Actual Crafts? On a craft blog? (Amanda's old blog)

My dad commented today that this so-called craft blog has sort of degraded into a rat blog. And he's right. Things have been hectic lately, and I haven't had much time for crafting. But I managed to fit in a small project today, despite the fact that this week is pretty jam-packed for me. I think it's a definite example of 'if you want something done, give it to a busy man.'

My roommates Stacy and Eric are getting married in a couple months, so Stacy has got her plate full with lots of wedding projects and planning. Yesterday, she was looking at designs for their guestbook. She found a graphic of a calla lilly that she really liked. She showed it to me and asked if I could do a block print of it for her! We also discussed the possibility of me actually making their guestbook for her, which would be really fun.

I happened to have some linoleum lying around, so i took one of my smaller pieces, cut it in two and made 2 prints. The first print was a bit too heavy, also it was facing the wrong way. I still like it. I think I can clean it up and make it a bit more delicate. The stamen in the flower turned out beautifully.


This is what it looks like when it prints.


And here's the actual linoleum block after I inked it up.

I love the woody texture in the background of block prints. But stacy didn't want that, so I had to carve it deep so all that would print is the flower.

The second try was aimed at getting it facing the right direction, and also making it dantier and more detailed.


This is the print - sorry for the strange angle. Lighting in my living room was not very good today.


And here's the block print. This one is so pretty, I really like how it turned out.

I'm pretty impressed with myself. The second try turned out really nicely. I was very patient with it - I knew Stacy wanted something delicate, so I had to be careful. She didn't end up liking the second print because of the little spiral at the base of the flower. She also changed her plans for the guest book later today, but I was glad to have the inspiration. She gave me a design, specific instructions, and incentive to be very delicate with my work. Now I have 2 new prints for my etsy shop when it opens in July! I'm very excited about this.

I'm thinking my next few block print designs will be:
-A dagger or sword (or both)
-the Heroes symbol
-Some Star Wars symbols, like the rebel alliance and the galactic republic symbol.


I'm glad I finally have crafts to share with you! Sorry dad, about all the rat updates. They're just so cute. ^_^