About

Cost: $ $ $ $ $

Difficulty: • • • • •

Time: 1h00

Smart Plate Instructions
Smart Plates: A surface on which to draw and print from, similar to a lithographic stone.

The surface is smooth and transparent which makes it easy to trace.
An image can be made on the computer and then printed on the smart plate using a laser printer.
Smart Plates can be purchased at Takach Press website. Packages run close to $20-50 depending on size and how many.

Posted by Anjeanette Artist from Phoenix, Arizona, United States • Published 23rd July 2015 • See Anjeanette Artist's 6 projects »

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Alissa B. favorited Smart Plate Printing 30 Jul 21:51
Chudames favorited Smart Plate Printing 27 Jul 08:55
Anjeanette Illustration published their project Smart Plate Printing 23 Jul 06:00

Step 1
How to Process Smart Plates

Pick up your smart plate by the edges, touching just the very tips of the plate so no grease transfers from your fingertips.
Step 2
Draw any image using a Sharpie marker, or Bic Atlantis Pens. Leave a half inch margin of blank plate space around your drawing.
Step 3
Let your drawing sit on your plate for 15-20 minutes.
Step 4
Gather a sponge, a bucket for water and a glass surface. * The glass can be recycled from an old piece of glass from a picture frame!
Step 5
Fill up the bucket with 1 quart of water.
Step 6
Put 1 ounce of gum arabic in the bucket.
Step 7
Mix this together well.
Step 8
Get Gamblin Lithographic Shop Mix Black Ink, No. 2244. This ink works very well for the process and shouldn’t require any additive for printing. **Replacements and additives are listed below.
Step 9
Use your ink knife and lay out a few strips of ink.
Step 10
Take your brayer and make sure your brayer is covered evenly with ink. It should make a soft velcro sound.
Step 11
Take your sponge and put a little water on the glass surface.
Step 12
Put your plate, drawing face up, on the glass surface so that it sticks.
Step 13
Immediately sponge the top of your plate, keep it wet the whole time you print. It needs to be kept wet, but not drowned in water.
Step 14
Count 4 times rolling ink on your brayer, and 4 times inking your plate. Repeat this until you can tell your image is filling in evenly with ink.
Step 15
Take a blank piece of paper and set it aside. Turn over your plate on top of the paper so that you can see through your plate.
Step 16
Gently sponge the back of your plate with water. Take your bonefolder and gently rub the back until you’ve covered the whole drawing area.
Step 17
Turn over your plate back over onto the wetted area and reveal your image!
Step 18
Repeat all these steps until you’ve completed your edition!

Websites for stuff:

www.takachpress.com-- for sponges, smart plates and ink
www.hollanders.com-- for papers, bonefolder and other bookmaking supplies

Any other supplies you can find cheap at places like Hobby Lobby if you’re looking to experiment with less expensive materials. :)