Fabric Block Printing Class
With Virginia Diaz Saiki
Please bring a simple, high-contrast 4" x 6" (or smaller) image to work from.
Turn plain fabric into a custom-printed textile in this hands-on printmaking workshop. You’ll learn the full block printing process, from developing your design to carving your blocks, and finally taking home a two-color print and custom print block. We will guide you through how to translate your image onto two separate blocks, carve with confidence, and align (register) your design so each layer prints cleanly on fabric. Using simple, non-toxic materials, you’ll gain skills you can easily repeat and continue at home - no press required. Join this supportive beginner-friendly workshop, discover a new creative art, and connect with a community of fellow makers!
What You’ll Make & Take Home:
You'll make a custom, two-color block print pattern on one yard of fabric. This is perfect for future sewing projects like pillows, tote bags, bandanas or clothing. You are also welcome to bring your own pre-washed, natural fiber fabric (cotton, linen, canvas) to print on.
You'll take home your custom carved linoleum block so you can make prints on cards, fabric, notebooks, and more.
Skills & Concepts You’ll Learn:
Designing a two-color print from a photo or drawing
Transferring an image to linoleum blocks
Safe and effective carving techniques using linocut tools
Properly inking a block for even coverage
Hand-printing on fabric without a press
Aligning (registering) two blocks for a multi-color print
Equipment & Tools You’ll Learn:
Linocut carving tools, linoleum blocks, brayers (ink rollers), barens (for hand-printing), and bench hooks.
Class Outline:
Design & Prep: Introduction to linocut, translating your image into a two-color design, and transferring it to the blocks.
First Layer: Carving the first linoleum block, mixing ink, and printing the first color onto your fabric.
Second Layer: While the first layer dries, you'll carve the second block and learn how to register it perfectly to print the second color.
Wrap-Up: Review, tips for heat-setting ink at home, resource sharing, and Q&A.
Other Class Details:
Prerequisites: None. No Experience Required.
Class Capacity: 7 maximum, 3 minimum
Materials Provided?: Bring a 4 x 6" image of what you'd like to print.
Age Limit: 13+. Guardian required if under 18 (info)
Partner Ticket Available?: Yes
Clothing/Equipment Requirements?: Be prepared to get a little dirty.
About the Teacher
Virginia Diaz is a Peruvian interdisciplinary artist and trained printmaker based in Denver, where she has lived since 2005. She moved to the United States in the early 2000s to study Visual Arts, discovering printmaking during her undergraduate years. Through print, she continues to investigate the interplay between craft and expression, repetition and variation, cultivating an ongoing relationship with the discipline and its evolving forms. She is an experienced teacher of all printmaking techniques and loves spreading the ink.
What People Say about Virginia's Classes…
“It was very fun actually making the block prints, and Virginia was a great teacher—very clear and patient.”
“How amazing everyone’s designs turned out! The technique and direction were broken down so that even the most complete beginner could create something wonderful.”
“Friendly, patient, and very easy-to-understand instructor. A great go-at-your-own-pace environment!”