I took some erasers and my carving tools on vacation and had a lot of fun showing my family how to carve. Here are some of the names I carved for them:
I ended up leaving my carving tools there for one of my sisters :)
When I got back I had my Cloth Paper Scissors magazine waiting for me. In it was an article about carving your own blocks using the reduction printing method. I had heard about this method, but had not tried it before; it was time to try it. :)
The basics of reduction printing are the following: you carve a bit and then print what you have in one color... make as many prints as you wish. Then, carve some more (what you carve out will show the color you just printed). Then print again over your first printings. Carve some more and print... and so on. What you end up with is a set of unique prints that you won't be able to replicate, and a printing block that cannot be used again. The last part is what has kept me away for so long... I like to use the hand-carved blocks over and over in different ways. So... here are some really simple experiments :)
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| Flower - 4 layers |
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| Heart - 4 Layers |
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| Leaves - 5 Layers |
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| Steps/Layers for the Magnolia Print |
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| Magnolia print - 6 layers (with the white) |
So... I really enjoyed the experiments; by the time I got to the magnolia, I had gotten the hang of it. You really need to think differently... in layers, and also going from light to dark colors.
So, then I was ready for a "regular" carving :), so I made this bird, and started playing with a few of the prints already. Soon I will start posting them in my Etsy and Zazzle shops. I hope you enjoy them.
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