Clearly Gelli-Printed!

Put a twist on your monoprinting experience  — use gel medium instead of paint to create some clearly different Gelli prints! Watch this video for a clear idea ...

Gel medium is essentially acrylic paint without pigment. It goes on milky white and dries clear. We're making a clear print, which we'll use as a resist. This technique will work with either gloss or matte. I'm using Golden Regular Gel Gloss Medium— but use what you have and see how it prints.

Take advantage of the transparent medium and create prints on interesting paper! Like … book pages, sheet music, maps, pre-printed paper and so on. Try printing over a handwritten journal page, or your own doodles or stampings. And deli paper will give you wonderful translucent papers to use for layered collage. So many possibilities!

Here's the process…

1.  Apply the medium to your plate — same as you would with paint — then roll out with a brayer. Create textures and patterns in the gel (just like you would  with paint). 

Note:  I'm using some wonderful stencils from StencilGirl! I especially love their designs with large open areas, where I can add additional texture to individualize how the printed pattern will look. To do that, place the stencil onto the painted plate. Immediately place other texture(s) onto the stencil — press gently, then remove.

StencilGirl Stencils

Some good choices for textures to press into open areas in stencils include:  Embossed paper, plastic mesh, crumpled wax paper, cheesecloth, rubbing plates, and punchinella.

2.  Cover with paper, rub to transfer gel medium — and pull a print.

3.  Remove the stencil and quickly cover with fresh paper and pull another print. If there's enough medium remaining on the plate, this will create an interesting clear ghost print.

The next step reveals the magic in the print! 

4.  Apply a thin wash of color to your dry prints and see what happens! The printed gel resists the wash. What fun! I especially love adding color with Ranger's Distress Stains!

5.  Wipe the stained print with a damp paper towel. This will remove residual color from the clear areas revealing a bolder pattern with higher contrast.

You'll find plenty of suggested ways to add color to your clear Gelli print in the previous blog post, "Are We There Yet".  If you haven't read it — or are looking for inspiration — please take a look :)

Go ahead and try a "clear" day of printing for a different kind of Gelli print! And please share your prints on the Gelli Arts Facebook page!

 

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED!!!!

 

Our fabulous prize package includes:  

• One (1) 6x6" Gelli Printing Plate 
  

• Three (3) 6"x6" stencils by StencilGirl

• AND six (6) bottles of Distress Stain by Ranger! 

One lucky winner will be chosen at random on Wednesday - April 22nd and announced here on the blog — and on our Facebook page.

To be entered to win, all you need to do is leave a comment here on the blog or on our Facebook page. All comments must include an email address. 

Want to double your chance to win? Simply subscribe to our YouTube channel and we'll enter your name twice. If you've already subscribed, let us know :)

And a special thanks to MaryBeth Shaw, of StencilGirl, for supplying the wonderful stencils!!!

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED!!!!

Good luck — and Happy Printing!