Either an unexplained error on my part or a bug with WordPress has led to my previous post of a few weeks ago not displaying the series of images I added to the post. Which led to a bit of weirdness where the captions for all those images became sort of a paragraph in themselves. Let’s try this again.
Here’s the original photo:

The tree that provided the original inspiration.

The drawing that I did, based extremely loosely on the tree in the photo.
Step 1. I did a drawing of the tree I saw, roughly the size of the block. I tend to work quick and sloppy, because it helps me beat procrastination. So I traced the original block, and kept my drawing within that framework. I used a sharpie to try and cut down on my tendency to overdo the details. Didn’t work.

Starting the cut: the outline of the tree.
Step 2. After adding the design to the block with transfer paper, I cut away all the negative space around the outline. Then I started on the inside, where all the details were. I knew I wouldn’t get them all.
Step 3. Inking up the design with black mixed with a bit of blue. I had thought at the last minute that I wanted this to be two colors after all: silver and black. Unfortunately, since I already started cutting the top, the only place the silver stands out on the tree is at the lower half of the trunk. I still liked the effect.

The block fully inked.

The first color all printed: the silver layer.
Final Result: I applied the black ink over the now dry silver ink with a paper registering system, basically just an outline of the paper size with an outline of the block on the inside. Again, registering a print can be intimidating, and I don’t pretend to be a professional at this. I just let it be what it wants to be. Hence, some prints turned out better than others.

And here's the result.
I printed a small run of these that I’ll soon make available at my Old Scratch store on etsy.
You must be logged in to post a comment.