Print making- "Til Death Do We Part"

There are four different types of ways to print:

1. Intaglio- The design is carved into the plate using little lines. The ink is rubbed into the lines so they have to be deep enough. The extra ink is rubbed off and then the ink that stick in the lines is printed. 
2. Relief- This is the opposite of intaglio. The design you chose to make is the part that you don't etch or carve out. You carve out the negative space out and the ink stays in these low spots. When the design is printed it will be white with the background being black.
3. Lithography- I'm not sure much about this technique you should look up more if you are interested. 
4. Serigraph- This is more like using stencils. Also you should look up more, as I don't know as much.

We did a project where we etched a design into a plastic plate and printed it. It's pretty much the ancient form of a copier but very fun and interesting to try. For mine I used the Intaglio technique. You rub the ink into the scratches and when it gets pressed to the paper it comes off on it. I used a little plastic square plate to make my design in. Most people seem to think that it is easier to do in metal, but I liked the plastic because I could draw my design out before engraving. I taped the plate down to the drawing and traced over it with the stylus. It took awhile and I got frustrated while working around the edges of it. One thing that's very important to keep in mind is that what ever you print is going to be mirrored on the paper. The ink that we used was water soluble block printing ink. Most people also say that they prefer using oil because it doesn't bleed as easy. The paper that you are going the print you're design on must be damp but not too wet or you design will bleed. Pressure transfers the ink from the plastic to the paper. I used an actual press and rolled it through. There are probably more ways for people who can't use a press.

I wanted to make a card like thing for my project. My plate is actually half of what you see on the paper. I printed it one way and then I flipped it and printed it upside down also so it gave the playing card effect.
I drew the two thorny vines on both sides and a black heart with 18 in it. On each side there are 9 petals, 9 thorns, and 9 drips, which was completely unintentional. Add both sides together and that's how I got the 18.