Botanic pattern lino prints

posted in: Arts & Crafts, Pattern Design

I’ve  been developing a collection of surface pattern designs with a botanic theme.
My process begins with watercolour sketches and observations in the field. From these sketches I create a set of patterns that would work well in a variety of mediums, including lino relief print.

When considering designing for lino printing, I often find myself looking at the outlines of the subject matter, and then the patterns that they can be developed into.

I usually draw the patterns by hand and then transfer them to the computer, so that I can end up with scalable vector line based images. First of all I often create a series of photocopies of my sketched pattern outline and try different colour schemes using watercolours.

Using water based printing inks, I created a series of small, (A6 or so) sized vinyl tiles, some with leaf outlines and others cutting away the vinyl completely to reveal solid leaves.

I then created a series of test prints using different colours, I find it best just to print into a cartridge paper sketchbook, so that I have a easy reference record of different colour mixes. For the final prints I use thin smooth card stock, as the final prints will become greetings cards.