Gelli® Plate Printing with DIY & Found Textures!

Have you been overlooking some readily available, fun textures
for creating great images in your Gelli® prints? 

Watch this video and refresh
your printing experience with textures from everyday items! What FUN!!!

With the dizzying array of stencil designs, stamps, embossing
folders and other fun texture tools in the marketplace it’s easy to lose sight
of some of the most exciting ways to create wonderful texture in your prints — using
common household items and found materials!

Here’s a handy list of some great texture items you may already
have on hand — have fun & experiment!

• String, Thread, and Yarn
• Rubber Bands
• Credit Cards, Hotel Key Cards, etc.
• Plastic Wrap
• Wax Paper
• Cotton Swabs
• Bottle Caps and Jar Lids
• Disposable Cups
• Straws
• Pencil Erasers
• Leaves and Botanicals
• Feathers
• Cheesecloth
• Burlap
• Sponges
• Textured Fabrics
• Textured Wallpaper (Anaglypta)
• Corrugated Cardboard
• Toilet Paper Cardboard Rolls
• Plastic Shelf Liner
• Bubble Wrap
• Doilies

Another useful supply you may already have on hand — 3×5
inch index cards! They’re perfectly sized for masking the 3×5 inch Gelli® plate!
Not only do they work great for this purpose — but you also get
great printed cards from using them as masks!

The paint used in all of these prints is Golden® Open Slow-Dry Acrylics. A
small amount of this paint goes a long way! And after you’ve pulled a print,
the second (ghost) print can reveal the most amazing — almost photographic — details.
Sometimes a pale third pull is possible — even
when it looks like there’s hardly any paint left on the plate! Create beautiful
images — especially
effective as ghost images from leaves and other highly detailed textures.      

                                                                                                                                        

Golden Artist Colors also makes Open Acrylic Medium — in gloss and matte. Add this to
any acrylic paint to extend its working time. As we head into summer — and for those of you in hot,
dry climates — this may be
just what you need to keep your paints — any
acrylic paints — from drying
too fast. For gel printing,
that can be a huge benefit!

The paper used for the prints in the video is Yasutomo Kozo Rice Paper. I cut 8.5″ pieces from an 11″ x 60′ roll. The cut pieces had
some curl to them, so I took a few minutes to iron them flat — not really necessary, but to me
it’s worth the extra effort to work with nice flat sheets.

I also created prints on paper from a pad of Hosho rice paper by Aitoh.

Both of these rice papers have a smooth side and a rough side.
Printing on the smooth side with Golden Open Slow-Drying Acrylics gives you a
beautiful printed image.

TIP:  When the paint
on the gel plate is too dry — rice
paper can tend to stick to the plate and tear when you pull the print. If you
find that happening, either use a little more paint or add Open Medium. Adding
water can create a soggy mess with rice paper!

Instead of cutting rice paper — use a water tear to get beautiful feathery edges. To do a
water tear — wet a clean
pointed brush with water and ‘draw’ a line where you wish to tear the paper.
Gently push the pieces apart along the water line. The paper tears easily and
has a natural-looking edge. This is a great technique for using pieces of rice
paper prints in collage, as you can tear it into any shape.

Here’s a process for working with your found textures to make
prints like those demonstrated in the video — using the 8×10 and 3×5 inch Gelli® plates together! So look around for textures and get ready
to make some unique prints! For this process, the 3×5 inch Gelli® plate is
mounted on an acrylic block and used as a stamp. 

(p.s. For more on using the 3×5 printing plate for stamping… watch this video.)

1. Apply two colors of acrylic paint to an 8×10 Gelli® plate and roll into a thin layer with a brayer. To create a gradient effect, apply each color to opposite sides of the plate. Roll out the lighter color on one half of the plate — then roll out the other color — meeting in the middle of the plate.
2. Apply a textured item into the paint. Some textures can be pressed into the paint and removed (i.e. bubble wrap, wadded waxed paper, jar lids). Some textures (i.e. cheesecloth, leaves, string) are placed on the painted surface. Cover those with a piece of thin paper, such as deli paper — and press into the paint, outlining the objects with your fingers. Remove the cover paper (which are often beautiful prints!) then remove the textured item from the plate.
3. Place several 3×5 inch index cards — as masks — on the painted gel plate.
4. Cover with the printing paper — rub with hands to transfer the paint — and pull your print.
5. Place the 3×5 Gelli® plate onto an acrylic stamping block or other clear mount.
6. Apply acrylic paint to the 3×5 Gelli® plate and roll into a thin layer with a brayer.
7. Follow the same process as Step 2.
8. Stamp the small plate directly onto a masked area of the printed paper.
9. Repeat steps 6-8 to fill each masked area to complete the print.

There are so many ways to approach this interesting printing
process. Look around and you’ll find all kinds of textures for printing! Use
simple paper masks for building interesting layers! Imagine the possibilities!!

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED!!!! 

Winner is Jane!

And we have a fabulous GIVEAWAY so you can make colorful,
textured, multi-plate prints like those created in the video!

Our GIVEAWAY package includes:

• 1 – 8×10 inch Gelli Arts® Gel Printing Plate
• 1 – 3×5 inch Gelli Arts® Gel Printing Plate
• 4 – Golden Open Acrylic paints — 4 oz. jars
• 2 – Golden Open Acrylic mediums — (gloss and matte)
• 1 – Yasumoto Kozo rice paper — 10″x 60′ roll
• 1 – Aitoh Hosho rice paper — 9×12 inch pad
• 1 – Speedball 4″ Soft Rubber Pop-in Brayer
• 1 – Surprise Kit of Assorted Textures!

To enter the giveaway, click on the red “ENTER GIVEAWAY
HERE” button below! (This will ensure that we can contact the winner and
that entries are limited to one per person.) One winner will be selected from all the entries via a random number
generator to receive this very special giveaway!

ENTER GIVEAWAY HERE!

Terms & Condition for Giveaway 

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED!!!!

Entries will be accepted until Tuesday, May 26th at noon EST. Our lucky winner will be contacted by email and announced
here on the blog and on our Facebook page no later than Tuesday May 26th at 5pm EST. 

Special thanks to Golden Artist Colors for their generous
donation to our giveaway!

Remember, we now have Gelli® partners all over the world, so it’s
easier than ever to find a Gelli® retailer near you!

We all have our favorite textures, tools and methods for making
our marks in monoprinting. Please leave a comment and share some of your
favorites! Thanks!

Good Luck and Happy
Printing!

Materials Used In Today’s Blog:

3×5″ Gelli Arts® Printing Plate 8×10″ Gelli Arts®Printing Plate Golden Open Acrylics Golden Open Acrylic Medium – Gloss

Golden Open Acrylic Medium – Matte

Yasutomo Kozo Rice Paper

Hosho Rice Paper by Aitoh

Pointed Brush

Acrylic Block