I needed a diversion....

I have changed the design on my hex project about six times...so I needed a break!  Really!!  I'm still making hex's...not sure why but I know I'll use them at some point!  I hope!  I'll be showing some of the ugly and not so ugly designs in a future post....until then...my diversion....

I've always enjoyed making stamps...either carving or making them out of cardboard.  The other night I got watching some YouTube's on 'reduction linocut' work.  So you know that I just had to try this method for stamping!

First off,  I didn't want to carve a new stamp so I chose one of my carved stamps I made a few years ago.  I've used this stamp often to print onto fabric with good results. 

 For reduction printing, you really have to think through your design!  For the first step, you carve away all the areas that you want to remain white or your lightest color you are stamping with.  Because I was using the stamp, as is, to print first on paper, I didn't do any carving...I used a mix of red and yellow paint for the paper

First print on watercolor paper...

First print on a piece of muslin...color is faint...I just used yellow for the fabric.

You also have to make sure you have some way to have registration marks or a block to set your stamp in.  I laid my paper/fabric on top of the stamp.   My hubby glued my stamp onto a piece of Plexiglas so it was even on three sides.  I just placed the edge of my paper/fabric along with edge of the stamp for each step, making sure I had the right edges placed on the stamp!  So much thinking on this technique!

Next, I carved away areas that I wanted to remain yellow/orange....I honestly didn't think about this step too much...if I was starting from scratch carving a stamp, obviously there would be more care. I just carved away!    I used  Sienna and bronze paint on the stamp for this printing, for both paper and fabric.  .

This was the print onto the watercolor paper...

And the fabric print using the same ink on the roller as above!  You continue this carving and inking process until all the colored layers are printed with the colors you desire. 

This is a collage I did showing the stamp; first print and last print.  You really have to look closely to see how/where the paint covered or didn't cover!  Does that make sense.  

I've seen lots of the reduction prints that use black or very dark color for the last pull...but I didn't want to totally destroy my stamp by removing any more....so guess I'll need to find a design (oh great!) and then put my thinking cap on!    This process does take a lot of thinking through....as I said "oh great"..more thinking I'll have to do!