Printing the bottle tree design

Shirley asked how I printed the block on to the fabric so here is a tutorial. It is a very simple and straightforward process.

Step 1

Here is the carved lino block. I drew the design on to the block with a biro and then carved it with lino carving tools.














Step 2

I use a small paint tray and a sponge roller to apply the paint to the block. For this print I have used Cadmium Red acrylic paint straight from the tube.













Step 3

The paint from the tube has a nice sticky consistency and that helps it to adhere to the lino block. I did find that the Cadmium Red didn't print as readily as the Australian Red Gold I used last time. This could be because of the consistency of the different colours of paint or it could be because it was cooler last time than it is today and the paint may just have dried too rapidly today. I will have to experiment further to determine the reason.




Step 4

Place the lino block face down on the fabric (or paper) and press firmly with your hands.










And here is the printed fabric all done! It really is that simple!