{ PROSPERITY : Word of the Year } : Winter 2022

I have been making Vision Boards, setting goals (both personal and professional) and crafting a Word of the Year on the first of the year for over a decade now. I usually go through a plethora of words before founding the word that fits my feeling perfectly.

This year was no different. I vacillated back and forth with several other words that were not landing quite right. I kept cycling back to ‘Prosperity’ and felt that was exactly what I wanted 2022 to be for me.

While most of us our struggling with on ongoing pandemic, many of us our trying to reclaim some semblance of life before 2019. I know I am. I have not been feeling very creative or motivated to work on my art business. I took a break during 2019-2020. The rest was necessary but I started getting antsy. I wanted to get back to the studio and back to teaching.

Prosperity to means more than money. Prosperity to me comes in the form of creating unique, one-of-a-kind wall art and handmade artist books as well as developing dynamic and compelling art class for people of all ages. Prosperity means creating interesting content for this blog that brings people to living a more creative life. Prosperity means enhancing my amazing relationships with my partner, my daughter and my friends.

As the year goes on and I loose the motivation to keep creating, I always look back on my Word of the Year and revisit why I choose that word to guide my year.

How about you? Do you choose a Word of the Year? How do you stay connected and focus when you stray for your vision?

{ Printmaking Series #3 : Applying Color } : Spring 2021

In this week’s Printmaking post, I will discuss the color that can be applied to your plate. Depending on your printing preference (I love grungy, multi-layered prints), color can be applied in a wide variety of ways.

Lower End Liquid Acrylic Paints

My go-to when it comes to color is acrylic. I use anything from the liquid kind shown above (the cheap kind that you can find in abundance at any craft store) to higher end paint (see image below), which is thicker and takes more effort to evenly distribute over the plate.

Higher End Acrylic Paints

I do want to mention that the type of paint that you use will impact how your prints turn out. While the liquid acrylic paints are easier on your wallet, I am not always excited about how the color dries due to the low quality of pigment used in the paint. Higher end acrylic paints may cost more up front, but I am happier with the results.

When you first start printing, I recommend using the lower quality paints. Printing is an addictive art form! You can easily spend an entire afternoon experimenting with your printing plate. This is great for accumulating papers for bookmaking and collages and you do go through A LOT of paint when you are first learning how to print.

Various India Inks

While I typically prefer to use acrylic paints, I do use other mediums to print. India Inks are some of my favorite when I want to prep papers to print. I will make various marks (such as lines, dashes, splatters). Adding marks prior to printing will add depth and texture to your prints.

Watercolors

Watercolors are another medium that I use with my prints. I use them like I do India inks. I make marks on blank paper as a way to prep paper for printing. While I enjoy using papers I found or salvage, I also use new paper when.creating covers for books that I will eventually sell. That paper is a heavier weight and can withstand several layers of wet mediums.

You don’t always need the most high end art supplies to create a beautiful print. Buying watercolors at your local grocery store will work just as effectively as the high end ones you would find at an art store. But as your learning your printmaking style, start off easy (and cheap!) with your supplies.

Are you getting excited and ready to print! I know I am! Starting in April, I am going to participate in a 30 Day Mark Making Challenge. I have done these in the past and they are loads of fun! So what do you say? Want to join me in making some fun and funky artist books?

{ Printmaking Series #2 : Mark Making Tools } : Winter 2021

In my last post, I talked about the different types of papers that one can use to pull prints. In this post, I will show you a small amount of the tools that I use to create the prints seen here.

In each photo, I will explain the tools that you see and how to find them.

Handmade Stamps Using Sticky Back Fun Foam, Garden Knee Pads and Reclaimed Cardboard

These mark marking tools are some of my all time favorites! I use them my handmade stamps in my prints the most often because they are truly original tools and they are CHEAP to make. I raid the recycling bin to find corrugated cardboard (which is a great stamp within itself). I buy the gardening knee pads when they go on sale in late fall or (if you have to have them NOW), I find them in abundance at Big Lots. You can buy sheets of sticky back fun foam at your local craft store.

