Matthew Borgatti figured out a way to screenprint scratch-off cards. Fun for invitations, postcards, business cards, or starting your own lottery scam.

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101: Silkscreen

I adore the beautiful line work and perfect colors in these vintage labels on iDiy. The celadon version is my favorite favorite favorite. Print them out and use them with any paper project you can think of. The beloved site has a clamoring in the comments for more posts, and I just know it's because Luzel and her writers have great style and a great blog that people can't live without!

It doesn't surprise me at all that these computer jargon, super geeky Valentines are sold out, but it does make me happy that there should be a new batch ready by Monday, just in time for you to get one to give to your nerd sweetie pie.

Here at CRAFT we were all trying to come up with some other, equally nerdy versions, mostly involving references to Star Wars, binary code, and HTML 5. What l33t <3 note can you come up with? [via BadderHomesandGardens]

Instructables user sadiesosha writes:

Starting a small company? Can't meet the 1000 piece minimum from tag-printing companies? Not a problem! Make your own labels on the cheap and never worry about wasting that hard-earned cash.

Check out the Instructable for making your own labels that uses crossgrain ribbon, a stencil of your logo, and some spray paint.

If you have a question for Ask CRAFT, shoot me an email at becky@craftzine.com, or drop us a note on Twitter! We'd love to answer your crafty questions on any topic: technique, projects, crafty culture, or anything else! Each week the answers are here; include your name, where you're from, and your website or blog if you have one!

Ryan Bell writes in:

I am looking for a baby-safe photo transfer system (something to transfer/print photos onto fabric with) to make soft fabric blocks with. I want to make soft fabric cubes with high-contrast black and white images of family members on them so that my baby has something to play with but also develops a familiarity with our family. I have used Bubble Jet Set in the past but it has not been tested for baby safety and is not recommended to be used for things baby may put in her mouth. I can't seem to find a product that is safe for baby to chew on and was wondering if one even exists.

While I had just as much trouble as you finding an iron-on inkjet transfer paper that explicitly states it's baby-safe, there are other options. Let's start by listing some materials that you should be able to find in non-toxic and baby-friendly variations:

• silkscreen ink
• fabric paint
• fabric
• yarn
• fabric glue
• embroidery floss

So, while not as easy as printing out and ironing on, there are many techniques that could lead you in the right direction. If you don't have access to a silkscreen setup, try our freezer paper stencil tutorial to make the image. You can cut it out by hand with a small utility or craft blade, or use the Cricut for a more exact replica of your image. Check out Instructables user Fylke's image processing tutorial for turning a photo into a two-color separation suitable for silkscreen or freezer paper stencil. You can then use your kid-safe silkscreen ink, fabric paint, or even bleach to execute the design. If you're going with ink or paint, it's best to heat-set it with an iron to really join it with the fabric and prevent any of it from entering your baby's system. If you're going with bleach, wash the patterned fabric a few times to make sure none remains.

Then there are the more labor-intensive processes, like fabric applique. Again, you'll cut out your shapes, but in a contrasting fabric, and then sew the shapes to the background fabric by hand or machine, or even use fabric glue. You could also embroider the photographs on the block sides using our video tutorial for turing a photo into an embroidery pattern. You might also try checking with Spoonflower, the on-demand custom fabric printing website, to see if their fabrics are baby-friendly.

I know you were looking for a magic product to come and solve your crafty design problem, but I hope that these other methods will yield some great stimulating toys for your baby. Please write in to share your results! If you've got suggestions for Ryan, post them up in the comments!

The above image is Etsy seller woodponddesigns' Black Red and White Pattern Jumble Ball soft baby toy with jingle bells.

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Ask CRAFT: Sourcing Freezer Paper and Other Supplies

From the pages of CRAFT, Volume 02:

Freezer Paper Stencil by Leah Kramer. Preview the article in the digital edition, and grab the back issue in the Maker Shed.

Derek "Bones" Boe made this rad hoodie by painting with bleach. In the biz, this is called "discharge printing," but here we'll just call it awesome. [via Street Anatomy]

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Best of the CRAFT Video: Skeleton Cardigan

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Ed Roth will also be at Bazaar Bizarre SF this weekend teaching a workshop and signing books. See the schedule here.

While in Hawaii, I've discovered the work of local designer Sierra Dew. She makes really cool fabric prints using stencils. Her work is tropical in nature, but with an edge. Instead of the same old aloha prints, Sierra's art is more urban, with a graffiti influence.

Sierra recently lent her experience as a fabric artist to a simple and crafty holiday gift tutorial by Paula Rath in the Honolulu Advertiser. She shares how to print with handmade stencils onto anything you can find! Try pillows, tote bags, or tea towels. The tutorial even includes downloadable designs by Sierra herself!
Photos by Norman Shapiro

The more than 300 photographs that combine to make this stunning stop-motion video from januarypress are mesmerizing. They depict the production of printing a book on a Vandercook press and detail the binding of the books. I've always been a letterpress junkie (you can read about my incredible experience printing with my friend, Sarah, at the Pacific Northwest College of Art last spring) and watching this video made me fall in love with the process even more. I was also enamored with the process of binding the books, especially the sewing portion. Enjoy! [via NOTCOT]

I've been a fan of Firecracker Press ever since I was introduced to them at the 2006 Renegade Craft Fair in Chicago. Based in St. Louis, Missouri, they "use computer design software to conceive ideas but still carve woodblocks and print by hand to produce event posters, business cards, party invitations, advertising and more." Pictured above are four of their posters that can be displayed as posters or cut out and worn as masks. Perfect for Halloween and beyond.

