sun printing with pressed leaves | Aug. 20, 2020

Here’s basic instructions on sun-printing on cotton fabric with pressed leaves. This was my first time pressing the leaves first and it was very helpful in keeping the leaf in contact with the fabric to create a sharp print. (A bit about my plant press can be found HERE.)

I use Pebeo Setacolor TRANSPARENT fabric paint. I used to be able to find it at my local craft store. When I can’t find it locally I order it from Dharma Trading Company. I use damp cotton fabric spread flat onto a piece of foam insulation board as a smooth and stable, yet portable, work surface. I’ve been using the same board for at least 10 years! It is very light, so secure corners of board with something heavy of it is a windy day. I add water to the paint (2 parts water to 1 part paint is the recommendation, though I may have mixed with more paint here, I didn’t measure) to make it easy to brush onto the damp fabric with a wide foam brush.

I can’t post videos here, but did post a few over at my Instagram, HERE. There’s a little clip of the paint being applied to the fabric along with other steps in the process. I wanted a sort of fade out towards the top of the panel so didn’t solidly apply the paint in that area. You can also drip the wet paint for a mottled effect.

Once the surface is painted, I carefully place the leaves on the wet fabric. This must be done while the paint is wet because the printing-making window has closed once the paint is dry, so it’s best to have your leaves or other materials ready and nearby before you apply the paint. These particular pressed fern leaves had just a bit time in which they could be repositioned because they were so thin and became like wet tissue paper, very fragile.

After I place the leaves where I want them, I very carefully dampened them with a bit more paint to help adhere them to the fabric surface. The video clip of this step is also over on my Instagram, HERE.

Leave the painted fabric in full sun until it is crispy dry, for high contrast results. You could pull a few leaves off earlier for variation.

The reveal is the best part! When the fabric is completely dry, just pull the leaves off the fabric, video clip over on my Instagram post, HERE.

You must set the paint with a hot iron. I do this to both sides, paint side and back side. (If you also use your iron to press white shirts, etc, use a scrap pressing cloth between the iron and the painted fabric to keep the paint from transferring to your iron.) After ironing, let the fabric sit for a few days or place it where you can admire it. This gives the paint a little time to set. Then you can wash it, if needed, and there should be little to no change in the print.

I am very pleased with print results when pressing the leaves first. These leaves became fragile when wet, but there was enough time to arrange, especially once I understood the timeframe I had to do it. The above shading within overlapping leaves is amazing! Other leaves and plant materials may behave differently. These were sensitive fern leaves, grown and harvested on my own property.

I’ve been experimenting with sun printing (also called heliographic or sun painting) for years and it’s always fun. A few of my old blog posts are HERE. Dharma Trading Company also has wonderful instructions for this process with more technical information than I’ve provided in this post (mix 2 parts water to 1 part paint - good to be reminded - I usually just wing it!).

You don’t have to use plants and leaves - I’ve made great prints with cut paper or craft foam for graphic shapes. The possibilities are endless.