I had one of those happy printmaking accidents in the studio this week that I thought I’d share in case someone else finds it useful. Recently, I was using Con-Tact paper and had been saving the backing paper that gets peeled and thrown away. If you don’t know what Con-Tact paper is, it’s that self-adhesive paper that comes in rolls and people use it to line the bottom of drawers and shelves.

Registering multiple linoleum blocks on the back of Con-Tact paper

I’m working on a series of lino prints that requires registering many different linoleum blocks at one time. It occurred to me that the backing paper had a nifty grid printed on it and it might be helpful for lining up my blocks. So, I took a big piece and taped it to my press bed using painters tape. The grid is broken down into 1/4 inch squares.

Linocut Registration Using Gridded Paper

In the example in these photos, I lined up my printmaking paper with the grid lines inside the green tape and lined up my inked lino blocks within the thinner, white masking tape. This ensured at least a one inch margin around my linocut print.

An extra benefit of the paper is that it has a somewhat glossy finish, which is nice when working with messy ink.

The gridded paper I was using is from an 18 inch x 9 foot roll of white Con-Tact paper. Specifically, it’s Con-Tact brand adhesive Creative Covering paper - the solid white version. I happen to have it in other patterns (not white) and the grid on those is slightly different, not quite as useful, and has larger squares.

If you have any questions, just let me know!

I’ve been working on a lot of linocut projects this year, most of which feature patterning, abstractions, line work or geometric forms. Here’s a small selection of some linocut designs from over the last few months.

They’re all carved in battleship gray linoleum blocks with v- and u-gouge carving tools. A couple of the lino prints are finished and available on Etsy.

Line pattern carved in a linoleum block.

Geometric design carved in linoleum. The final print is available on Etsy.

Linocutting a design with a carving tool.

Carved lino block with v-gouge tool. This final lino print is available on Etsy.

I’ve wanted to do a test of papers for hand printing linocuts for a long time and I took it on this year. Though I almost exclusively print with a press, I know most readers and students print by hand, which presents its own challenges. When I help people troubleshoot their printing problems, the choice of paper is sometimes a factor.

There are some specific paper recommendations at the end of this post and I’ve included Blick and Amazon links because they're easy places to order paper. It can be hard to find good printmaking paper at a local art shop. Blick, in particular, has some helpful customer reviews to read if you want other opinions. If you click on their links and choose to buy something, I get a small commission (at no extra cost to you) since I participate in their affiliate programs. You can find more details about this here. But, if you have a favorite neighborhood art supply store, go there by all means or try McClain’s Printmaking Supplies in the US.

Testing papers for hand printing linoleum blocks

What to Consider When Choosing a Paper for Hand Printing

If you were to ask me what block printing ink I think is the best, I would give you a couple suggestions and feel pretty confident that it will work for you. Paper is a little different, though. There are so many different types of paper to choose from and what you have available will partially depend on where you live. So, I don’t think there is necessarily a perfect paper for hand printing. But I’m going to give you suggestions on what to look for in paper to help guide you. I’ll also provide some specific recommendations.

A Paper’s GSM

Choosing a paper of the right weight is really helpful for printing linocuts, woodcuts or rubber blocks by hand. When you shop you’re going to notice a term on the package or product listing called, “GSM.” This stands for grams per square meter and is a measure of a paper’s weight. The higher the GSM the heavier the paper.

Importantly, if you’re printing by hand instead of a press, you’ll probably want a light to light-medium weight paper. Say, between 30-120 gsm, though this is not a hard and fast rule. You’ll want to avoid really thick paper like Stonehenge (250 gsm) or Rives BFK (250 gsm) when printing by hand, in my opinion. I would say, though, that those two papers are probably my favorites when printing on a press.

To give you a frame of reference for paper weight, I grabbed my pack of inkjet printer paper and it says it’s 75 gsm.

Paper Acidity

A final print you care about should be printed on acid free paper that will ensure it will last a lifetime, give or take. Here’s a good glossary that defines technical paper terms like acid free, neutral pH and sizing.

Paper Color

I’m reviewing neutral color papers than range from white to tan. Some papers are not nearly as truly white as others!

Paper Size

Paper comes in all sorts of sizes and is sold by the sheet or in a pad. Make sure the paper is a good size for your prints to reduce the amount of wastage. Some paper is of such odd sizes I just don’t feel like it’s much use to me.

Paper Texture

Some paper is extremely smooth, while other paper has a more rough handmade feel.

Very generally speaking, lighter / smoother paper will produce more consistently crisp prints with less effort by hand than heavier / rougher paper.

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Papers for Lino Printing by Hand

I used a small abstract linoleum block for testing a selection of the most promising papers. All the papers were printed dry. The linoleum block printing supplies I used for the test were:

• Caligo Safe Wash Relief Black Ink - (read review)

• Blick battleship gray linoleum

• Speedball soft rubber brayer

• The back of a metal spoon and/or a Speedball baren to burnish the print

The following are papers that I tried in my studio and found to be worth experimenting more with when hand printing linocuts. I’ve listed them from lightest to heaviest paper.

Six of the printmaking papers I tested for block printing

The lightest papers will be easiest to print consistently by hand. But, you have to be a little more careful with them because they’re thinner. They crease easier, frustratingly, and if you’re too rough when burnishing your prints little bits of the paper can slough off the back.

