CNC router – block printing blocks – Ottoman Crescent

Doing the detailed pass on the CNC router for the Ottoman crescent design

If you’ve been following my blog for a few months at least, you’ll know that I’ve been spending a good deal of time exploring the different tools and machines that the Maker Space has available. In early February I finished my first project – a set of three block printing blocks (based off a 12th century design) and liked the process so much, as it was finishing… I was already designing a few more potential blocks – including this one, based off an Ottoman Empire Crescent.

I started out at the Tie Dye Travels Etsy store (aka Cat Man Do Designs woodcuts by Grav Weldon) to look for design inspiration. While I didn’t copy this design exactly, I was inspired by a crescent shown here as a solo block, as well as here as a “Adorned Crescent Triplet with Cintamani” (the three little dots).

Grav is using a laser cutter now for his wood blocks, and is able to get a lot more detail than I was able to get with the CNC router (at least in a reasonable time frame… I could have had a bit more detail if I had done the whole thing with a MUCH smaller bit… but that would have taken 3x the amount of time!)

CNC router – block printing blocks – Ottoman Carnation

CNC cut Ottoman Carnation

If you’ve been following my blog for a few months at least, you’ll know that I’ve been spending a good deal of time exploring the different tools and machines that the Maker Space has available. In early February I finished my first project – a set of three block printing blocks (based off a 12th century design) and liked the process so much, as it was finishing… I was already designing a few more potential blocks – including this one, based off an Ottoman Empire Carnation.

I started out at the Tie Dye Travels Etsy store (aka Cat Man Do Designs woodcuts by Grav Weldon) to look for design inspiration. They have a carnation like this one, listed as a 15/16th century Ottoman design.  I have a number of their blocks, and they’re awesome, but I really thought this would make a great design to try to make myself – so it’s similar… but not quite the same.

Using a CNC router for block-printing blocks

… and done! At least the CNC router part. Now to take this home!

If you’ve been following my blog for a few months at least, you’ll know that I’ve been spending a good deal of time exploring the different tools and machines that the Maker Space has available. One of the tools I haven’t had the chance to try (until now!) was the CNC router.

I originally didn’t really know what to use it FOR… but then decided it would be cool to try to make my own blocks for block printing using this machine. I had already found an image online of a 12th century brocade textile with a pattern of a lion that I really liked, that I thought would work well for a block, so decided to start with that.

Block printing workshop during Alberta Culture Days

Working on some potato block printing at Alberta Culture Days

In an earlier post I mentioned taking a silk screening workshop at the Natalie Gerber Studio for Alberta Culture Days.

Along with that workshop, I also took a block printing class with textile designer Charis Birchall. I wasn’t sure what kind of medium we’d be working with when I signed up for the class… but when I got there it became clear – there was a bag of potatoes on the table!

Pretty printed prancing period Persian ponies

Painting in some of the details on the silk

For an A&S night (a SCA evening where we practice Arts & Sciences) one of the local artisans taught  a workshop on block-printing, and let me borrow two of her fabulous wooden blocks – winged horses based of an extant Persian fabric. While the original is woven, the blocks make great look-similar-from-a-distance printed fabric!

(Check out her page “Adventures in Block Printing” on Facebook here, and her original inspiration for this block here.)