Balzer Designs

A Year of Gelatin Printing: Stamps & Texture Plates

There's still plenty of time to join in on the gelatin printing party! "I love how you teach Julie.. simple, thorough, really suits my style of not measuring and winging it! Thanks!" -- Robin "I love this next step in my gelli printing. It’s actually OK to be free and play. I just paint over something that doesn’t strike my fancy instead of being discouraged. Who knew!?! Thanks!!!!!!" -- Jeanne Printing with acrylic paint and stamps and texture plates -- commercial and hand made -- is tons of fun. Making stamps and texture plates is also incredibly fun! And I'm... Read more →

3 New Stencils & 7 Gel Prints

Several months ago, during a monthly member livestream, someone asked me a question about stencil design. As part of my demo, I hand cut this teeny tiny stencil: While cleaning up my studio this week, I found it. And it inspired me to create three new stencil designs. Basically, I made a cleaned-up digital version of my original hand cut stencil and then played with it in Adobe Illustrator. Here are some gelatin prints I made using these stencils: Which one is your favorite? If you'd like to learn all of my gelatin printing secrets, check out my online gelatin... Read more →

"A Year of Gelatin Printing: Found Objects" Begins on MONDAY!

Here are a few of the nice things that students have said about "A Year of Gelatin Printing: Simple Acrylic Paint Monoprints." Testimonials: “It’s incredible to me how little I knew about using my gel plate. I’m grateful for all the simple, yet important tips and directions.” – Corinne “Julie, I’ve really been enjoying this class. I know how to monoprint better than I previously did, and I’m happier with the results!” – Deborah “I am giddy with excitement over this class. I’ve been playing successfully, and I’m loving the results of my prints. Thanks again, Julie….you never disappoint!!” –... Read more →

Simple Acrylic Paint Monoprints

The first of the 13 "A Year of Gelatin Printing" monthly classes begins today! I have been teaching gelatin printing for many years. One thing I've learned while teaching my in-person classes: If a class has a gelatin printing component, you can't do the gelatin printing until late into the day. Because once people start gelatin printing, they can't stop. It's deeply addictive. I've encountered so many students who don't "get" the whole gelatin printing craze. And then they try it....! The thing that I love about gelatin printing is that, much like stamp carving, you can jump right in... Read more →

A Year of Gelatin Printing AND Bookbinding

The first time I tried a gelatin plate, I became an addict. Literally the first time. It was love at first sight! And that was in 2011! I have been gelatin printing for ten years and I want to share every single thing that I have learned about the process of gelatin printing over those ten years, with you, in my new course, "A Year of Gelatin Printing." Although, I might have mis-named the course. It should be "13 Months of Gelatin Printing AND Bookbinding." It's more than a year. In fact, there are THIRTEEN months of lessons. 13 months... Read more →

Mini Mixed Media Collages

Jane Davies shared this super short (1.5 minute) video... ...and it got me inspired. Instead of painting my paper the way that Jane did, I gelatin printed some deli paper with plain colors. I cut out a bunch of shapes and then cut down some white cardstock to 8x8. I followed Jane's rule of 3 pieces of collage per background. Here's what I've got so far: And I'm actually stuck. Some of these I like just as they are. A shocking statement for a maximalist! I think I'm going to sleep on it and decide if they need to be... Read more →

Some New "Composed Gelatin Prints"

During the process of designing some new stencils for The Crafter's Workshop, I created some new "composed gelatin prints" in order to test out the stencils. There are two things to note in that sentence: Composed gelatin prints are prints created with intention, thought, and a design eye. They are meant to be finished art to hang on the wall rather than collage fodder or backgrounds. (You can learn how to make your own in my year long gelatin printing class or you can purchase one of mine in my shop.) I test out all of my stencil designs to... Read more →

Nature Printed Tags

How about some nature printed gift tags for the holidays? Here's a fast forward look at these tags coming together: Members can watch the real time version of this video in the classroom. If you're interested in learning more about nature printing, consider my online course "A Year of Gelatin Printing: Found Objects," which begins March 1, 2021. It's part of my year-long gelatin printing class, "A Year of Gelatin Printing." Thanks for stopping by! Read more →

Holiday Cards 2020: Gelatin Printed Snowflakes

I have always lived in the Northeast. So Christmas and Winter are inextricably linked to snowflakes. Therefore, I couldn't resist creating some cards that feature a flurry of snowflakes! Watch the video for the how-to: Supplies: snowflake masks (make your own or buy them) gelatin plate brayer acrylic paint texture comb (optional) sentiment stamp black ink white cardstock scissors or circle paper punch tape runner paper trimmer blank card foam adhesive I hope you enjoyed this tutorial and will make some gelatin printed snowflake cards! (PS: If you want to make lots and lots of gelatin printed papers, my online... Read more →

Holiday Cards 2020: Hand Stamped Trees

This is such a simple idea and super duper addictive. Once I started making these trees, I just did not want to stop! In essentials, I just stamped a whole bunch of hand carved stamps on top of each other. Watch the video for the how-to: Supplies: white cardstock tissue tape stamping ink hand carved stamps craft foam scrap paper for masking tape runner paper trimmer gold cardstock optional: paper punch and wet adhesive I hope you enjoyed this tutorial. If you're interested in learning more about carving and printing your own stamps, I offer several online classes. I'm currently... Read more →