Chintz
Hi there! Happy Friday!
This week, I was laser-focused on recording video, editing, email and website stuff, and I did not leave the premises. Not even once!
So, today, I thought I’d share a little Reel you may have missed. I made it for DeeDee Catron and Tina Walker’s August/September #allaboutpatterns Instagram challenge.
The pattern I chose from their prompt list was CHINTZ, and I created a chintz-inspired gel print.
Chintz (in Dutch: ‘sits’) plays a role in the Netherlands’ history and is a big part of the traditional costume in the region where I live.
I took the challenge as an opportunity to learn more about it, and I got two books from the library full of beautiful 17th-century examples handpainted and/or block-printed in India for the Dutch market.
I was fascinated by the specific colour order of printing/(over)dyeing: reddish colours (red, orange, violet) first, then indigo, often followed by more red (for deeper reds and purple) and then lastly yellow (which, of course, makes green printed over indigo).
I followed that order in my final print, though I didn’t overprint, I clearly forgot all about yellow, and I also decided to add white at a later stadium instead of blocking it out from the beginning. 🤷🏻♀️
The dyeing/printing of traditional chintz would take days or even weeks: dyeing, sun bleaching, masking off parts with wax, dyeing, removing wax, and applying it again… and again and again.
I decided to use stencils and masks to save time on the masking part. I (digitally) drew a simplified design based on elements derived from a chintz in one of the library books. And I let my electronic die-cutting machine do the cutting for me.
Although you don’t see these steps in the video, they are a crucial part of the process: I planned the entire design and knew from the start what I needed to do for each gel-printed layer.
I couldn’t be happier with how it turned out, and I feel super grateful that DeeDee and Tina invited me to play along!
Enjoy your weekend!
Marsha.
Quick reminders
The Stress-Free Cardmaking Summit starts TODAY. I believe you can still sign up for a free ticket here. You’ll be able to view my Easy Gel Printed Holiday Card presentation tomorrow, Saturday 30 September, and I’ll also attend a live Q&A at 19.30 CEST.
And if you like what I did in the Reel, you will LOVE my contribution to the Gel Printers Summit that starts on Monday! You still have time to sign up before the early price ends 2 October!
PS. The links to both summits are affiliate links. If you decide to purchase after clicking on one of these links, it won't cost you any more; however, I will possibly receive a percentage of the sale price.
sososo good and interesting! love the print!