Lining things up

Spacing prints can be tricky.

One of the methods I use is to glue the cut lino block to a slightly larger board, and trim that evenly all the way round leaving a narrow edge. Then, working from the top left corner of the fabric, I print a row downwards along the fabric edge, lining up the top edge of the block against the bottom edge of the previous print. Going back to the top of the fabric, I print a second row, using the first as a guide.


Covering a large piece of cloth with individual prints takes time, though. Once I know I like a print, I'll often make up a bigger block, to print a few prints at a time.


Having worked out the spacing with the small block, you can use it to print a basic unit of the repeat directly onto the lino, and cut out the new blocks. (Versafine or similar stamp pad ink works well for this.) You could also print the repeat onto paper, and trace it onto the lino. This being a very simple repeat, the basic unit is cross-shaped. I printed 4 flowers onto paper in this shape, and then printed the flowers that would surround it. The resulting block is the 4 flowers, plus the space between them and the surrounding ones.

Usually when I cut blocks I trim away as much of the excess as possible, to avoid smears of ink around the prints. But with these large blocks, the excess is important: it's how you measure the space between prints.


This print is printed diagonally down from the top left corner; the top edges are the most important for lining up here. (The black dot is so that I know the block is the right way round; it's worrying how often I'll ink a block, turn it over, and then not know which way is up.)

For the Vintage Pattern Ladies, I worked out the repeat on paper as well, cut the blocks individually, and glued them to a large block.


The top and left edges line up with previous prints. Marking the back of the block helps, too. The line across the top shows where the printing edge of the block is.


This mark shows where the hand of the figure will print.


Mark the edge of the block, and run the lines round the back.


The rose print is a single block. I space the vertical rows by lining up the edge of the block with the edge of the previous print.


Because the next vertical row starts stepped slightly down from the previous one, I've marked the back of the block, not to show where it will print, but to show the points where it should line up with the prints.


These aren't the most precise methods you could use; other ways are to mark the fabric with disappearing ink, or to lay rulers across it as a guide. But if you're impatient to print without measuring the fabric, or likely to print on lots of odd sizes, these methods work pretty well. Measure when you cut the block, and you never have to measure again!