Sun Printing/ Cyanotype with leaves and flowers




I have been having great fun this week experimenting with different botanical themed art forms. I've been flower pressing, painting with flowers and leaves themselves and today i have been sun printing.



Stage 1: In a dark room (a room with plenty of shade) i took the paper out from its UV proof bag and lay it onto a board. I arranged pressed leaves and fake flowers onto the paper and then took the board to a sunny room (my studio). I waited for 3-4 minutes until i could see the colour drain from the paper, it became pale blue rather than dark blue.


Stage 2: I took the leaves and flowers away to reveal the designs. Though beautiful as they are just like this the next stage is to set them.


Stage 3: To set the designs i plunged the paper into water for a few moments and then took out and put to one side to dry. Once dry the design is then set.


You will see at the top how the ones above turned out but here are some pieces i did previously. As you can see i've learnt that timing is essential when it comes to sun pritning. It is important not to over expose your paper.

Watch my video on sun printing here

Purchase sun printing paper here

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