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I love creating linocuts. A great project if you’ve done a couple block prints in the past and want to level up your prints is to take one lino block and print it with multiple colours in a gradient. This is called a rainbow roll and looks absolutely gorgeous! And it’s pretty simple to do.
The steps to make a rainbow roll
First, you’ll need a design to print. For this demo, I’m using a butterfly that I drew. You can mimic it or use your own image. Draw your design, transfer it to a lino block, and carve it out. I have step-by-step instructions for designing and carving a block print on my blog. If you’ve never created one before, I suggest you read through the steps, including more in-depth instructions on how to roll out block print ink before trying a rainbow roll.
Once you have your block carved, it’s time for the fun part – inking! Watch me demo doing a rainbow roll on my YouTube channel or continue reading below.
Chose the two colours you’d like for your print. I recommend a few different options that generally work well. You can try a dark colour with a paler version of the colour, like dark blue and light blue. Another option is to use black with a colour. Or perhaps two colours that are near each other on the colour wheel, like blue and green. Avoid colours that are opposite from each other on the colour wheel – the gradient tends to turn out muddy.
Take your brayer – you’ll need one at least as wide as your block. Put a bit of each colour on your inking plate, less than your brayer’s width apart. Now, roll your brayer gently into the two ink piles, picking some up on your brayer. Now roll your brayer, with the ink, onto your inking plate.
Continue rolling it, without turning your brayer another direction, until you have completely covered your brayer. The goal is to have one colour on one side and the second colour on the other side, with a gentle blend of the two in the middle. It can take a minute or two but after a bit of rolling, you’ll develop a gradient in between the two colours. Now you’re ready to print!
Roll your inked brayer onto your lino block. Again, you need to keep your brayer rolling in the same direction to ensure you don’t mix your colours together. Once your block is inked up, lay your paper on it. Now, press down on your paper using a barren or wooden spoon, ensuring that all parts of the inked block have been pressed. Lift up your paper and enjoy your rainbow roll!
You can use this same technique when printing on fabric. Just be sure to use a fabric ink so it won’t wash out. If you would like to learn how to print on fabric, check out my blog post on how to block print on fabric. Puzzled over some of the tools and equipment I mentioned, read through my beginners block printing supplies post.
Get the supplies
Pick up some of the supplies at your local art supply shop or on Amazon:
US
- Speedball speedy carve Lino
- Speedball traditional Lino
- Flexcut carving set
- Bench hook
- Flexcut slipstrop
- Schmincke linodruck ink
- BFK Rives paper
- Arnhem 1618 printmaking paper
- Speedball soft brayer
- Speedball hard brayer
Canada