I do not have any sort of pattern that I go for when I create my stamps. I cut organically and hope for the best. One of the reasons I love creating stamps this way is because of the SIZE I can make my stamps. I pull prints from a 9 x 12” gel plate. That is a lot of landscape to cover! I start with a large base (such as the kneeling pads or cardboard) and I cut foam to create the stamps. In some cases, I have taken foam scraps from students and have created stamps from the leftovers.

**Please note: If you like pristine stamps, this process is not for you! The stamps with the knee pads as a base are washable, but the cardboard backed have a limited life span since you cannot wash them.

Chopsticks, Pottery Tools, Cola Pens and Paintbrush Handles

If you like using your handwriting as a. mark making tools, these are for you! Chop sticks, skewers, pottery tools that I borrowed from my daughter (that are now mine) and some other tools that I do not have names for but use for writing. Printmaking is an unusual way to document your life. If you like to keep a daily record of your life, consider using handwriting in your prints.

Dollar Store Finds: Lego Plate, Altered Pool Noodle, Child’s Toy Block and Sponge Rollers

The Dollar Store is a great place to hunt for printmaking tools! Aim for the toy and craft sections to find the best tools. Dollar Store finds are as much fun to hunt for as the thrift store, organizing the house or raiding your child’s toy box. Once you train your brain to look at things laterally, there really is no limit as to where you can find a very cool printmaking tool.

Fabric Store Finds: Plastic Mesh Canvas

These plastic mesh canvases make their way into my art in many ways. I cut and alter them to get different looks when I print. These canvases come in many different shapes and sizes. I find them at my local fabric store near the yarn section. Plastic mesh canvases are not only great mark making tool, they make great stamps as well. This will add depth to your prints as you become more proficient in your printmaking process.

Hardware Store Finds: Plumbing Fittings and Texture Tool

The hardware store is an unlikely place to find printmaking tools but it is a gold mine! One of the best reasons to shop at the hardware store for art supplies is the price. The Plumbing section is one of my favorites. Plastic fittings cost less than a dollar and there are loads of shapes and sizes to choose from when it comes to printmaking. And, even better, you can wash these after you are done playing to extend the life of your tools.

The Texture Tool is super fun to play around with on your plate. Try using a push/pull method while making a print. It gives the look of a faux wood finish that will add visual interest to your collage papers.

Did you take an Artist Date to the local thrift or dollar store and find some fun and funky papers to start your printmaking paper journey? Did you manage to locate a sweet score in an unlikely place?

Now its time to start harvesting your mark making tools. Take a stroll around your house…what kind of unique tools can you find that you already own?

In next week’s post, I will talk about the types of paint and the tools I use to apply color that I use when printing. Do you want to check out my handmade collage paper stash? See what kind of effect each tool provides when pulling a print?

{ Printmaking Series #1 : Reclaimed & Found Papers } : Winter 2021 //

In this first printmaking post, I want to show you various papers that I use to as the base to began making collage papers. As I mentioned in last week’s post, I have A LOT of books to choose from when I decide that I want to print. Many of them are more non-traditional printing backgrounds that (I think) make for more interesting collage papers.

In addition to friends and family donating countless books to me, I scour the local thrift and antique stores for many of my papers. This is the BEST source of cheap and funky papers to print. In each of the pictures below, I describe what the papers are and why they make a great base for printing.

Dictionary Pages

Some my absolute favorite papers to print are old dictionary pages. I do have criteria on the type of dictionary pages that I chose to print on. First, there has to be images. I am not particular about the images, I just want pictures to break up the text. Second, the quality of the paper is a big deal. The dictionaries that I find at the thrift are usually not that old and the paper can withstand wet paint layers. However, if you go to antique stores to hunt for papers, sometimes the paper can be too fragile from more vintage books. Another bonus of dictionaries is that you can purchase them for as little as $1. That is hundreds of sheets of paper for under $5. If you are lucky, you can find dictionaries in foreign languages, which make them even more unique.

