Blog - Cotton & Flax

printmaking

Print of the Week – Woodcut by Bryan Nash Gill

Brian Nash Gill - Woodcut print

These incredible prints, made by Bryan Nash Gill, are created using remnants of tree stumps, which the artist inks and hand prints to make these large scale records of trees that have been felled. The printing process for this series is incredibly laborious: after rolling out the ink, the artist gingerly places the thin Japanese paper atop the section of wood, and uses the pressure of his fingertips to impress the ink upon paper.

Brian Nash Gill - Woodcut print

You can see a more in depth explanation of Brian Nash Gill’s process on the Ashes & Milk blog, or take a look at his portfolio.

Brian Nash Gill - Woodcut print

Looking for more creative inspiration? Check out the archives, and see all the amazing artists who inspire my work as a printmaker.

What does ‘Printed by Hand’ really mean?

Cotton & Flax textilesCotton & Flax is a line of handmade textiles, all of which are sewn and printed by hand. I take great pride in this fact, because I am all too familiar with the long hours and specialized skills required to complete a project like this without outsourcing any part of the production. But I find that people often ask me, “What does ‘printed by hand’ really mean?” I’d love to share some insights into what hand-printing textiles is all about.

Cotton and Flax - fabric and patternsMy textiles begin their lives as simple, natural fabrics, like linen or cotton, which are all prewashed. The process of designing a pattern takes a long time, as my patterns often start in my sketch book, then go through several revisions before I land on the final design. Even my pattern designs are made by hand, often using pen and ink, or a hand carved stamp which I will use to create a repeat pattern.

Cotton & Flax - patterns laid outAfter I finalize a pattern design, I use a transparency of that design to create a silkscreen, which I can use to reproduce larger repeat patterns onto my fabrics. In large textile factories, these screens can be big, sometimes up to 5 feet across (you can see some in the Marimekko factory video I featured a while back).  Since I work in a small studio space, I had to get a bit creative on how to print my fabrics. I don’t print the full width of the bolt of fabric, since that would require a much larger workspace. Rather, I print smaller sections cut to the exact size of my pillows and tea towels, so there is very little (often no) waste fabric when I begin the sewing process.

Cotton & Flax - silkscreensThe printing itself is my favorite part of the process. I have so many fond memories of printing over the years, and have come to love the small details that are unique to this process: the smell of the ink; the squeak of the silkscreen squeegee as it pulls across the screen, flooding it with ink; the subtle pop of the screen as it pulls away from the fabric after a successful ink impression has been made. I hope to share more about the details of printmaking processes soon, I hope you’ll find them as charming as I do.

Cotton & Flax - textile designsBut the best part of hand-printed fabric is the tactile quality it provides, and the bold opaque quality that the ink imparts on the fabric. To date, I have yet to see a piece of digitally printed fabric that can compete with a silkscreen fabric’s boldness and quality of line. Hand-printed fabric requires a level of physical labor that isn’t required of digital printmaking, but I find that the extra effort creates a striking product that is rich in tradition and history.

Print of the Week – Etchings by Robert Bechtle

Robert Bechtle - Alameda Camaro - Etching

I stumbled upon some etchings by Robert Bechtle last week, and was instantly drawn to them. They are so classically “California,” and really reflect the view I have of Southern California, even though they were made 45 years ago. I just passed my 2 year anniversary of moving to LA, so I find these prints to be a lovely reminder of the strange charm of California.

Robert Bechtle - Burbank St Alameda - Etching

The first print above is titled “Alameda Camaro,” the second, “Burbank Street, Alameda.” Both are hard ground etchings from 1967.

DIY Hand Stamped Gift Wrap

Cotton & Flax - DIY printed giftwrap

I posted a couple shots of some gift wrap I made a while back, and realized that I could easily do a DIY here on the blog. Stamping your own gift wrap is a fun way to personalize a gift, or to re-use some paper that you might have on hand already. Plus, it’s a great entry-level project for anyone interested in printmaking!

Cotton & Flax - DIY printed giftwrap - Supplies
The first step is to gather supplies: I will show you how to hand carve your own stamps using a small block of soft printing linoleum (available at many art and craft stores, the Speedball EZ Cut stuff works great), but you could just as easily use a premade stamp if you want. If you want to do the full DIY, you’ll need:

*Author’s note: I only recommend products that I love and use in my own studio. I may receive a small commission on sales of the products that are linked to in my posts.

Find a large clean surface to work on. I like to put down my safety cutting mat first, since I don’t want to damage my worktable while I’m cutting the linoleum. Before start cutting my stamp, I like to pencil sketch a few ideas for shapes I’d like to create. Keep in mind the size of the gift you’ll be wrapping. Perhaps design a larger shape for a larger gift, which would require more paper, and a smaller shape for a smaller gift.

Cotton & Flax - DIY printed giftwrap - prep your drawing
Once I’ve chosen a design, I place my pencil sketch face down on the linoleum block, and rub the back with my fingernail to transfer the image. Keep in mind that the image will reverse when printed, so don’t worry if it doesn’t look quite right at first. When you are carving a stamp, the parts you carve away from the block will not print. The stamp will consist of whatever flat surface you leave behind while carving.

Cotton & Flax - DIY stamp carvingI begin by carving the outline of my shape with an Xacto knife, then start to carve the details with my carving tools. Carve the block by pushing your carving tools along the surface away from your body. Be careful not to keep your fingers in front of the blade, that’s the fastest way to accidentally cut yourself! Use light pressure and don’t force anything, the linoleum is soft, and will easily give way when you push your carving tool along the surface of the block. Experiment by carving larger or smaller shapes to see the variety of textures you can create.

Cotton & Flax - DIY stamp carving

Once you have a stamp you’re happy with, throw away any stray bits of linoleum, dust off your workspace, and get ready to print!

Cotton & Flax - DIY patterned gift wrap - first impression

Cut out a piece of paper large enough to wrap your gift, and lay it face up on your work surface. Ink up your stamp by pressing the stamp to an ink pad a couple of times, then press the stamp to the paper in whatever arrangement you prefer. I like to do a simple repeat pattern, but random arrangements are fun, too. Try using a couple different colors of ink, or mix two or three stamps into one design!

Cotton & Flax - DIY patterned gift wrap

Cotton & Flax - DIY patterned gift wrap

The gifts I wrapped were small, so keep in mind you can go much larger with this project. You could also use your stamps to make a patterned gift tag or a small card to accompany a gift, and mixing patterns and colors can create a fun combination. I’d love to see any stamped or printed papers you make, so feel free to share in the comments if you tried this project.

Cotton & Flax - DIY stamped gift wrap

Cotton & Flax - DIY gift wrapWant to learn more about block printing? Check out my roundup of my favorite printmaking books!

Print of the Week – Lithograph by Vija Celmins

Ocean by Vija Celmins

Vija Celmins‘ lithographs are absolutely captivating in person. I was lucky to see a solo show of her work a while back (in London, if I remember correctly), and seeing her meticulously detailed drawings of the ocean, views of the sky, and rocky landscapes left quite an impression on me.

Desert by Vija Celmins

The three prints I’ve featured this week are all lithographic prints of her drawings, which perfectly captures the incredible detail of her images. My favorite is “Ocean,” the first image above, which I’ve seen in person recently at the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena. The image feels so vast, but when I was able to look at it up close, I was completely entranced by the intricacies of her drawing. I couldn’t help but imagine the artist in her workspace, diligently hunched over her drawing, completely absorbed by her task.

Galaxy by Vija Celmins