Monprint/Colograph Playdate

 I have been spending so much time getting my new workshop programs up and out there that I've had little time to play so this was a wonderful opportunity to get together with Judith and blog along with the Fire folk.

Judith explained that a monoprint was done with a matrix like her buttons and a monotype was a one of a kind print. She said, "Let's monoprint some buttons." So here I am thinking that we are going to monoprint ON the buttons. I'm game. So I am picking out nice flat buttons I can use as a substrate to print ON. No. I missed the point. As you saw from Judith's post, she made a matrix of buttons hot glued to a substrate then used them to print with. I kind of flew off somewhere and printed ON the buttons.

 Plastic sheeting (6mil)

 OK, so now on to the actual technique of monoprinting

Hot Glue on Cardboard

Padded Printing Surface

 Fabric pinned onto padded printing surface

 Using it as a stamp gave fine lines and a nice all over design (see below)

The reason I wrote colograph was because when I got to the purple paint, I decided that instead of "stamping" the color on the fabric, I would lay the paint covered matrix on my padded printing surface, lay the fabric on top face down and rub the matrix with my fingers. I got a very different result using the matrix as a colograph rather than a "stamp". You can see below that instead of just picking up the paint from the very top of the hot glue, my hands and fingers were used the get more of the surface of the hot glue squiggles and even some of the cardboard matrix covered paint onto the fabric. Much bolder lines. I saved the hot glue matrix and will trim away the hard edges of the cardboard closer to the outside edges of the hot glue for a more organic shape next time I use it. Judith did the same with her button matrix

 Looks kind of like the U.S.

 Judith setting up her matrix

 Photographing her finished results

Another Monoprint

Here is the finished fabric. It is a monoprint because I used a matrix to make the design.

I made a collage out of buttons like Rebekah suggested in her book.  I hot glued the buttons onto a sheet of fun foam.  I decided to do it on the fun foam so that it would be more flexible to accommodate different button heights.

Because I only wanted to print the buttons and not the background, I trimmed the edges of the fun foam.

I first tried a fabric paint but it did not work well.  I think the paint was just too thick.  I tried just some thinner craft acrylic paint and it worked fine.  Here is the paint on an acrylic plate I used as a palette.

I dabbed  paint onto the buttons using a foam brush. You can see where I have already printed it onto the fabric once or twice already.

If you take a really good look at the finished piece you will see a couple of different types of marks.  First I turned the fun foam upside down and stamped it on the fabric.  That got the paint off the high part of the buttons.  After I did that for a while, I noticed a build up of paint in the middle of the buttons where it was lower and around the edges of the buttons.  So then I put the fun foam face up on the table, put the fabric on top, and patted it with my hands to get the low places. 

 I printed on dry fabric but I think it would have taken the paint a bit better if the fabric had been slightly damp.

Just a couple more pictures of the fabric in process.

Monotype versus Monoprint

While the terms monoprint and monotype are often used interchangably, there is a difference in the two.  A monoprint is when a matrix is used to create a series of unique prints but there is always a part of the pattern or image that is consistantly repeated in each print.  A monotype is when there is no matrix and everything is different.

This is a monotype print that I made using a carved linoleum block as my matrix.  I still have the linoleum and could reprint this pattern multiple times in different colors and then finish with different embellishments to create a whole series of prints

Roots --jdemilo

Roots    11" square

Hand dyed and discharged cotton fabric,

Linoleum print, Embellishment with thread, yarn, and beads

Hung on driftwood

This started out as a white piece of fabric about 14" square.  I knew from the beginning that this would be a smaller piece since I was going to incorporate what I have learned in my linoleum carving/printing class.  My linoleum block is a 12" square so the finished piece could only be that big.    

 First the Matrix: I translated the picture into a design that could be carved into the lino.  I wanted there to be different textures in each layer.  I debated  about the texture to carve for the earth and finally decided on little tunnels that could have be left by animals or plant roots.

Second the Fabric: The next step was to dye some fabric with different colors in each layer.  One of the ladies in my art quilt group told us about a new method of dyeing she had just tried.  She wetted the fabric with soda ash, hung it and then squirted the dye onto the fabric.  So that is what I did.  I hung two lengths of fabric on the clothes line, did some rough measurements from the lino for where the layers should fall, and started squirting dye.

Third the Print: The next step was to print the dyed fabric.  I printed several so that I could take the best print to quilt.  I also printed some on white fabric in case I decided to try and dye the fabric after printing.

Fourth Assembling and Embellishment: I layered the fabric with batting and started some thread play to color and quilting.  Each layer has its own color of thread and quilting filler to emphasize the texture in that layer.  Next was adding hand embroidery and beading.  I also discharged some of the dye in the rock level to give highlights to the rocks.  When I got done with the embellishing, the piece looked like this:

Fifth is Finishing: I finished it by putting a facing on it to keep the edges clean.

Here is a close up of some of the roots.

Layered Monoprinted Fabric

I am so excited to be your guest blogger for May!  Monoprinting fabric is one of my favorite techniques. So, I thought I would show you my process for creating layered, mono printed fabric. All of these techniques are in my new book, More Fabric Art Collage, 64 New Techniques for Mixed Media, Surface Design, & Embellishment.   I look forward to hearing your thoughts and comments on the technique!

I start with either fabric paint or as above acrylic paint and a fabric painting medium.  If using fabric paint, the medium is not necessary.  

If using acrylic and medium, mix together onto freezer paper or acrylic sheet. 

 Continue mixing.

Place material that you wish to make a monoprint of onto paint.  You can also stamp, draw, or press found objects onto paint.  Here, I used bubble wrap.  

 Place fabric face down onto monoprint.  Lift up to reveal the design.  I use the painted bubble wrap to add a stamped design onto blank areas of fabric.  Let fabric dry completely.

 Next, I mix Dye-na-Flow with water.  Test variations of added water to determine the shade of color you desire.  Dye-na-Flow is very concentrated, so a little goes a long way.  

Paint the diluted Dye-na-Flow onto the monoprinted fabric.  You can see that a lighter shade of Dye-na-Flow works best to help highlight the printed fabric design.  Let color dry.

 Repeat with another color, here I used Cranberry Red.

 One of my favorite techniques is to scrape paint across the fabric.  Simply load a paint scrapper edge with acrylic (I often use white), and scrape across fabric several times.

The next step is to collect found items for stamping onto monoprinted and painted fabric.

 Brush paint onto found object, and stamp onto fabric.  If using bottle caps, simply dip the rim into paint and then stamp.  Use several objects to create texture and interest to fabric.

Next I collect and choose stamps that I have created from craft fun foam (thick kind).

 Brush paint (acrylic or fabric) onto stamp.

Stamp onto fabric.

 Finally, I stencil designs onto fabric using commercial or handmade stencils.

I like to incorporate a couple of different stencil designs.

I use this fabric as a whole cloth (for quilting), cut it apart and use it for patchwork, cover journals, the possibilities are endless!