MY FORAY INTO GELLI PLATE PRINTING

http://www.dickblick.com/products/gelli-arts-gel-printing-plates/

Have you ever heard of Gelli Arts Gel Printing Plates?

I have been enamored of playing with this cool way of creating monoprints for some time now. I finally purchased a used 12" x 14" plate from a friend. Still a little mystified with the process, my plate sat for quite awhile. I read the entire book written by one of the creators of the Gelli Plate, Joan Bess. After completing the book, I STILL wasn't ready to jump into the Gelli Plate Printing abyss.

I watched video after video after video. Did you ever check out Pinterest or YouTube for videos on gel press printing? There are so many! I discovered a few talented women who work with this medium whose work I really like and have learned a lot from them. Two of my favorites are Birgit Koopsen and the fun-loving and ever-entertaining Carolyn Dube. Check them out!

Finally, I took a deep breath and jumped in. It turns out that, instead of the largest plate, the 12" x 14", I should definitely have started with something smaller. I felt completely out of my element with that large plate. I did work with it a few times, but was never happy with anything I'd produced.

A few weeks ago, I invested in a 5" x 5" plate, and really went to town with that little gem. So far, I have only been working with one color at a time and stencils, doing layers. 

In the following photos, I introduce you to some of my work. None of them have been flattened or finished in any way. Some of the prints curl a bit more than others in these photos because they were done on much thinner papers. In fact, they were printed on pages from an old dictionary that was born the same year I was!

 

A few of my favorites from the past weeks of printing:

I know this is quite a departure from my traditional blog posts about cardmaking and the more traditional uses of cardstock, ink and rubber stamps. But, I am always looking to plant those little Paper Seedlings. And this stretches my love for papercrafting. I am loving this new journey. In fact, it's become almost an obsession.

I'm not sure which direction this new love will take me, but I am so willing to travel that path. I will never lose my passion for cardmaking, especially in light of the fact that it has saved me emotionally from myself so many times. My very own Creative Therapy.

As I proceed in this new direction, I hope you will accompany me by supporting me in my efforts through the photos and posts I will publish to my blog, Paper Seedlings.

I plan to do my regular cardmaking posts on the two days of the week that I usually do, Sunday and Wednesday. If I do a post about anything else, like this gel printmaking, I will try to do it on Fridays, in addition to the other two days.

Please please let me know what you think of my new passion, and let me know if you think I should continue to move in this direction. Also, if you have any ideas with the prints I produce, I'd love to hear those from you too. 

If you are interested in learning more about my personal process and progress, let me know, and I would be happy to share with you! But, please, I need to hear from you!

Gelli

Smiles.