• Kitakata (30 gsm) - a delicate tan paper that comes in 16” x 20” sheets. Beautiful, neutral pH paper that’s competitively priced but thinner than I usually use.

• Awagami Mingeishi (45 gsm) - comes in three different colors and in larger sizes than many other attractive options. The paper is a little more see-through than the thicker papers like Rives Lightweight.

• Yasutomo Sumi-E Painting Sketch Paper (71.5 gsm) - this is an inexpensive white paper that prints well and comes in pads. I’ve used this on rare occasions over several years. Good for proofing blocks.

• Awagami Shiramine (110 gsm) - a new paper for me and I really liked it. It’s off-white. A little on the thicker side, but still produced a nice crisp impression.

• Rives Lightweight (115 gsm) - is sold per sheet and comes in medium and large sizes. An excellent, all-around high quality paper. It takes a fair amount of pressure to get a solid print. Keep in mind that even though there are a couple neutral cream-ish colors, none are truly white, in my opinion. Also, this is not to be confused with the 175 gsm option. I’ve printed successfully with this paper on an etching press.

• Strathmore Printmaking 300 (120 gsm) - one thing that’s nice about this paper is it’s relatively easy to find in art stores and online. It comes in pads of a range of sizes so it’s ready to use when you buy it. The downside is that it’s about as thick a paper as I would recommend for hand printing. It’s on the upper threshold for weight. It will produce very nice prints if you burnish the print with enough force.

So, there we go, a roundup of some good paper options for hand printing linocuts. They each have pros and cons so one printmaker might find one paper type better than a different person, so please keep that in mind. It’s worth trying a range of papers to see what fits your printing practice and studio / home conditions.

Have fun printing and feel free to contact me with any questions!

I finally finished a project I’ve been planning for a while - a print showing a variety of linocut pattern examples. It’s for students in my How to Linocut online class, who can download the print as a PDF. I came up with 25 black and white block printing patterns including grid, circle, line, dot, square and triangle designs.

The monochromatic lino print designs were carved in a block with U- and V-gouges and the photo below shows what I came up with.

From time to time, people ask if I offer linocut workshops and I'm thrilled to now offer an option. I have an online block printing course for beginners and those who want a refresher on the fundamentals, it's called, How to Linocut. This introductory relief printing class was filmed in my studio and teaches you the basics of creating your own lino print at home. A big benefit of this course is that you can start it any time and is self-paced. I've purposefully laid it out in a very straightforward, step-by-step manner to illustrate the linocut process that I enjoy so much.

New Linoleum Block Printing Course

The workshop is taught through a series of five videos and you can go back and rewatch the ones that are most helpful or challenging for you. You'll learn:

• What essential supplies, like ink and tools, you'll need to make a lino print

• How to transfer your design to a block

• Simple linoleum carving techniques

• How to print your block (without a printing press) and what type of paper to use

• Using the rainbow (or gradient) roll to print multiple colors

Students can save time since all the information you need to know is in the easy to follow curriculum. Here's a brief trailer for the new linocut class that I posted on Instagram.

A post shared by Boarding All Rows (@boardingallrows) on May 29, 2018 at 12:38pm PDT

I'm a fan of Speedball Fabric Block Printing Ink and have been using it for about three years. I use it primarily for printing linocuts on kids cotton t-shirts and thought it would be helpful to give an update on how the shirts have fared through normal wearing and washing. (Here's my original ink review from a while ago). Since this textile ink isn't widely available, I've included links to Blick Art Materials and Amazon, where it can be purchased. I get a small commission if you end up buying something there since I participate in their affiliate programs but the opinions below (good and bad) are my own. You can find more details about this here.

The washability of inks on textiles is a concern for anyone who starts printing on fabric. Many of us have made a print we're pleased with only to find that it fades a ton upon washing - I know I have and it's frustrating. Some recent questions from readers (thank you!) prompted me to take a close look at a t-shirt I printed years ago and assess how well the linocut print lasted.

My daughter's dragonfly t-shirt is a good example. I printed the linocut on a Bella Baby shirt with Speedball Fabric Block Printing Ink in May 2015. I pulled the shirt out of her drawer this weekend and took a picture.

T-shirt printed with Speedball Fabric Block Printing Ink after almost three years of washing and wearing.

Based on my experience, Speedball's Fabric Block Printing Ink (available through both Blick and Amazon) has performed well in the years since I originally printed the t-shirt. Especially considering that I made this shirt before I did a lot of testing in my printing process. For instance, I now always wash new fabric before printing and cure the ink in a hot dryer (I can't remember if I did either on this early t-shirt). I have a more recent shirt that I block printed after I honed my technique, which is holding up very well.

The shirts were always washed and dried with our regular laundry - no special care was taken with them. The intensity of the lino print still seems good to me. Like I mentioned in my original ink review, though, there is a little fading at the beginning. Don't be surprised when the intensity of the print's color is not as deep after you first wash it.

In my experience, after that initial fading, the ink's permanence holds up over the years. Given this, if the printed t-shirt is going to someone else, I recommend pre-washing the t-shirt once the ink sets, sort of like how companies pre-wash jeans before selling them. And, if you're looking for other printing tips, I have a whole page dedicated to the t-shirt printing process.

I hope this update has been helpful!