Ow...

a.k.a. Keep the tools away from Dawn. Seriously. :)

Memo to self: No more buying the linoleum mounted onto blocks of wood. Because it seems like a great idea, until you ram your knuckles into the block of wood several times. Yes, it drew blood. I either have wussy knuckles, or I shouldn't be allowed to play with tools.

But I made my own linocut block tonight, and then printed with it. I feel so accomplished! I'm sticking with basic shapes and designs for now, but when I get more of the soft, nice linoleum (with no wooden blocks), I might get fancier.

So here is: fish in a headlight.



(The picture of the linocut block and of my battered knuckles are both on Flickr as well. But the former came out blurry and the latter isn't something everyone will want to see. But I promise the latter isn't gory... just missing skin on my knuckles...)

Fun with linocuts

In an attempt to get the mad mango project done this weekend, I ended up at A&C yesterday, looking for the stuff we needed to make some linocuts. Of course, this is the first time I've been in that store without Jerome, which interestingly led to much more direct shopping. Normally, we sort of wander around and find all sorts of neat stuff. This time, I went straight for what I needed, and then danced around in that aisle for a while weighing the options.

So I came home with a LOT of stuff, though the majority of it is the reusable type stuff--the roller and cutting tools were the bulk of the cost. The ink is not cheap, but not prohibitive, and the actual linoleum pieces vary in cost. I bought two each of two different kinds, thinking it would give us each a chance to try cutting on different types. Jerome then proceeded to use the two that looked like they would be easier to cut (and were also cheaper), and proclaimed them awesome. So I'll only be buying that kind the next time, unless I discover that the more expensive ones cut nicely as well.

Jerome's linocuts were, unsurprisingly, mangoes, though I'm trying to figure out a way to make a few more cuts on those to turn them into something I can use. In the meantime, one of mine will end up being "Mango Girl," the character I built out of the scraps of a mango stencil. The other one will be a fish of some sort, because I can draw fish... mostly... :)

The mango project gets turned in this evening. I told Jerome that when it's all said and done, he should open a shop on Etsy and call it Gothic Mango. There's a severe lack of mango artwork on Etsy, you see. :)

(I will post some pictures of the linoleum blocks and prints as soon as I can... I'm just not sure what all Jerome is actually turning in this evening...)