What is Ecoprinting?

Every artist has a slightly different method. Mine is very intuitive and comes from the inspiration and teaching of Nicola Brown of Ireland. It also comes from many "mistakes" and disappointments.

I use a brew. It changes over time and includes, water, vinegar, rust, a piece of aluminum, onion skins, and sometimes natural dye materials like goldenrod or osage orange. .

I wrap textiles on rods of wood, iron and copper. All varieties change the results.

Basically it's witchcraft.

I use mostly leaves from the Creston Valley and mountains where I live. Rose, dogwood, fireweed, smokebush, oak, sumac and sometimes eucalyptus from the flower shop. The onion skins are hoarded from cooking and also collected for me by my lovely friend at Cartwheel Farm here in the valley.

The textiles such as silk, wool, cotton, linen and handmade felt are pre-treated in vinegar water or rust water then laid out on a table. The leaves and onion skins are laid out sometimes in a pattern, sometimes randomly.

Then it's folded or rolled onto a pipe. Tied tight with string and they go into the brew for a minimum of two hours. Then the big reveal!

Leaves are picked off while trying to pay attention to how they printed. I forget to wear gloves and my hands look like this!

Hung up to oxidize further then washed and ironed.

No two are alike. It's impossible to predict and the leaves change from year to year.

I hope you enjoy your purchase or if you took a class- your creation!