25 Days of Art: Printing

When I did that big clean up of our back office earlier this year I found A LOT of printing supplies including carving tools, inks and brayers. I wasn't crazy about giving the kids sharp carving tools (I cut myself pretty frequently when I do linoleum carvings for myself so...) which is why I was excited to bring back the Styrofoam printing technique I used last year in the Dream Journals, this time with actual printing ink. And let me tell you, that ink made all the difference

Supplies:
-Styrofoam plates
-pencils
-ink (or paint will work if you don't have any)
-brayers (or foam brushes)
-paper

Prep:
Cut the lip off the plates so that they lay completely flat on the table.

Process:
Using the pencil, press a design into the Styrofoam. Keep in mind that you'll be getting a mirror image, so if you use words write them out backwards. When the design is done, use the brayer or foam brush to roll ink or paint onto the surface. It should just go over the top, not seeping into the depressed parts where you used the pencil. Flip the plate over and press onto a piece of paper. Use a seperate brayer (or your hands) to press the plate down hard, transferring the ink/paint from the plate onto the paper. Pull back carefully. Repeat with as many colors as you like!

Miss Lucy's Example:




















Kid Art: