This week I've been experimenting with a set of Christmas themed rubber stamps that I bought in a local craft store (Wimbledon Sewing in Tooting Bec, South London, has a pretty good paper craft section).  I won't publish the results of my experimentations; I prefer to wait until I have something finished and complete (I'm hoping this Thursday I will have the whole day to myself!).

I've also been browsing for inspiration during gaps at work.  Examples of my interests can be found on my Pinterest board called Inspirations.  Themes include reindeer, winter snow scenes, facades, town houses, fireplaces, Christmas, block printing, Buddha images and inspirational quotes.

Targets for this week...

• To produce some Christmas cards!

This week I attempted a more intricate design: a snowy winter scene with reindeers!

First I researched images that matched the 'look' that I had in mind.  I avoided anything 'cute' and bambi-like, preferring instead the rough and rugged stag-like images.

I then sketched my own design onto tracing paper which I transferred onto a cut of Soft Cut synthetic lino:

 

 

From here, I carved out the design with lino cutters:

 

Finally I dabbed the stamp onto an ink pad (ideally black) and printed!

Thoughts:

Generally I was pleased with the result.  Usually I would use black ink to give the effect of reindeers silhouetted in the moonlight.  I am currently working on the snowy background.  This will be made on a separate cut of lino (cross-hatching for the background with tiny scooped out circles to give the appearance of falling snow).  This shall be applied to the paper first, then the reindeers on top (into which I will have scooped out small circles so that the snowy effect is continuous with the background). 


Targets for this week:

• To continue working on the reindeer winterscape
• To play around with some rubber and gel stamps that I have recently acquired



Thursday:  Went shopping for supplies.  Cass Art in Central London (also online) proved to be the most successful place for me.  Having no particular opinions at this stage, I decided to go for a kit – EssDee Lino Cutting and Printing Kit (22 pieces).  I also bought a few different textures of paper to experiment with: 200gsm heavyweight cartridge paper (recommended by the shop assistant for a beginner); 300 GSM watercolour paper; and some paper made from recycled cotton rag.  In addition, I bought a sheet of clear acetate which, I was advised, can be printed on….will come in handy when I start card making..

Friday:  Bought some additional supplies from the local thrift store such as an oversized eraser which I shall chop up and carve designs into.

Saturday :  Toby designed a pumpkin which I traced onto a rubber block and carved out using my linoleum cutter.  I also made a couple of simple Christmas tree stamps.  I thought it a good idea to practise on rubber first before using the linoleum/Soft Cut  samples that came with the kit. We also foraged the house for interesting textures to experiment with tomorrow.

'Foraged textures'

Hand made rubber stamps

 

Sunday:  Wonderful sunshine illuminated my kitchen this morning – a perfect day to start printing!  Here are some of the results:

Finished prints drying in the sun

 

It's beginning to feel like Christmas already!

 

Rubber bands around a rubber block

 

Foam bullet from a Nerf gun

 

Original design....carved block....finished print!

 

Cork stopper from a wine bottle

 

Various Lego items

  

Abstract art

 

 

Concluding  comments:

It might look like something that you would produce at primary school, but I was pretty pleased with the results.  The purpose of today was to introduce myself and my son (as far as he is happy to join in) to printing, to experiment with different textures and just to have fun.  In this respect it was 100% successful. 

I didn’t use the proper block printing ink (I only had one tube of black which came with the kit). Instead I used sample pots of colourful green and red emulsion that were lying around the house.  They were very thick and gooey such that the brayer could not roll properly.  Instead, I dipped the stamps into the paint tray – when done with care, this seemed to work.  Also, I used some old paper from a sketch pad rather than the paper which I had bought.   For a first foray into printing, this was ok, but from now on, I shall practise with the actual ink and paper that I intend to use in my products.

Targets  for this week:

o   To attempt more intricate designs using the SoftCut synthetic lino provided in my kit, possibly venturing onto the harder linoleum material for a ‘crisper’ cut.

o   To find inspiration for my designs from Pinterest, old Christmas cards and other sources. 

Findings:

I've been browsing on Pinterest, mainly for design inspiration and tutorials related to block printing.  I think this is the good printing technique to start with as you don't need a lot of equipment and the materials are relatively inexpensive.  Plus I love the simplicity of the designs - no doubt the key is in perfecting the techniques and coming up with original designs.  I've seen much to inspire me!

As for tutorials, there's so much choice out there that it's a bit arbitrary as to which ones I end up following.  My favourite is probably the following short video clip from Geninne's Art Blog.

http://blogdelanine.blogspot.com/2009/04/mein-action.html

It has no instructions, just a 10 minute demonstration of an artist at work, as she takes you through the stages from original sketch through to finished print.  I love the fluidity with which she carves the block.

Tomorrow I go shopping for supplies.  Can't wait to start carving my first block!