A Whole Load of Samplers! The Process, Part Two

Having constructed my new stencil from heavy cartridge paper, I have been putting it to the test on all kinds of different fabrics. Looking through the bags of fabric that I have picked up over the years from charity shops, generous friends, and some of my own old clothing, I picked out about 20 different kinds of fabric. Some with stretch, some with fur pile, some plain, some printed. I've been using a combination of my blocks, stencils, and two new tools. Somewhere along the line, the idea of printing the fabric in several different layers - each with a different variety of foliage - came to me. Accordingly, I picked another of my favourite plants, a curling fern motif, and experimented with making a simple design that would enhance the leaves in the foreground. I settled on using a triangle with three fronds on that I could rotate to create rows of prints. Here's a picture of the first fabric experiment with this block.
 

The second tool I made for this section was one I hoped would work for a sort of vine pattern, to be overlaid on the bamboo leaves as the top layer. My idea was to have a fairly dark colour fabric - maybe a blue, maybe just a darker green, and to print onto it with the ferns. I would then use my bamboo stencil to paint in lighter green leaves for the mid-ground. Then I would use the stamp to create an interesting foreground in a green-yellow colour. I used a piece of extra thick lino, and plenty of PVA glue to make some scrolling vines with packing string. So far, it hasn't worked wonderfully, so here is a picture of the stamp, and a print on paper that includes the stamp. Because the stamp doesn't work brilliantly without a substantial amount of paint laid on, I had to apply it with a brush, rather than a roller, and so the surface is quite untidy.

As you can see, the stamp isn't too useful initially. Perhaps by building up some layers of paint on the string itself, the printing surface will even itself out and provide a crisper image. I like the dotted lines it makes currently, but over the ferns and leaves, I doubt it will stand out. In fact, I'm not certain it'll look deliberate.

Here are some images of the bamboo leaves layered over ferns. These are printed on green drill and light green calico.

Getting the right balance between visible ferns and invisible leaves is tough. Here's a close-up of the slightly more successful print on the right.

As you can see, whilst both prints have come out quite nicely, even the slight transparency of the top layer means that they are not distinct enough to be called a success! For the moment, I'm sticking with my original bamboo block and new bamboo stencils, and trying out a variety of printing surfaces. Perhaps a combination of correct print and correct fabric will render additional layers in the design unnecessary.