produced in jacksonville, florida

creation date – may 2018

artist – johanna lawson

technique – monoprinting (ombré effect) and hand stamped

INSPIRATION

#inspiredbymothers (and snapdragons)

There are many things that come to mind when I think of my mother and Gran; however, one thing that will ALWAYS make me think of them is a beautiful garden. Both are avid gardeners, and have taught my sister and me all we need to know to plant and preserve a pleasing plot. 🙂

So, as I set out to create this batch, I was given this botanical paper at my challenge group last month. This paper was perfection. 

Now that I had the paper, I just had to figure out how I was going to use it as the basis for this batch. It just so happened, that I was walking through my own garden and spotted these amazing orange, yellow, and pink snapdragons. They were in a pot of succulents my mother had gifted to me months ago. When I sent her a picture of the snapdragons, she was shocked. She had no idea they had been there, waiting beneath the soil, to burst forth and boldly display the colors that inspire this batch.

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Another exciting thing to happen this month – I was chosen to be a Gelli Arts® Artist ambassador! This company produces and sells the monoprinting plate I use everyday, and now I get to work for them sharing my techniques using their product with others! Exciting to say the least! I also get to work with an extremely creative team of artists. Check out all the Gelli Arts® Artists (me included) here. They even sent me all of these amazing supplies!

 

Please visit their site and if you ever need any monoprinting supplies, use my code to get 10% off your purchase of $20 or more. The button is on the sidebar of all my pages.

With that being said, I knew I wanted to incorporate monoprinting into this batch.

So, here we go…

TECHNIQUE

Last month, I hosted a monoprinting class at Hyperion Brewing Co. You can read the whole story here. Two eleven year old girls came to learn about monoprinting that night. And though I taught them quite a bit, it always amazes me how much you can learn from a beginner. Often times, we get so used to and comfortable with our own techniques that it can be difficult to think outside the box. One of the girls kept attempting an ombré effect on her plate. She did pretty good, but for this batch, I set out to perfect the technique!

to create the ombré effect on your plate:

om • bré

adjective  \ˈäm-ˌbrā \

: having colors or tones that shade into each other —used especially on fabrics in which the color is graduated from light to dark

step one

pick three colors that will easily blend into one another (ex: pink, orange, yellow)

step two

working from the top of the plate to the bottom, put a dot of each color on the plate moving from darkest to lightest colors 

step three

starting with the darkest color at the top, try to position your brayer with the darkest color on only one side, blend until top of plate is covered with darkest color

for best results, use full strokes from one side of plate to the other

step four

while blending darkest color, ease into the middle of plate and new color, continue to blend darkest color (pink) into middle color (orange)

 

 

step five

continue working down the plate into the last and lightest color, blend

 

 

step six 

with broad strokes from one end of the plate to the other, work the brayer back up the plate to blend all colors

step seven

lay paper on plate and burnish with your hands or a spoon

 

 

step eight

lift and enjoy!

 

 

After the ombré effect, I mounted the lightweight, tissue paper onto white cardstock for  more stability. Half of the floral paper, I mounted with the black design on top causing the color/paint on the opposite side to be more muted and light pink. The other half I mounted with the black design down and the painted side up causing the color to…

…pop!

For adding depth to the squares, the layering continued with white paint (Gelli Arts®) on the plate. I put down a bold floral stencil followed by the ombré paper. I was able to pull multiple squares from one plate, especially after picking up the stencil. The key is to burnish! Be sure to try to pull up all the paint while the stencil is down. Therefore, when you pick it up, you have another great image (ghost print) to use.

GELLI ARTS® ARTIST TIP:  There are a couple of ways to lift the ghost print. If the paint is still wet, you could put another paper down immediately and burnish, burnish, burnish. If the paint is mostly dry, wait until the paint is completely dry. Then choose another color (high contrast is always fun!)  and put down a few drops on the plate, right on top of the first image, the ghost… Brayer until smooth, then lay another paper down and burnish away. Lift and enjoy the beauty. To be honest, I often like the ghost print more than the original. Hmm. 

CREATION

In the end, this colorful batch really stands out in a crowd of Mother’s Day cards. These cards tell a special story, one from my heart to yours. Inside you will write your own story, your own memory and pass that message to someone you love. These cards are meant to continue a tradition of love notes and pen pals. Just last week, I met a new friend who said that they have a pen pal. Beginning in childhood, they grew out of it, but have recently rekindled their correspondence. She told me she treasures these handwritten love letters her friend took the time to write, address, stamp and mail. They are you proof that someone thinks you are extra special! #sendlove this may make someone feel that way.

 

 

P.S.

I also created some cards at the market last week. I have had this chess piece stamp for a few years, but have never really found the right project for it. It was one of those stamps that I saw and HAD to have! Well, it just spoke to me this Mother’s Day! Then, I saw a fellow Gelli Arts® Artist (Giogio Craft) post an #inspiredbymothers image of young Queen Elizabeth. She said her mother was born at the same time as her coronation. So here is my other 2018 mother’s day card – who is your queen?