I have grown to love terns, there is a pond nature reserve near my house and it is often the only place i can cope with going when i am up to going out, but only just, as it is only a few minutes away in the car and a short walk to the water’s edge. When i get to the bench, there is always seems to be an arctic tern or two flying over the water, back and forth and they are so fascinating to watch: so elegant and graceful yet sharp and precise. Just to see them helps to take me out of my body, to relax me, help me to breathe more calmly, deeply and feel a sense of peace.
So for my first attempt at making my own stamp, i chose a tern. I will put it into my bird book!
June 18, 2009 at 4:59 pm
Hey, this is beautiful! And very impressive first go at stamp-carving! What kind of size is the image?
June 18, 2009 at 5:23 pm
thanks! It’s only tiny – about 3 inches across (can’t be bothered to go upstairs to measure, but about that!)
June 19, 2009 at 9:57 am
Wonderful!
What material did you use for your stamp carving? I’ve been wondering whether to have a go myself.
June 19, 2009 at 3:36 pm
i used softcut printing blocks and economy cutters. The best image came from using a little ink pad that we already had, though i did buy some proper “relief ink” in a tube but that was a bit more gloopy (though i was not using it in the offical way as i did not buy a roller so more experimentation may be needed!). It is fun but it took longer than expected and made my back & neck really hurt as it is impossible to do it with good posture – but we must suffer for our art i suppose
June 29, 2009 at 2:31 pm
It’s a nice one, and should go into your Bird Project. I would love to see more.
When I did carving at elementary school, one of the materials we used was a rubber surface. It was easy to carve, which was easier than vegetable surface.
June 30, 2009 at 6:27 pm
yes it easier than vegetables i think! I will do more soon…