Bubbled Brayer Backgrounds

Block printing ink + brayer + bubble wrap = dots!

1. Squeeze some water-soluble block printing ink into a plastic container. This Speedball block printing inks are brilliant. We use these inks for block printing and mono-printing; it's opaque, consistent, vivid and cleans up easily. Perfect for this bubble wrap printing project.
2. Ink a brayer. I used a 2" Speedball soft rubber brayer; it rolls effortlessly and cleans up with water.
3. Roll a stripe of ink onto bubble wrap.
4. Turn bubble wrap over onto a piece of paper. I used watercolor paper. Any paper will work.
5. Roll a dry brayer on the back of the bubble wrap gently to get the ink dots to the paper.
6. How fun is that?
7. Repeat with different colors. The ink dries so quickly that you can reuse the bubble wrap color over color.
8. Cut the bubble wrap into different shapes, and use them as stamps. I cut it into circles. In Bubble Wrap Stamps, I stamped the cover of a moleskine journal with other shapes. In Decorate Your Calendar With Bubble Wrap, the dots create a background pattern.
9. Try this: in an altered book * on a loose art journal page * in a journal *in your moleskine * as an art journal background *
10. Or cut into * artist trading cards * note cards * bookmarks * gift tags *

More, more, more...

• Join the monthly Creative Experiments Challenge to add creativity to your life!
• The Official Guide to Daisy Yellow Creative Prompts
• A guide to get started creating art journal pages at Art Journaling 101
• Kick-Start Your Art Journaling, a series of journaling prompts
• Get "You" Into Your Art Journals
• Trick Your Inner Perfectionist and Become an Art Journalist
• Make FIMO Fabric Stamps
• Bubble wrap art journal backgrounds at Minks & Sunflower Kaleidoscope
• Black gesso backgrounds w/neocolors at Altered Book: Black.Magenta

A few days after this was originally posted, at Punkt.Punkt.Komma.Strich (I don't speak German but photographs speak a thousand words) this project was created in the form of a heart. I was touched to see this project come to life, between mother and daughter in Germany. That's what it's all about.

Comments

[imelda]

I always like to see your journal proces. I joined your groep but forget to take pictures all the time. This seemes another playful way to make backgrounds. Thanks for sharing.

[Rachel]

This looks like SO much fun! I can't wait to dive into this project. I'll be linking.

[E-J]

The painted bubble wrap is a work of art in itself!

I love the concept of your "While waiting" group ... I keep imagining I never find myself waiting for anything, but I've just realised that's not entirely true. I could work on something while waiting for dinner to cook ... :)

[doro]

i love this! the making, the results...
my daughter had a lot of fun and i'm with her.

i set a link to your blog in my latest posting.

thanks.

doro.

[kristen]

love this!!! can you tell me where to find this ink?

[gypsy]

Here's a link to Dick Blick for Speedball Water-Based Block Printing Inks.

[SnippetyGibbet]

This is such a wonderful idea. I'm going to do it with my preschool class.

[jodie]

Great idea! I had one piece of bubble wrap so I cut it into fourths, gave each of my girls a pie plate, laid the bubble wrap in there, had them paint on pink+red acrylic paint and then press envelopes on top! It worked great for a 2 and 3 year old! And now we have cute Valentine envelopes to mail our cards!

Great idea and I'm linking you on my blog this week when I share my toddler version of this awesome idea! thanks!

[lenny]

are you selling the heart image? i really love it!
image second from the bottom???

[SnippetyGibbet]

I linked to this post on my blog. Come see my preschoolers singing and printing in a video there. http://snippetygibbet.blogspot.com/2009/02/printin-and-singin.html jan