I recently picked up a small 5” x 5” gel-plate on a whim at the local art store. Within 24 hours I had three gel-plates, a collection of material to make various prints, and a lot less blank paper! It could be the flexibility of the gel-plate, or the immediacy of a mono print, but I am hooked! So hooked that even the simple act of eating a piece of fruit, will send me down the rabbit-hole of how to print with an orange peel.

The results were different from how I imagined, but I think they turned really nice:

**Orange Peel Print I** Acrylic ink mono-print with colored pencil on paper, available via SHOP

**Orange Peel Print II** Acrylic ink mono-print with colored pencil on paper, available via SHOP

**Orange Peel Print III** Acrylic ink mono-print with colored pencil on paper, available via SHOP

Gel-plate printing has also given me a medium for a projects that I’ve wanted to complete for some time.

Camping and Crochet: First thing I pack when we head out with the camper (even before tofu jerky, and the cribbage board) is a crochet project! There is nothing more satisfying that counting the half-double post-stitches, while sitting on a camp chair and watching the leaves fall off the trees around me. It is the experience of feeling time pass: seeing the shadows move through day, the seasons change before our eyes, and all while my hands churn a ball of yarn into something (maybe) wearable. I entitled the series of 7 prints “Busy Hands, Changing Leaves”:

**Busy Hands, Changing Leaves I** Acrylic ink mono-print with colored pencil on paper, available via SHOP

**Busy Hands, Changing Leaves** II Acrylic ink mono-print with colored pencil on paper, available via SHOP

**Busy Hands, Changing Leaves III** Acrylic ink mono-print with colored pencil on paper, available via SHOP

**Busy Hands, Changing Leaves** VI Acrylic ink mono-print with colored pencil on paper

**Busy Hands, Changing Leaves** V Acrylic ink mono-print with colored pencil on paper

**Busy Hands, Changing Leaves** **VII** Acrylic ink mono-print with colored pencil on paper

The Process: I made this series by painting with acrylic paint directly on to the plate (instead of using a brayer) and used a plastic cut-out to block out the shape of crocheting hands. Then I made a ghost image (the ink left over from a print) of both cedar leaves and a swatch of crocheted yarn. The layers felt a little disjointed to me, so I decided to break purist printmaking rules by adding colored pencil and enter the “mixed media” realm!

Lastly, the great thing about gel plate printing is that the prints where I’m experimenting or getting the ink off the plate for a ghost image, turn out just as interesting as my actual project!

Note: I’ve only put a select few of these prints in my shop. I’m thinking about making a grab bag with a handful of prints. Dumb idea? Let me know!

Bit by the Gel Plate Bug!

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