Thumper's got a new toy

Today I gave Thumper (my etching press) a new toy.... a new 1 metre long bed.  The bed was made by my father-in-law Alan, who has also made me several other 'toys' for my art practice.

The bed will allow me to produce very long prints.  Its made the same as my original bed, plywood base with a steel top.

Today I was using my new bed to produce some monoprints using grass I 'sourced' during a bushland wander on the weekend.

During my printing today, I didn't clean off my plate at all, which meant that my prints got more interesting as I progressed.  I was also trying to use up some bits of ink left over from a previous session, so it forced me to be creative with my rolling technique and colour combinations.  Of course, this doesn't always work (= mud), but with a bit of thought great effects are achieved.

The new bed (and a print in progress)

My very dirty plate.
A bit of yellow, red, blue, and purple.
Unexpected but delicious colours!