BY Admin
The most ancient printing technique of Block Printing is a popular way of using a carved piece of wood. Apart from wood, another type of carved block is linoleum which is nowadays available in the market to imprint a design on fabric or paper. This is a type of stamp which when you press on fabric creates a design using the ink or color. Block Printing in Jaipur can be done using wood, linoleum, rubber, or other types of material but wood is the oldest medium of printing designs. The main reason why it is the ancient printmaking method is because of the evidence which is linked with the early 15th century BC. This technique has its roots in India and basically, in Jaipur Rajasthan, the technique is in practice for ages.
The design printing technique follows a systematic procedure from which any single step cannot be skipped. Since the former days, the blocks are carved by hands while keeping in mind for the detailing to keep in the block. Moreover, here’s are the 6 most important steps involved in Hand Block Printing –
Step 1- Sketch the design on the block
It is the foremost important step, where the design is created on a block. These designs are typically influenced by the nature, beliefs, and customs of the local region. Many times the designs are of flowers, animals, leaves, etc. The craftsmanship in this step traces motifs very carefully which is a very important step of this process.
Step 2- Carve delicately the design on the block
In this step, it takes almost weeks or months to carve a design on block depending on the size and detailing of the image. Craftsmen use many different knives or needle to do it patiently.
Step 3- Choice of colour
You will need to have a great sense of colours that will contrast the best and looks really beautiful. The best are the oil-based inks because they give the best coverage and print the design well.
Step 4- Dying a fabric
Then comes the next step of dying fabric for its base colour. In this, the cloth is laid nicely on the table and pinned nicely from all the corners. It again needs full concentration of craftsmen, because a single unwanted movement can make things messy. A fabric is dyed using natural colours only.
Step 5- Printing the design
Once the base colour is set, then further the contrasting colour is rolled out on the block to make a thin and even layer for transferring the design on fabric. Once the inking process is done, the block is then pressed on the fabric. It requires a certain amount of force to print the design well.
Step 6- Drying a fabric
Once the printing process is done, it is kept for drying under the heat of the sun. Next, the fabric is rinsed and dry again.
This completes the entire process of Block Printing Jaipur. A good block printing requires skill and plentiful of practice to create uniformity and clarity on the patterns. To understand and learn more about this art, book your Block Printing Bagru Workshop to experience it well from the experts.