Balzer Designs

Screen Printing Class Demo Pieces

I had a wonderful group of artists in my live online Screen Printing at Home class. Here are two nice notes I got from students after class: "Thanks for an awesome class Julie! You're an excellent teacher. I came away with a much better understanding of the process and some good ideas for the future." "Thanks for demystifying screen printing -- so much simpler than I thought, and no fancy anything required! I can't wait to start playing!" I thought you might like to see some of the demo pieces I created during class. We printed on paper and fabric.... Read more →

#PrintInktober 2021 is Coming! (And there's a Class)

I hope that you will join me, once again, for #PrintInktober — the annual printmaking adventure I started in 2018, based on the popular #Inktober drawing challenge. This daily challenge is FREE and open to everyone anywhere in the world. Here are the basics: Create and post one print each day in October. Use the hashtag #printinktober when you post. Any stamp/block can be used – foam, silicone, rubber, hand carved, lino, whatever you want! Any ink can be used – screenprinting ink, marker ink, stamping ink, printing ink, etc. You can use the official inktober prompts, if you’d like.... Read more →

Screen Printed Flat Bottom Bag

I took some of my screen printed fabric and made a flat bottom zipper bag with it: The screen printed fabric I used for the pouch has a real grungy feeling to it (as opposed to the screen printed fabric I used as the background in these photos). I think that the grungy feeling makes it feel perfect for storing art supplies. It has funky flair but I'm not at all worried about accidentally ruining it with a splash of paint or an uncapped marker. Originally, I was going to use the fabric you see in the background to make... Read more →

Screen Printed Apron

Over the weekend I cut a few new screens and turned a blank white apron into something super cute and unique: I used three different screens, which all have a similar kind of feeling. By printing in a brick formation, and using the same color, it creates a unified pattern. You can see that I even rotated the screens when I printed them so that each print doesn't feel quite identical to the one next to it. I love how it turned out! If you'd like to learn how to screen print at home with minimal supplies, join me this... Read more →

What is Screenprinting?

Screenprinting is a process that has been used for many many years to put custom images onto t-shirts, paper (posters), tote bags, fabric, and more. This is what a commercial screenprinting machine looks like: Each color of a single image is printed separately. You can see that the t-shirts move around underneath the green, orange, blue, and black screens in the photo above. And by the end, they create a complete image, such as this multi-color poster: source Or this single color tote bag: source Over the years people have developed myriad methods for screenprinting at home. Some methods are... Read more →

#30Grids: Days 27-30

I have finally wrapped up my #30Grids project. I went big on the last three and I'm so glad! It was a challenge and they took about five times as long to complete, but I really feel like I stretched myself and learned some things. So there's one regular sized one (8.5x11) and then three larger ones (19x24). Take a peek: One of the things that Matisse wrote in "Notes of a Painter" (part of the book, Matisse on Art) really resonated with me when I was sizing up my mixed media collages. He wrote: "Composition, the aim of which... Read more →

#30Grids: Days 18-26

I've taken a slight turn in my 30-day abstract mixed media collages experiment! As you know, I constructed all of these pieces using a grid design, and following my "Art Parts" theory of construction. I have also gone all in on pattern-on-pattern-on pattern. But I have started to change the way I construct these and it has made all the difference. Check it out: I really feel excited about these pieces and I'm hoping to size up for my last few entries into this series. These are all 8.5x11, but I think it would be awesome to do some bigger... Read more →

Book Club: Printing by Hand

In case you missed the live version yesterday, here's the replay of Book Club: It's a very pretty book with lots of good information and perfect for beginners. It's a great overview of stamping, stenciling, and screen printing. Think of it as a taster or sampler to whet your appetite for diving deeper. Here are two of the samples I shared during the video: Both of these are fabric. The first one is screen printed and the second is stenciled. And here is some screen printing on top of painted deli paper: I use water-based screen printing inks and I... Read more →

Quick Technique: Same Stencil but Different Results

May's "Year of Gelatin Printing" workshop was all about stenciling (using a stencil and making your own). So, I thought I'd share a quick and easy gelatin printing technique with you today (the video is about one minute long): How you print the stencil when using a gelatin plate (Gelli Plate, Gel Press Plate) makes a big difference. You may love one kind of print and hate the other. Or you may like both of them, but want to use each at different times. This stencil is called "Circle Jumble" and I'm using Liquitex Basics acrylic paint. Here's the comparison:... Read more →

4 Ways for Mixed Media Artists to Use the ScanNCut

As you know, I love my ScanNCut. But, I'm definitely not into using cookie cutter designs. That's part of the reason I love the ScanNCut so much: it allows me to express my own quirky style quickly and easily. There are so many ways to design custom files: Using the built-in editing functions in the stand-alone ScanNCut. Using the built-in scanner to scan my own original drawings or copyright free artwork from books or the internet. Using the free computer-based software, CanvasWorkspace. Using any third-party software that can output an SVG cut file. And the ScanNCut cuts a wide variety... Read more →