Geli Print Journal

 YES...it sure has been a while since my last post! lol... So I wanted to just jump right back in the saddle and share what I've been doing.
In addition to working on my "Draw Your Awesome Life" class with Joanne Sharpe and the "Documented Life Project" since Janurary of 2014, I have been doing some other projects as well.
 I wanted to share my most recent Geli Print Journal project  first. Some of the prints are just sooooo yummy delish I couldn't resist sharing! 
Being inspired earlier this week by Julie Fei Fan Balzer's journal peek, I too wanted to dedicate a whole journal to this GELI PRINTING process. 
It was also a good excuse to use the new (tho not needed) small dylusions journal I just bought! Now i can justify it's purchase- yay me!

Trying new color combinations was very fun! Some colors I never use...or at least not together.. really surprised me...and may have become some of my new faves! 
Not one for using light pastel colors in my work, this one turned out to be one one of my favorites. Including some folk art metallic acrylic paint in champagne, sterling silver,Inca Gold or Solid Bronze really made some of these prints POP! 
(see more photos at the end of this post) 

 Debating whether or not to purchase the new small 3x5 geli plates from Geli Arts, I thought I would conduct a test first. I had found  a "Clear Carve" linoleum carving plate (only $5.99 and found on the bottom left)  that I thought would do the job.....and also a silicone pan liner I never use (in my stash for years-the yellow plate found in the bottom right....and my 8x10 geli plate in the top left corner) . I cut down the silicone liner to equal that of the clear carve plate  of 5x7 to start. 

In addition, I set up my work space in 2 stations: One is the "inking" area where you see the plates and an old telephone 
book to clean my brayer. (This makes very cool book text prints at the same time.)

Station Two: is where I set out the paper and stencils I will be using. I included a stack of printer paper, a stack of pre cut tracing paper, and my small dylusions journal. My stencils range in size though the ones in the photo are 6x6. I also included home made stamps I made from cut foam/ pre made shapes glued to cardboard. I also added small tags to be printed on that are not photographed here.



Ok, back to the "Geli Print Journal" ...soooooooo, after setting up my stations I was ready to get busy.

 I selected 3 colors: a light pastel green (Martha Stewart), a teal (Craft Smart) and champagne ( metallic Folk Art) ...all cheap acrylic paints. 

FYI: When I first used my Geli plate, I did NOT read the directions and sat it on the comic strip section of the newspaper....that is why you see the images on my plate. This does NOT come off- just sayin'! lol. Does not interfere with the quality of printing..but it makes your plate look like poo! lol.

Once I selected my colors, I used my brayer to roll out the paint. Go very lightly with the brayer....and don't OVER ROLL it, or you will get a muddy mess. 

Once the paint has been rolled onto your plate, use the telephone book (or old book) to roll the left over paint from the brayer onto it. It will provide lots of yummy painted book text you can use in other projects. 
(See photos at the end of post).

Test results: I have found during my experiment/test, that the clear carve plate and the silicone plates will do in a pinch. However, the brayer did not roll so easily on them and sometimes skidded. The stencil prints did not show up as well either. I think the soft surface of the geli plate allows the stencil to sink a bit, making for a much better print. If you just want a base coat of rolled colors to do back grounds, then you most certainly can get by using the other two. 
But if you want yummy stencil prints, then you are better off investing in the GELI PLATE by GELI ARTS. I will, at some point in the near future, purchase the new 3x5 plate! 

So once the paint has been brayered, I laid a 12x2 stencil on top of the plate, then laid a piece of printer paper over top of that and rubbed with flat hands. When you lift the paper off of the plate, this is called "pulling a print".

 This first print will allow the paint to come thru the holes in the circles for a print.

Once you have made a print this way, you have removed some of the paint from inside the circles. The 2nd print or "ghost print" is created by placing your paper (my journal in this case) on top of the remaining ink on the plate. Using flat hands and lots of pressure, press down without moving the paper or journal too much. Move hands in a circular motion while being sure to get all areas for a good print. The photo to the left is what printed in my journal. 
Note: when printing in a journal, you must keep in mind applying more pressure to the area where the spine is located. It not, as you will see in other photos, you will have some blank empty areas. Though not a big deal for me, I plan to cover them up with some collaged items and paint and doodles in the future. These prints wills serve as just a background to get started 

 

The print on the right (my 3rd print) was pulled after my journal print....and it pulled up all the paint on the plate. It gives it a very grungy effect which is also very cool. Keep in mind these pints are not intended to stand alone or be the finished piece. Sometimes you do get lucky and create some amazing pieces that could do that. 

 Because you can pull at least 3 prints every  time you paint your plate, be sure to have extra papers on hand. I used copy paper for the photos on the left. 

Below you will see tags on the top left, Kraft paper on the top right, and Tracing paper on the bottom. Any types of paper will do. Experiment with what you have in your stash already. Use what you have!!!!!  Try lots of different things: wall paper books, old books, scrapbooking paper, your kid's colored construction paper, etc. 

All the photos so far, are in addition to what I printed in my journal. You don't want to waste any of the delicious yummy paint, so be prepared with lots of papers. I just put all my prints of the floor to dry. Some people have used clothes lines and drying racks.

                           Below are prints I made on tags...they are double sided.

           These prints were done on tracing paper (works just as well as deli paper).

 Above pic are pages I made from wiping off my brayer into an old telephone book. They are yummy colored book text now that will definitely be used in future projects.
Below is what I call a "clean up" print. If you allow the paint to dry for a bit on your plate, then brayer another layer of color on top.....you will pull up all the paint on the plate and get some really cool prints.

I'm working on creating a video flip thru of my geli plate journal....but until that happens, please enjoy the following pics. 

 These are only about half of the prints in my new journal. I was determined to do it all in one day....heavy sigh....be prepared for you butt to go numb if you work sitting down. Also if you are impatient like I am, use a heating tool....and try to give some xtra time....see above what happens when you don't...pages stuck together and had to be pulled apart. UGH! 

And FINALLY......
Many people want to know how to store stencils or our plates. So I wanted to include my 12x12 scrapbook storage boxes. I LOOOOVE these things.  I keep my 6x6 stencils in a baggie, and my 12x12 or 9x12 stencils just free and placed on top of my geli plate that stays in the package to prevent damage to the soft gel surface. All of this is stored together in the 12x12 box. I don't think I have ever used my geli plate without my stencils, so this works for me.

Being that my "Studio" is also a guest room and the futon is needed for extra sleeping, I store those 12x12 tubs under the futon for easy access and easy storage. It may not be the prettiest sight, but again, it works for me. 
This space is used more for my studio than a guest room, so I arranged it to fit those needs. 

           Well I hope this inspires you to start your own Geli Print Journal too! Enjoy!