another new workshop at Sew LA

I'm going to be teaching a second workshop at Sew LA at the end of June (June 30th, 6:30-9:30 to be exact), this time on stenciling. When I'm working on silkscreen projects, especially when I don't have a lot of multiples to print, I often think: I should have just made a stencil. Stencils are super cheap, easy and best of all: immediate. You can have an image designed, cut & printed in an hour, No screens to burn, no wasted ink, etc. Plus it is a really great primer in designing graphics for silkscreen, and I love the look of images cut with a blade--the results often have the look of paper cut outs.

I didn't have very good samples on hand for the workshop--I've taught stencils before, but often in tandem with relief printing workshops, so I wanted to up my stencil-sample game. I had so much fun making samples, and was inspired to try so many things, that I kept making & have amassed a small pile of fun projects. I have a ton more ideas, but forced myself to stop: I have three fairs coming up in July & I've got to get cracking! Luckily, all this making has given me more ideas for Krank Press.

Anyway, my theory is that one of the best reasons for using stencils (assuming you have other printmaking means to choose from, and aside from how cheap & easy it is), is the fact that you can use lots of colors at once, and can get painterly effects within the sharp confines of the stencil edge. Ombre blends, in particular, create a fun op-art effect. I'm posting a bunch of photos below, pulled from my instagram feed, of various projects, including a couple ombre stencils I turned into bags: