Wanderlust 2023 - weeks forty-one to forty-nine - Monoprinting and carving

I was really looking forward to the final focus of monoprinting and carving and I really did enjoy it.  The first week was looking at different kinds of carving and printing  and we used stencils on the gel plate, heat sensitive printing foam (where you heat the foam, press an object into it and an image is created.  When you have finished, you heat the foam again and the image disappears. I used some japanese anemone seedheads), foam shapes on a kitchen roll inner and a lino print.

My linoprint was of honesty seedheads, from a calendar - 'silver pennies'.

The next week was making papers using the gel plate and then creating a collage image.  My papers included corrugated cardboard, my own foam stamping plates, bubble wrap and my own stamps.  I chose the tree as we were enjoying nice autmnal weather.

Week forty three was using charcoal and then oil pastels on the gel plate. I had wanted to try using charcoal on the plate, but just hadn't got round to it, so this was my chance.  We used a photo to trace over using the charcoal and then stuck the image to the gel plate.  We then made some 'wonky people' using oil pastels, which was a bit of a trial and error process, but I got there in the end.

We then had to represent a favourite place using gel plates and bearing value and contrast in mind.  My place (not that you'd know from the image) is Haddon Hall. The little bridge is represented by the arches, the swirls are roses, the wavy lines are the river, the castellations are just that, and the diamonds are the window panes.  I wasn't sure I had chosen the right colours, or that I had enough contrast... 

...but when I desaturated the image, it looked better than I thought.  There are light and dark areas.

We next made a lino print again from a photo and made decisions about how much to take away or whether to add patterns.  I was really pleased with this. I made a frame for the image with gel plate printed patterns.

For this week, we used a gel printed background which was a very colourful one.  We then painted out a lot of the colour using black acrylic.  I used a face stencils for my version and was pleased with how it turned out. I like the change of colours from warm to cool.

For the penultimate week, we took our inspiration from Matisse's paper cuts and designed our image using cut out paper.   We then made a lino print of the image and printed it on paper and material.  I decorated the paper print with acrylic pens and stitched over the material version.  

I used three stitches: backstitch, split stitch and french knots.  It took a while but the result was worth it.

The final week was just having fun with colour, so I did!

There was also a wrap up week, where we were encouraged to bind any loose pages and then make a cover for the journal. I need to decorate my cover, so shall do that shortly.

This year has been about experimenting with different media and I have learned a lot. I have found some lovely techniques and will be using them again in the future.  I have embraced some media, such as pastels, which I didn't think I liked.  

Most recently, I have rediscovered my love for lino printing and collage and this is an area I really want to develop, so this will be a focus next year.  I have also signed up to Wanderlust again next year, so it will be interesting to see what that will bring.

More gel plate printing

 I have had a project in mind for a while and having been inspired, I finally started working on it, using my gel plate, which has been somewhat forgotten recently.  It was time to get it out again!  The first thing was to create some layered backgrounds on tags.  I used a mixture of opaque acrylics and iridescent ones to add some interest.  I was trying to make a rust-type background for three of these and the fourth was darker blues and purples.

These were some of the ghost prints I created during the layering process.  (Ghost prints can be used to clear the ink off the gel plate in between colours.)

 Sometimes, you get some really interesting looking prints...

 or interesting patterns...

 This print has gel prints and areas where I was cleaning the brayer (roller) in between colours.

 I do like the texture that the gel plate can provide too.

 I was also cleaning my stamps on this page too.

 I also watched a Youtube video on tape transfers using the gel plate and knew I needed to try that.  Colours are layered onto the plate and each layer is left to dry, then stamps, stencils, acrylic paint pens etc. are used to add patterns.

 When the paint is completely dry, you place sticky tape over the plate, make sure it is well pressed down and lift it off.  It brings all the lovely patterns you created off in a strip which can be stuck down to paper.

I stuck mine onto music pages and book pages and was so pleased with how they turned out.  I did find that iridescent paint was not the best for the layers as it took a while to dry and then came off the plate before I wanted it to.  Also, I stamped one set in dye ink, which didn't work as well as stamping with acrylic paint.

I really like these and will use them in my journal.  I am going to make some more and also I will finish the tags in the first photo too.

More creativity... cards and playing with the gelli plate

 I have been continuing with card making (just as well because I have amassed a large stash in a relatively short space of time) and have made a few more cards including thank you, get well and hello.  I like to decorate the envelopes too.

 This was made using a two layer stamp which gives a lovely result.

In my other news, I have discovered the joys of a Gelli plate.  This is a polymer based gel printing plate which can be used to make monoprints.  They have been about in the crafting world for many years, particularly in America, but, as usual, I am a bit behind the trends.  I watched lots of videos on the internet and decided that I needed to get myself a plate and have a go.  I have always enjoyed creating prints, whether these were monoprints, screen prints or lino prints, so I knew I would enjoy this.  Acrylic paints work really well with the gelli plate and distress inks can also be used, so it can cross into the papercrafting and card making too (hoorah!).

 Here are my first attempts, using marks, bubble wrap, stencils and stamps, in my favourite cool blues.

 I like the way the gel plate gives you a positive print and then what is called a 'ghost print', which is a negative sort of image.

More mark making and bubble wrap.

 Bright and bold colours blended on the plate and then stencils, bubble wrap and marks again.

 This is the ghost print.

I really liked the smudginess of this print which was actually a 'cleaning up the roller' waste piece which I put the stencils onto to remove most of the paint and then used a baby wipe to clean them - the baby wipe caused the slightly smudgy look to the stencil.  This is one of my favourite prints and wasn't even a 'proper' print. So often the way!
I have been watching more 'how to' videos and have been taken with some layered prints using more sophisticated colour mixes than I have used so far. 
I really like the process, it is fast, some great effects can be created and it is easy to clean up, so I shall be enjoying lots more playing and creating over the next few days/weeks/months.