Hummingbirds are Back

 It's the last day in May, and I've got a new print to show! I'm happy to say the hummingbirds are back, both in the yard, and as a block print.

For the print I only used 3 colors of the Akua inks--Magenta Red, Naples Yellow, and Phthalo  Blue. These colors are set of primary colors, which can be mixed together to make variety of other colors. I wanted to stay away from using black or white ink for this print, and to experiment with the three I chose.  

I first carved out the white areas on the bird's breast, and printed the background color. This is an edition of 18, using a 4" x 4" Soft-Kut block, that I order from Blick. I then carved away the background color and printed the green. Then I carved out the green, an added the orange layer. I made a little stencil for the "Ruby Throated" area, and just rolled on the red through the stencil, so the color would only be there. For the darkest color, I mixed all three colors together.

Completed, the block can also be printed with one color, and hand-colored with watercolors!

A finished print, matted in an 8" x 8" white mat, backed by foam core, in a plastic sleeve, all ready to go in my Etsy shop ( JGTentas).

Have a Happy June!

A Lot More Rocks!

 It's finally the first day of Spring! There is hope after what has been a long, cold, snowy winter! There is still a lot of snow in my yard, due to a series of snowstorms that slammed us in February. Here is what it looked like around February 22nd.

A huge flock of goldfinches have been hanging around the bird feeders recently. Unfortunately, we need to take the feeders down, as bears will be starting to come around.

I finished another "seacoast" block print this week. The image was inspired by some photos I took back in October at Jenness Beach in Rye, NH.

Gulls on Rocks, Rye NH

The Soft-Kut block in the final stages of carving.

Part of the edition of 14 laid out on the floor

I'm letting the layers of ink dry thoroughly before I will put the new print in my Etsy shop.

The print below, "Boar's Head, N.Hampton, NH" is almost ready as well. 

Looking forward to walking the beaches again! Happy Spring!!

Prints and the New Year

 2026! Happy New Year!

It's been awhile since I posted here, and updated the new projects that I've been working on.

As always the holidays were busy, and I started early to get my Christmas cards designed and completed.  My family and friends anticipate a new design each year, and some collect the snowmen cards I frequently create. This year I included a Blue Jay, and stayed with the all blue color scheme.

A variation colored with Prismacolor pencils.

The final stage of the printing plate can be used again to print the black outlines. Then when the ink has dried, I can add watercolor or colored pencils as a variation of the original.

I've also been working on another project, inspired by our vacation last summer to North Beach, NH. The houses in the photo are on Boar's Head, a little neighborhood sticking out into the ocean. On the other side of Boar's Head is Hampton Beach.

The image below is the Soft-Kut block that I started with.

The first color was a light gray layer of Akua ink, printed 16 times by hand, on Rive's BFK acid-free paper. You can see the drawing underneath, because I used a Sharpie marker to outline the pencil drawing on the block. The Sharpie keeps the drawing clear after repeated color layers and cleanings.

The next layer of ink was the blue sky.

Here are the final stages of the printing plate (below)

Below are the last two stages of the print.  

I'm still printing the final layer on the remaining prints in this edition of 16. Because of the multiple layers of ink, they will be drying on the rack for a while!

Have a happy, healthy new year! Best wishes!

Jane