Block Printing on Fabric

It took me quite a while to find out how to do block prints on fabric properly. It wasn't until I just asked a fellow Etsy seller how she had such good results on her tee shirts. Turned out I was using the wrong kind of roller and ink...that simple.

The trick is using a foam roller, and the ink that I was recommended is Jacquard Textile/Fabric ink. The typical fabric screen printing ink smudged and slid all over the place. The fabric ink lays down very nicely and leaves a rough transfer of the image, which looks cool and very handmade.

Process: I rolled the ink onto by block print design, then flipped it over on top of my fabric. In this case, I was printing on organic cotton and bamboo blend dinner napkins. I applied pressure to the block using a few scrap pieces of wood. I pressed as hard as I could for about ten seconds to achieve a good transfer. Here's a few pics of my morning printing session. Enjoy, and good luck with yours!

Moleskine Cahier Little Notebook Prints

Here's my first Moleskine little notebook print. I've been wanting to do these for quite a while, and finally ordered some from Amazon to try out some prints. I love the cardboard'ish cover and stitching on these; a nice handmade quality about them, and the company has quite a long history in Europe which is cool.

Ordered a set of three, and only one of them came out perfectly. I pressed too hard with my hand on the linocut stamp and the ink squished too much. I'll order some more and get these up on the shop soon. Also thinking of other little prints I can do...bikes, to-do-list, thought bubbles, etc.

Photographing Prints for Etsy

I decided to try something new with my Etsy shop photos lately. In researching some of my favorite sellers' shops, and seeing what gets selected for front page features, I tried to go with a brighter and cleaner look for my prints. I took some photos of a blank picture frame on a white, crumbly brick wall in my wife's studio. Now, when I make a new block print, I simply take a straight-on photograph of it, and then I can place it on the blank picture frame using Photoshop. The best part is that I can change the color of the print with a click of the mouse, and that offers the customer more color choices without having to pull the actual print until ordered.

This new process saves me a lot of time and headache with trying to get the lighting consistent in the dingy, spider-laden basement studio. I will still take some basic photos (closeups, angles, etc.) of the actual print to accompany this front page shot, so when you click through the listing, you can see alternative views of the print and know what you're buying.

Likes: Bright, clean and consistent...front page worthy

Dis: The black frames are messing with my eyes. Going to get some wooden frames at Ikea this weekend and try those.

What do you think of these new ways to display my prints?

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 The old look; very dark and masculine. Not working for me.

New Print, "Time on Task"

Time on Task; a mantra that my wife learned in art school from one of her least favorite professors. It stuck with her as she started her ceramics business, reminding her to stay focused, facilitate good time management and get things done.

https://www.etsy.com/listing/103960172/linocut-block-print-time-on-task-mantra

A Pisgah Inspired Mountain Bike Block Print

Came up with a new mountain biking print inspired by the Pisgah National Forest, where I ride and do a lot of trail maintenance with my local SORBA club. It's mountainous, rocky, rooty and unforgiving. This design of the terrain could actually translate well for the western U.S. and Canada also. I like the composition and play on the negative space that came out of this idea.

A great website on mountain biking in Pisgah...http://www.mtbikewnc.com/

Yikes, 40 lbs heavier back then! Big tree clearing on Squirrel Gap.

Top of Buckhorn Gap.

Log ride in Bent Creek.

Trail work day on Greens Lick in Bent Creek. Received "Volunteer of the Day" among 300 participants...I sweated more than anyone, and got some sweet disc brakes as a prize.  : )

My Very First Magazine Mention!

I am proud to announce that I made it into my very first magazine....WNC Magazine. Although it's a very tiny one-sentence mention about me, I'll take it! Gotta start somewhere and I'm happy that my work was recognized.

The article was about spots to tour by bicycle in our great city. One of the stops is to the River Arts District where my mountain bike prints can be picked up at my wife's art studio.

I sent them some photos of my work which unfortunately didn't make it in the article. Here's a snapshot of the article. The map shows the bicycle routes, while my name is mentioned in the text below.

Allow me to play Editor for a second...this is how I would actually design the article. 

You know, just sayin'.   

Linocut Block Process: Part I

Thought I would share my linocut process on my newest design, a collage of mid-century chairs. 

It turns out that chairs are really freaking hard to draw! I tried to draw some at home, but gave up...maybe I was just impatient that day, but I had resources on my side. So yes, I used my Photoshop skills and whipped this up. I sized it at 5x7 to match my lino block exactly.

Next comes using tracing paper to trace over my photo collage with a 2B pencil.

Flip the tracing paper over so that the graphite is reversed and can be transferred onto the block. When the block is inked on paper, it comes out in the correct orientation.

Using a soft graphite pencil, I go over my lines heavily and the image faintly transfers onto the block.

I then use a black pen to trace over those faint lines so that I know where to make my cuts. If I didn't use a pen, the graphite lines can rub off easily as my hand touches the block, plus they're easier to follow.

Time to start cutting!

Part II will demonstrate using this cut block to transfer my image to paper...stay tuned.

Mid-Century Chair Collage Block Print

For the love of sexy chairs, I've designed this new block print for the mid-century hoarder chair collector. Reminds us of our basement, a.k.a. the "chair graveyard".

The Workhorse: Pentax K-1000 camera

A new linocut block print featuring "the workhorse" of cameras, the Pentax K-1000. I have two of them, and used them every day in art school. There's just something magically grainy about a perfect photo taken from an old SLR camera that is unmatched by any of today's high-tec digitals.

Case in point....

For the chefs! Kitchenaid block print

A new series featuring the almighty Kitchenaid mixer! 

A variety of colors will be available to match your mixer's color. 

Would look great hanging in the kitchen near your mixer. 

Happy baking!!!

Updated CIB Linocut

Updated my Coffee In Bed block print. I've learned how to use the negative spaces and leave some ridges for ink to get on, giving it that cool linocutiness look. Also being very precise with that #1 lino cutter gives me some great lines.

My updated block print inspired some new business card designs. Love these colors together! I was stumped on my color palette and tried tons of variations. I googled "modern color palette", did some tweaking and came up with this.

With clouds maybe?