Block Printing with Craft Foam #2

This post is a continuation from yesterday's post.  Here I have made multiple printings from the three blocks cut from sticky backed craft foam.  To see the process for cutting the blocks click HERE.

These are the tools used in printing the blocks.

 

In the past I have used a brayer to apply the paint, but recently I have been using a foam roller from a home improvement store with good results.  The tray onto which I poured the paint is a hard plastic one that I salvaged from a food product package.  The paint is contained within its raised edges and it rinses off very easily.  

I marked off a grid pattern with soft pencil lines on a large swath of white fabric. Then I printed multiples of the circles block with Cardinal Red Setacolor fabric paint.

Next I printed the broad striped block over the circle block with Black Lake Setacolor fabric paint.

When that printing was dry, I printed over the circle and broad striped blocks with the narrower, diagonal strip block with Light Green Setacolor fabric paint.

I then cut rows of blocks apart, lined up the prints and sewed the rows together.  Because I am creating a work to address the challenge theme of "Crossings", I cut a 3/4" wide and long stencil  from card stock and stenciled the horizontal lines with  the same Lake Black Setacolor fabric paint that I had used  for the broad striped block prints.

Tomorrow I will post about auditioning colors to use in over-painting.  These posts are the beginnings of my participation in the 31 Day Blog Writing Challenge.  If you, too, would like to participate, link to http://muppin.com/…/inde…/the-31-day-blog-writing-challenge/

Until tomorrow...

Always remember, never fear to experiment.  

Sometimes wonderful things happen.

© Linda Friedman 2015.  All rights reserved

Block Printing with Craft Foam #1

As I was putting things away in the studio after my day of playtime thread sketching, my hand fell upon some sticky back craft foam.  Instead of continuing to straighten up, I started cutting circles and strips from the foam.

From this seemingly mindless activity emerged four 6" x 9" printing blocks which are being used to create a 40" x 40" themed challenge.  I won't be able to show the completed work until it has gone through a jurying process, hopefully making the cut, and finally being exhibited.  However, here is the beginning of this particular block making technique.

Tools Used for Cutting Sticky Backed Foam

Foam, Ruller, Compass, Craft Knife

Use Compass to Mark Circles and Cut with Scissors

(Block #1)

Circles Ready for Mounting to a Board

Note:  The school of experience has taught me that one layer of the forms is not high enough.  When drawing a paint roller across one layer, or even two layers, often paint will get onto the mounting block and print onto the fabric.  This is definitely not something one wants. So I always make three layers of foam shapes.  See profile below.
 

Three Lays of Foam Shapes

Block #2

Three Layers of Thick Stripes

Block #3

Three Layers of Thin Stripes

(Ultimately I needed a fourth block, but that will be addressed later in this series of blog posts about creating printing blocks with craft foam.)

In order to make somewhat permanent, rigid blocks to make printing easy, I cut 3 6" x 9" plywood blocks onto which I affixed the foam shapes.  I attached he first layer of each foam shape to the plywood with Weldbond glue so that the block would withstand multiple washings without coming loose.  The sticky substance on the back of the foam works well for affixing the foam layers together but it is not strong enough to permanently stay on a wood block.

Plywood Block

 Tomorrow I'll show how I used these blocks to audition the colors to use when printing.

Always remember, never fear to experiment.  

Sometimes wonderful things happen.

© Linda Friedman 2015.  All rights reserved

More Sticky Backed Craft Foam Stamps

It would seem that there are limitless possibilities when it comes to creating stamps from sticky backed craft foam.  Here are a few more that I've made recently.  I can visualize them being used as background images and also images to punctuate a theme.  Often I will stick two layers of uncut foam together to make a thicker stamp and then cut through the two layers. If any ink or paint finds its way to the mounting surface, it will be less apt to print when pressure is applied during the stamping process.

Here is an experiment with making a hand shaped stamp.

Here is yet another stamp.  This one was made with the kind of foam that can be heated and pressed into (or onto) another form.  The great part of using this foam is that it can be reheated to lose the image and reused for another image.  This particular stamp was made by pressing the heated foam into a copper food mold.

The ouside of the copper mold was used in this image.

This stamp came from pressing the heated foam into the inside of the copper mold.

Craft Foam Stamps

A few days ago I was cutting some random shapes from sticky back art foam to create an overall design for use in background printing on fabric and came up with this stamp.

Oooo, I liked it and couldn't leave well enough alone so I sorted through my original silk screens and found this bird that I thought might look good superimposed on a print with these wavy lines.

I merely wanted to see what my idea would look like so I set about pulling out of my stash the first piece of pre-cut fabric hat I laid my hands on.  Since red Speedball screen printing ink lay on the worktable, I used it to make the first print of the wavy lines. 

Ooops!  I got a smudge of the red ink below the lines.  Time to get creative.  A couple of pieces of cardstock were right at hand and I covered the smudges with stenciled red lines and then echoed those lines at the top. 

 Mmmm.  I did like the way it looked and had a hard time waiting for the print to completely dry.  After it was dry and heat set, I laid the embroidery hooped screen on top of the wavy lines and pulled white Speedball printing ink across it.  Yes!  I liked that, too. 

Still, I couldn't leave well enough alone.  Dharma Trading Company had just delivered a bottle of Setacolor Silver Glitter Finish.  After the white Speedball ink was dry and heat set, the bird form received a coating with the paintbrush of the glitter finish. 

Then came the completely spontaneous act of quilting of the top design atop batting and another fabric that heretofore had not found a proper use. This was good but the design needed to be set off somehow.  Out came the glass beads and the handwork began, bead by bead and, hoorah!  A 15" x 15" finished piece.

Here is a closeup of the quilting, the stamping and the beading.

...and the backing...

A few more stamps were created that day, but they will be posted at a later date.  Until then, I must get this listed on Etsy.