Tag Archives: gelprints

Autumn Leaf Inspiration

I love creating monotype prints with leaves on my gel plate! The leaves in all shapes and sizes are calling me during these Autumn months. These are vine maple leaves that are turning at this time of year. I was able to capture some lovely color on a recent trip and immediately printed with some of the leaves..

I used some Distress Oxide inks and acrylic paints to make some leaf prints right after I collected these maple leaves. We traveled to central Oregon recently, which is a fall tradition for us, and it is fun to print botanical immediately after I gather them! It was a little cool, so I didn’t set up my gel plate outside like I do sometimes, but it was still very pleasant. I decided to quickly make a card with one of the prints.

Often when I make cards from gel prints, it is hard for me to cover up the print with a lot of stuff. With this, the leaves (the right-hand leaf) are really the focal point and a simple die-cut sentiment really keeps the card simple and elegant. I added a little ribbon across the top to visually balance out the sentiment, repeated the black with a mat around the print and adhered it all to a navy card base. I added a smattering of epoxy dots I had in my stash and called it done!

Thanks for visiting.

Challenge: Daisy Chain Challenges – Challenge #57 – Autumn and/or Halloween


Birthday Wishes Gel Print Card

Supplies

  • Stencil – The Crafter’s Workshop TCW2300 Slimline Gentle Leaves
  • Stamp – Miss Ink Stamps – Everyday Sentiments
  • Posca pen – white
  • Acrylic paints, gel plate, archival ink
  • Sequins – Buttons Galore

I make lots and lots of gel prints! I like to participate in printing challenges, I teach gel printing classes and make many samples for classes, and I just love to grab a gel plate or two and experiment with inks, paint and textures. So each time I set out to make a few prints, it can end up to be many that I don’t have time to use at that very moment. So needless to say, I have a lot of potential card backgrounds available in my stash.

For this mixed media card, I grabbed a print that was already card base sized. It had interesting texture, but needed a focal point. I had this new stencil by The Crafter’s Workshop that I hadn’t used yet, so I didn’t hesitate to use it with some archival ink to add a design that worked very well with my gel print. I am always a fan of botanical designs. I wanted to make sure the stenciled design was clear on the print, so I added a bunch of dots with a white Posca paint pen. This added even more texture but added enough contrast that the leaves were better defined. Adding a stamped sentiment and some sequins made it an easy to complete the card.

Thanks for visiting.

Challenge: Happy Little Stampers – April Stencil Challenge (Anything Goes)


World Cardmaking Day 2020

In my constant endeavor to find something positive in this highly unusual (okay, CRAZY!) year, at least we have a day dedicated to making cards! Right? So I spent today making a few gel plate prints and then I made three cards with some of them. Here’s what I did.

Above you can see the prints I made, using leaves from plants growing in my yard. Nothing exotic, to be sure! The difference in this gel printing experiment is that I used mini Distress Ink cubes direct to the gel plate to create kind of a geometric pattern. I didn’t brayer the ink out, but left it for a more distinct pattern.

I then placed the leaves on top of the inked plate and then pressed the paper over. Then I removed the paper and the leaves and replaced the paper, lining the paper onto the plate as it was before. This partially defined the leaves with remaining ink.

Here are the cards I made from the prints seen above.

I used sentiment dies respectively, from Sizzix, Elizabeth Craft Designs, and My Favorite Things. I layered the prints with cardstock and added some sequins. The center card also has ribbon and a border made with an EK Success “Fleur de Lis” border punch. I definitely shopped my stash with these cards!

Thanks for stopping by and Happy World Cardmaking Day!


Hexagonal Gel Print Cards

Recently I took advantage of the nice weather (pre-wildfire smoke) and wandered around in my yard to get some leaves to use for gel printing. Leaves are probably my favorite texture to add to paint of ink to create botanical prints. So I used Distress Oxide inks and brayered them onto my hexagon gel plate, then added leaves that I’d collected. Some time later, I added stamped or die-cut sentiments and a few insects and sequins and made some lovely, simple cards.

Here is a closer look at a few of them.

I associate leaves with Fall cards, so I imagine I’ll be doing some more of this! Thanks for visiting today.


Sending Smiles

  • Stamps –
    • PaperArtsy – JOFY 62
    • Hero Arts – CM335 – Hero Greetings Sending Smiles
  • Stencil – PaperArtsy PS130 (Design by JOFY)
  • Acrylic Paints – PaperArtsy Fresco Finish Acrylics: Sherbet, Bougainvillea, Vanilla, Antarctic, Glacier Ice
  • Watercolors – Prima Tropicals set
  • Embossing Powder – Stampendous Detail White
  • Cardstock – Bazzill
  • Brad – Lasting Impressions
  • Posca pens (black and white)

I created this mixed media card in phases. First I stamped out the flower stamps onto watercolor paper with Archival ink and added color with some watercolors. Once dry, I colored in areas with black and white Posca pens and added a few doodles of my own. After fussy-cutting the flowers out, I began working on the background. I made a number of gel plate prints using PaperArtsy Fresco paints and the JOFY stencil that matched the flower stamps. I selected one that I made with a small plate that framed the flowers nicely, then doodled around the perimeter and trimmed it out. I layered the flowers together and attached them in the center with a brad. I finished the card by adhering the flower to the background and adding a sentiment that I heat embossed. Thanks for stopping by.

Challenge: A Vintage Journey – Put Your Stamp On It Challenge


Gel Print Birthday Cards

  • Gel prints from my stash (using acrylic paint, stencils, found objects)
  • Stamp – Altenew “Fresh Freesia”
  • Cardstock – Bazzill
  • Ink – VersaFine Clair “Medieval Blue”
  • Sheer Shimmer Spritz – Gold – Imagine Crafts

I created these cards using scraps of gel prints that I printed long ago. I used stencils when I made the prints used in the first card, one is from The Crafter’s Workshop called “Aboriginal” (the smaller panel) and the other is a stencil I borrowed and I can’t determine the company who produced it. I also spritzed the final card with some sheer gold spray for a little shimmer. The second card featured green gold acrylic paint, so it already had a pretty gold metallic look. I have many, many prints in my stash because I’ve taught classes in printing and done it on my own so I have lots to play with as a result. Some I use in my art journals, but I have been enjoying using them in cards lately. For both cards, after I cut them into panels I edged them in a darker ink to “finish” them nicely. I also matted the pieces with cardstock and added the birthday sentiment. Thanks for visiting today.

Challenge: Hiding in my Craft Room – HIMCR #352 – Super Scraps Saturday