Finally I sat down and carved my first linocut. It’s amazing – when you make a date with yourself and commit, you follow through. I had been putting it off, sketching ideas for the design, until I realized the design didn’t really matter – it was about trying out the tools and learning the process.
Linocut Tools:
- Speedball Speedy-Cut Easy blocks – apply design to and carve
- Speedball Cutter – cutting tool with several blade types
- Foam 4″ Brayer – for applying paint/ink to the block
- Lucite 4″ brayer or wooden spoon – to evenly rub the paper when it’s on the block
I sketched an idea I had in pencil, directly onto the “Speedyball Speedy-Cut Easy” block. It took me a few minutes to figure out how to attach the carving blade to the handle, but I got it. I was surprised at how easy it was to carve. I carved around the trees first. For the owl I used a thinner blade to add texture (to show the feathers). I messed up with the beak when I momentarily spaced on what I was supposed to carve off – the negative space. But again, this is a learning process.
I used the back of the block, because I wanted two colors. I transferred the eye shapes over to the back with tracing paper – although they mostly fell within the moon. These fine details didn’t really print in the end. And I did it wrong – it should have been the mirror image of the eyes and moon. Imagine my surprise when the moon ended up on the left instead of the right. There were other mistakes: I should have wiped the carving before printing. I didn’t carve deep enough, but this led to a happy accident because I liked the texture it added and the yellow through the print. I can’t wait to do another one!
Here are my steps:
You’ll need:
mycreativeresolution.com 
It’s terrific!
Thank you!
Instead of pressing the paper down onto the lino you could try pressing the lino down onto the paper. Then go over it with a roller to make sure the ink has really transferred. And if you did that already I’m going to shut up. Also I really love the texture you got with the yellow ink.
That’s the way I originally thought I should do it, like a stamp, but the videos I saw did it the other way. I will try it. Thank you, I appreciate the advice!
Oh really? I haven’t watched any videos of it. I was told to put the lino on the paper. Oh well. You’re welcome 🙂
Very nice! I agree with bluchickenninja about the texture created with the yellow ink. Truly fantastic!
Thank you so much! 🙂
Eileen – beautiful, well done for a first linocut. I love the unexpected surprise when the print is made. Keep going, can’t wait to see your next Lino art.
Thanks Sharon! I’m excited to try another.
Beautiful print, looking forward to seeing more!
Thank you so much! I appreciate it. 🙂
This looks fun! Nice slide show!
Thanks. You should give it a try! 😉