Printing with Coral Bell Leaves



Coral Belle Leaf after printing




My backyard garden is in shade and light sun.  Most of the perennials are done blooming by the end of June.  I use potted annuals in the courtyard to add splashes of color.  Some of my favorite plants are the coral bells.  I have the old fashioned red variety as well as some with more modest flowers and very fancy foliage. I chose to cut up some of the fabric I had used as tablecloths on two small tables for the wedding a week  ago.  The fabric was bright orange, a nice medium tight weave with a good depth of color.  I printed leaves and painted four pieces about 20x20 inches.  I choose a large coral bell leaf to make the prints.  It was a good size, sturdy and well veined with an interesting shape and edge.  It also had a strong stem to hold while positioning and removing the leaf from the fabric.  I used Lumiere and Neopaque paint by Jacquard.  It was the right consistency for printmaking.  As you can see from the picture, I tried several colors and played with the dampness of the cloth.  I also added Dye-na-flow in areas that I had dampened for a more varied background. This was a good experiment. The orange on orange piece can be embellished for more punch.  The burgundy print can be paired up with a nice medium dark fabric.  My mom likes the fabric with the green and blue paint and I like the more subtle prints that I sprayed with water so the dye and prints bled.  The line mark making I did in brown on this same piece also bled until it was a color puddle and no longer a line.  I like that too.



Liberal use of water spray




four samples created




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