Sunshine and Relaxation

Here I am relaxing on the couch after finishing these lounge pants.  As soon as I completed my Art Gallery Printed Paper Play print, I said to my nieces this print needs to be made into soft pants.  Spoonflower recently made available Cotton Spandex Jersey, perfect for my project; so soft and comfy. This colorful organic print was made from a leftover printing project from my daughters class last year.  I cut out a bunch of shapes that were used by her class as an ink resist for Gelli plates.  I scanned in the shapes and then played with them in my design program.   Summer Blossoms Garden and the other color variations (below,) part of my Monoprint Variations collection, were designed in collaboration with my daughter using the same process.

Spoonflower will soon be changing the format of it's contests, so this may or may not be my last entry.  The theme is weather and love.  I chose to draw elements with colored pencils to make a sweet and sentimental ode to my children.  I have been singing You Are My Sunshine to them since they were infants.  Sometimes I still serenade them to wake them in the morning.  :)  Please consider voting.


You are my Sunshine

Here is a brief clip of the Soggy Bottom Boys singing You Are My Sunshine from the excellent film O Brother Where Art Thou.

Gelli Plate Experiment & Star Attraction

I have had fun in the past experimenting with gelatin plate printing so when I discovered the Gelli printing plate I was pretty interested to work with it too.  The Gelli plate has a clear, soft surface.  It holds it's shape, unlike the slow (or sometimes quick) decomposition of gelatin.
I first tried printing on fabric using my usual Jacquard fabric paints.  I did not like the response of the paints to the printing plate.  I need to experiment further but the paints seemed to react to the plate.  Once dry, the paint easily peeled off of my silk, an effect I have not seen before. 
My next experiments were much more successful.  I made the prints shown here using lightweight cardstock paper shapes.  This time I used transparent and semi-transparent Liquitex Basics acrylic paints. 

Steps to Monoprinting
1. Smooth a small amount of paint with brayer on the Gelli plate.
2. Quickly arrange cardstock cut-out shapes on plate
3. Align paper over plate
4. Gently but firmly press hand all over paper.
5. Carefully lift paper and set aside.
6. Remove cutouts. Optional, place 2nd paper down to pick up ghost image (paint that remains on the plate.
7. Clean Gelli plate and brayer. (I used wetwipes.)

In other news, a new fabric design available in my shop: Star Attraction.