I met the lovely Lizzie Hillier, co-founder with husband Leo of Woven Oak, at Home London at the beginning of this year. I love a bit of print, so when she told me all their designs are hand drawn in Sussex and then hand carved into wood or lino, I had to find out more. I love the imperfections you get in handprinted products and this is something Woven Oak really celebrates.
Lizzie says, “We are inspired by painters like Dufy and a wide range of textile designs from the Arts and Crafts movement and onwards. ‘Bloom’ [above] is about balancing playful cutting and sticking with refined gouache painting. We cut the shapes out loosely and paint all the individual elements. Then playful arrangements are explored before deciding on the final composition.”
“Once we’ve settled on the final placement of shapes they are glued into place, ensuring there is a good balance between larger and small motifs. The repeat is then worked out so the design flows across the fabric.”
“We transfer the design onto the Lino and hand carve it into the surface using a variety of sharp-ended cutters. Warming up the lino makes it softer and much easier to cut. This part of the process takes a while but it’s repetitive hands-on nature is very relaxing.”
“I think the cut Lino is beautiful in itself.”
“The highlight of the process for me is inking up the cut Lino in anticipation of what the first print will be like.”
“We lay a piece of paper over the inked up Lino – rubbing on the back of the paper with an old kitchen spoon adds enough pressure to transfer the design. Then the paper is peeled away to reveal the print. A bit like making pancakes the first print isn’t always perfect, so repeating the process a few times ensures a good clear print.”
“Oil based inks take a while to dry so rigging up a string line across the studio is must. Once they’re dry, we scan them and transfer them into PhotoShop. The most successful print is digitally repeated and printed onto lengths of fabric. The Lino part of the process gives the fabrics a hand-printed quality.”
“Then our fabric is made up into lampshades, cushions and fabric for upholstery.”
Further reading for the especially geeky:
- here’s one I made earlier :: wood tailoring
- here’s one I made earlier :: shed test
- here’s one I made earlier :: jailmake snowflake
- here’s one I made earlier :: janet stahelin edmondson