Children’s Encyclopedia, Vintage Dressmaking and a Creepy How To Book Pages

I do not even know how to describe these books other than they are weird. Sometimes I find books that make no sense and that bit of entertainment is enough for me to explore printmaking. What makes the pages above great printing material, besides the images, is the weight of the paper. These pages are heavier than dictionary pages and make a great base for printing. And if you are using a larger plate when printing, the various sizes are a bonus because they can pick up paint on small spaces on your plate.

Antique Ledger, Receipt, Prescription and Library Card Pages

A friend of mine grandparents’ passed away and she invited over to their old farmhouse to go through an entire attic full of old papers. This provided me with enough paper for every collage I ever want to make and every class that I teach for the rest of my life. Some of my favorite things about found papers such as these, is the handwriting. I love using anything that was previously touched by hand enough to make a unique mark. However, paper like this can be fragile and I tend to use them after the plate has been printed on 3 or more times since the plate is much dryer.

More finds from the Attic including Antique Ledger, Receipts, Receipt Cards, Handwriting and Braille Papers

These are more finds from the Attic as well as antique and Dollar Store finds. I will also reclaim paper from past projects such as contemporary ledger paper or used calendars. Spending an hour in the Dollar Store can be a fountain of inspiration, especially is you are working on printmaking with young children. Handwriting paper is one of my favorite papers to include in collages since it brings an air of nostalgia to most adults.

Newspaper and Receipts from Your Travels

And finally, receipts, newspapers and other interesting papers that can be collected on your travels. When I travel to China, I hoard anything printed on paper that I can find! Chinese characters are some of my favorite to print on but also some of my most favorite collage items. The most interesting part of printing on newspaper or magazines is the ghost print (this will be explained later in this blog series). There is something in the ink on printed papers that is left behind that can transfer onto another print.

Are you ready to jump up and see what papers you can find to start your next printmaking project? Raid your recycling or bookshelf or better yet, carve out an hour and head to your local thrift or antique store and take yourself on an Artist Date. Once you start seeing all the possibilities, your printmaking paper options are endless!

What are some of your favorite printmaking papers? Do you like to reclaim paper or start on fresh, new papers?

{ Gelli Plate Prints : Exploration with Paper & Paint } : Winter 2021 //

I have been greatly enjoying exploring printmaking on my gelli plate lately! As a book and paper artist, I have loads of reclaimed books that I have found over the years or have been gifted to me by family and friends. Needless to say, I am never at a lack of material to pull prints!

And despite spending A LOT more time at home, I have not been feeling inspired to create. As a creative person, not actively creating is NOT an option for me. So I have been wiping the dust off my creative muscle and hitting the studio with a sense of play—making art for the sake of creating rather than obsessing over the end product.

With my printmaking process, my absolutely favorite mark-making tools are simple objects found around the home (such as thread spools, skewers, bubble wrap, etc.) or items that I make using fun foam, toothpicks and corrugated cardboard. Add paper from vintage books and you have endless possibilities for one-of-a-kind collage papers for artist books, abstract panels and more!

In the above prints, I used several types of processes to create the grungy effect. First…and this is the most important thing to remember, LAYERS. My best prints come from printing adding layer after layer of paint. The bonus of using acrylic paints when printing is that you can keep adding layer after layer of paint until you achieve the result you desire.

Are you interested in learning how to achieve these effects? Seeing the tools that I use? How to make them? Where to buy fun (and cheap!) mark-making tools?

Starting the week of February 8th-28th, I am going to share some of my favorite inside tips on making funky, grungy prints using reclaimed papers and handmade tools. Is there anything in particular that intrigues you about my creative process and want to know more about?