Tutorial Tuesday: Make Your Own Woodcut

Our 1930s Woodcuts of Travel clip art collection, now available on DoverPictura, is quickly becoming one of my new favorites. I love the texture of these striking images- they have such an organic feel. Curious about the art of woodcutting and woodblock printing, I began searching for a list of supplies (which I'll share below) and stumbled across this great little video depicting the whole process!

   

Looks fun, doesn't it? You can draw you own design or transfer your favorite image for DoverPictura and carve away!

 

Here's a basic list of the supplies you'll need to get started:

• Small piece of wood - around 2-3" square will work nicely
• Gravers and chisels for cutting - these can be found in the woodworking aisle of most craft stores
• Printers ink - water or oil based, depending on your personal preference
• Glass for spreading the ink
• Roller for rolling the ink
• Paper- you may choose to practice on scraps, but be sure to have some nice thick paper on hand for the final prints.

While this tutorial shows the final print being made with a book press, you can try using any heavy object, or you can place the paper on top of the wood block and rub the print onto the paper!