Por Siempre

The concept came from the idea of two skulls forming the silhouette of a heart. After a lot of sketching, I finally came to the design you see here.

For this project I used traditional hessian backed/battleship grey lino. This is generally my 'go to', as my cutting technique embraces the unique way lino breaks and snaps during the carving process. I also much prefer it's environmental credentials over some synthetic alternatives.

I prepped the lino by sanding it with ultra fine sandpaper, then stained it with an ink that could offer contrast between cut and uncut areas when carving. I then transferred the image using carbon paper.

I used my Pfeil tools to carve the image, which I stropped regularly throughout. Once carved, I cut the excess lino with scissors to avoid background chatter.

Anyone who has tried printing onto think canvas twill will know that it can pose challenges. I know what works for me but I would always suggest experimenting with the three variables – surface, ink and pressure to work out what works for you.  

The Ink I used for this was just Speedball Fabric Block Printing Ink. Its thinner viscosity isn’t great for printing fine detail but I find it gives good and consistent coverage on this thick textured fabric. I allowed the ink to rest on the inking plate for a few minutes before application which improves consistency then printed three or four test prints on scrap to ensure the block was fully inked before printing onto the good fabric.

I used my cast iron nipping press to print. With a rich history dating back centuries, these presses generally offer good even pressure, resulting in consistent prints.

I always leave printed fabric to dry for a week before setting it with the iron. Then it’s just a case of sewing everything together to create these zip pouches.