This summer, Jennifer Perkins of Naughty Secretary Club and I had a little Yudu screen printing playdate. She's taken off with printing, and this week, she's featuring some of the screen adventures on which she has embarked. One of my favorite things she's done is screen print directly on vinyl records and has turned them in to things like cuff bracelets and wall clocks. I love her story behind where she came up with the design for the clock face. Read her blog to find out more.

Stencil101 Decor: How to stencil a wall pattern with Ed Roth of Stencil1 from Ed Roth on Vimeo.

Little Paper Planes is an online community of artists that was once dedicated mostly to the sale of art prints and letterpress. The shop has recently branched out into accessories and clothing. Each piece captures the same beautiful, modern, and well crafted Little Paper Planes aesthetic.

Grain Edit features a nice interview with Melissa and JW Buchanan of The Little Friends Printmaking. It's a great look into how the couple met, set up shop and work together every day. One of my favorite parts of the interview is an example of the process the pair goes through when designing a poster. They also discuss the importance of research when starting a project. Says Melissa:

Research is so important. You can't operate in a vacuum. And that extra time you put into researching something pays off tenfold in nuance and smart little details that people remember.

It's these nuances and smart details that help give such depth and great character to their work. Enjoy!

Based in Portland, Oregon, Egg Press print shop has been designing and hand-printing gorgeousness since 1999. For 10 years, they've been cranking out quality on their vintage presses. To commemorate their anniversary, they made this neat video that gives a mesmerizing view into their workshop. (Pictured above are their Wild Things and Botanicals card collections.)

As we all know, gelatin has a unique property of being at once delightful to some and repulsive to others. I land somewhere in the middle, I like to play with it but please don't make me eat it. Years and years ago I took a multimedia class and one of our guest speakers did a presentation on printing from a gelatin plate. I tucked it away in the back of my mind and thought it would be a cool thing to try both for myself and with children. Professional artists use all the fancy tricks of the trade. Here's a way to do it in your own home using what you may have on hand.

Instructables user bopp has made an excellent primer on linoleum block printing, even covering lots of artists using the medium, which is great for inspiration. He goes over tools, technique, cleanup, and lots of pictures!

More:

• Linoleum Printing with Kids
• Linoleum Print Tutorial
• Flashback: 101 Linocuts

The best part about trying a new project is learning a new skill. One of my favorite articles in each issue of CRAFT is the 101. The 101 articles are specifically geared to open the doors to a whole new craft through teaching the ins and outs, coupled with a specific project. There is something wonderfully tangible about coming up with a design, transferring it to linoleum, inking it up, and rolling yourself a print. Back in CRAFT Volume 02, Donna Barger shared her linocut expertise with us in beautifully clear step-by-step, from making your design and transferring it to the linoleum:

To carving the design out from the linoleum:

To rolling your ink and pulling your print. She includes helpful tips and tricks on tools and technique throughout. Here is the project shared with you in our Digital Edition. Make sure to swing on by the Maker Shed to pick up a back issue of Volume 02, if you don't have one already!

I often struggle with ideas for good handmade baby gifts, so I think I'm going to have to steal this idea of a "Year of Screen Printed Shirts" from my my pal, Sarah, of Sewer-Sewist. She made the shirts as a gift set for Susan Beal's daughter, Pearl, who will get to wear the shirts as she grows throughout the next year. I love the idea of a handmade gift that keeps giving all year long. Fantastic!

I really could have used one of these after my knee surgery, except it would have had to play video of what the doctor found inside my knee! This would make a great screen printing project if you know someone with a broken arm, or if you're adept at one-armed screen printing. Perhaps these accident-explanatory slings will be an option at hospitals in the future. I'd like to see the "shark attack" or "you should see the other guy" editions; those were my two most common fallback stories while on crutches. Via Inspire me, now! (Thanks, Matt!)

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Plush Knee

Instructables user BuildMakeCraftBake has a how-to up on this interesting technique for transferring plant pigments to paper by hammering them. She writes:

The vibrant colors of leaves and flowers are easy to preserve by pounding them to release their natural dyes onto paper. I learned this fun and simple technique from my college roommate, Sarah, but it's been around a lot longer -- I hear that Cherokee women pounded flowers to decorate fabric. With not much more than a hammer and some leaves, you can make beautiful botanical cards or prints and enjoy spring greenery year-round. Who knew that venting your frustrations could have such aesthetically pleasing results?

Fellow type nerds will have fun browsing this online Wood Type Museum from Unicorn Graphics. The cuts and ornaments are especially fun!

Cool Hunting Video got up close and personal with the three men who run Grafica Fidalga, a printing press in São Paulo, Brazil. They use a machine from 1929 using hand-cut wooden letters. The way the machine works is mesmerizing.

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A Visit with Hello Lucky - CRAFT Video Podcast