the Denim Blue alone.

fabric dyed with Rit shibori style

I am not sure how long the open bottle will last but I have had it for a couple of weeks and I am still able to get a nice blue. I am not aiming for perfect even coverage though.

dyed and screen printed fabric

Today I dyed a sack cloth that I had screen printed. I dyed the whole piece in a mason jar.

  • Hot water,
  • a bit of salt,
  • 2 teaspoons of liquid Rit dyed
  • and the white cloth was transformed.

hand printed and dyed fabric

I really like how the blue square image pops with the blue dye. The ochre gecko image is a bit dull or mottled but I am ok with it.

screen printed fabric with a paper stencil

This is the sack cloth with just the screen printed square.

The Rit Dye folks have a lot of great information, tutorials and mixing recipes check it out.

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Gelatin Printing a great way to try out printmaking

I love that gelatin printmaking makes printmaking accessible to folks who:

  • don’t have a printing press
  • have little experience
  • want to explore printmaking at home

You can see the basic moves in this short video.

On October 14th, at the Museum of Printing in Haverhill, MA, I will be teaching a full day gelatin printmaking class. This is a great opportunity to try out the method without having to buy all the tools first.
I will provide all that you need to explore gelatin printmaking for the day.
Check out the gelatin printing workshop details and join us for this full day on location course.
gelatin print made with found stencils
We will use:
  • water based ink
  • gelatin and glycerin plate
  • stencils, like the ferns above
  • paper stencils and
  • found stencils like feather
  • stamping tools to lift and apply ink
  • drawing paper

You will have plenty of time to explore and experiment. I hope to see you on October 14th at the Museum of Printing. Claim your space today – click here for details and to register.

gelatin printmaking tools

This is a palette with some ink and brayers ready for printing with the gelatin plate.

detail impression and shaped impression pull from the gelatin plate

This image shows the 2 basic styles of impressions that you can make with stencils and stamping tools and the gelatin plate. On the right is the dark blue “shaped impression”. It is the shape to the grasses in white.  I call the print on the left, the detailed impression. This is because it captures the details that the grass made in the ink.

And these are all made quite quickly with mere hand pressure.

 

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