Getting a print onto
wood: 7 methods

A woodcut starts with a clean design on your block. You don't have to spend hours redrawing it in pencil: you can transfer your digital drawing or photo. If you own an inkjet printer, though, not every method works equally well. Inkjet ink is water-based, so chemicals such as acetone do nothing for you here. Below are seven methods, from quick and clean to permanent, each with a step-by-step plan.

Step 0: make a carving guide, not a photo print

A woodcut has only two states: wood that stays and takes ink, and wood you cut away. A photo with greys gives you a vague guide. What you need is a hard black-and-white design at the exact size of your block. You can make that in a few minutes with PrintFilmReady:

1. Open the tool and load your artwork. Everything happens in your browser and nothing is uploaded.
2. Set the number of inks to the number of blocks. For one block, that is one.
3. Switch the halftone raster off. Each layer then becomes a solid black-and-white shape with no dots. Black is where the ink goes, white is what you cut away.
4. Enter the width of your block (mm or inches) and print at 100%.
5. Decide on mirroring with the “Mirror artwork (emulsion down)” checkbox, see below.
6. Check the MIRRORED label in the margin of your print. Don't trust your memory at the bench.

The tool decides greys at the halfway point: anything at or above 50% becomes black, the rest becomes white. A soft gradient therefore turns into a hard-edged shape, which is what a carving guide wants. If tone matters, use more layers. There is more on this in the guide to lino and block printing layers.

Mirroring: count how often the paper flips

A block prints mirrored. What you put on the block is therefore the mirror image of your print. So count how many times the paper flips between the printer and the block.

The tool mirrors by default, because screen printing films need it. For relief printing you choose deliberately. Not sure? Put some text in your design. If it reads backwards on the block, it is right.

Method 1: the baking paper method (fast and clean)

You print onto a slick surface the ink can't soak into. The ink stays wet, so you press it onto the wood like a stamp. You need baking paper, a sheet of plain A4 paper, glue stick or masking tape, and a bank card.

1. Make your carving guide in the tool (mirror checkbox off).
2. Cut the baking paper to A4 and stick it to the plain paper. The edge that enters the printer first must be tight and flat.
3. Print on the smooth side of the baking paper.
4. Don't touch the print: the ink stays wet and liquid.
5. Lay the baking paper ink-side down on clean, sanded wood. Don't slide it, or it will smear.
6. Rub the edge of the bank card over the back to press the ink into the wood.
7. Peel the baking paper away carefully.

Advantage: no glue residue, so your gouges stay clean. Drawback: the ink is fragile. Go over your lines in pencil before you start cutting.

Method 2: PVA glue or wood glue (a permanent guide)

Worried the design will rub away under your hands while you cut? This is the sturdier variant. You need plain printer paper, white PVA glue or clear wood glue (thinned with a drop of water), a sponge or brush, and a plant spray.

1. Make your carving guide in the tool (mirror checkbox off) and print on plain paper.
2. Spread a thin, even layer of glue on the wood.
3. Lay the print ink-side down in the wet glue.
4. Smooth air bubbles and excess glue out to the edges.
5. Leave it to dry for at least a few hours.
6. Wet the paper and rub it off in little rolls with your fingers. The ink stays trapped in the glue layer.

Watch out: inkjet ink is water-soluble and can bleed when you wet it. Test on offcuts first. A laser print works better with this method. A thin film of glue also stays on your block. Sand it lightly if it gets in the way of your ink or gouges.

Method 3: carbon or graphite paper (the classic)

No fuss and no wet ink. The print is crisp because the tool produces hard black-and-white. You need graphite transfer paper (Saral, for example), masking tape, and a sharp pencil or ballpoint.

1. Make your carving guide in the tool (mirror checkbox on) and print on plain paper.
2. Sand the block smooth and dust it off.
3. Lay the graphite paper on the wood, coloured side down.
4. Lay the print on top and tape one edge. That makes a hinge, so you can lift it without it shifting.
5. Trace every line with even pressure. Don't lean your hand on the print.
6. Lift a corner to check that everything has come through.
7. Go over the lines in pencil and hatch the areas you will cut away. That way you never cut the wrong side.

Advantage: fine, precise lines on any wood. Drawback: graphite smudges, so keep your hands off your lines.

Method 4: pencil rubbing (no special paper)

Make your own graphite paper with what you already have: a soft pencil (6B or softer), masking tape and a hard pen.

1. Make your carving guide in the tool (mirror checkbox on) and print it.
2. Cover the back of the print completely with a thick, even layer of pencil.
3. Lay the print pencil-side down on the block and tape it.
4. Trace the lines from the front with a hard pen.
5. Lift a corner, check, and fix anything missing.
6. Go over it in pencil.

Method 5: sticker paper or label sheets

The design sits firmly in place from the start, and you can even cut through the paper. You need A4 inkjet sticker paper (preferably removable), a craft knife, a bank card, and optionally white spirit.

1. Make your carving guide in the tool (mirror checkbox on) and print on the sticker sheet.
2. Trim to the size of your block, leaving a small margin.
3. Make sure the block is clean, dust-free and dry.
4. Stick one side down first and smooth the rest bubble-free with a bank card.
5. First cut only around the shapes that are white (to be cut away). Peel those pieces of sticker off and carve the wood out.
6. Peel the rest of the sticker off last.
7. If adhesive is left behind, wipe it off with a little white spirit. Otherwise your gouges and roller get sticky.

Method 6: laser print or photocopy (the clever detour)

Inkjet is awkward, toner isn't. You can have the file copied at a copy shop. You need a laser print or photocopy on plain paper, acetone, a cotton pad, the back of a spoon or a bank card, and gloves.

1. Make your carving guide in the tool (mirror checkbox off). Print on a laser printer, or take the downloaded file to a copy shop and ask for a black-and-white print at 100%.
2. Tape the print toner-side down on the wood, fixed along one edge.
3. Work by an open window or outdoors, wearing gloves. Acetone is flammable.
4. Dab the back with a cotton pad soaked in acetone, one patch at a time. The paper turns translucent.
5. Straight away, rub firmly over the same patch with a spoon back or card.
6. Lift a corner to check, then let it dry.

Test on an offcut first: copiers and printers behave differently. Acetone also attacks varnish and many plastics.

Method 7: projector or grid (for large blocks)

You need a projector (or a grid), a pencil and a tape measure.

1. Make your carving guide in the tool (mirror checkbox on) at the width of your block.
2. Set the projector square to the block. If it is tilted, the image distorts.
3. Project the file and measure that its width matches your block.
4. Trace the edges of the shapes in pencil, one section at a time.
5. Check everything without the projection and correct as needed.

Without a projector you can use a grid: draw a grid over your design and an equally fine one on the block, and copy square by square.

Tips for a good result

• Wood: choose smooth, pale wood without a heavy grain, such as poplar plywood, cherry or pear. MDF cuts easily but is dusty and not good for fine detail.
• Sand it smooth for a crisp transfer.
• What stays, prints: in relief printing, the parts you leave standing take the ink.
• Test on offcuts first. Every printer, ink and wood behaves differently.
• Go over it in pencil. A baking-paper print fades quickly.
• More than one colour? Set the number of inks in the tool to the number of blocks and print each layer separately. The registration marks in the margin help you line the blocks up. Print light to dark and let colours overlap slightly. The tool does not spread or choke shapes itself, so build that overlap into your artwork.

Which method suits you?

Start with carbon paper or baking paper. That tells you quickly whether your design works.

Frequently asked questions

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