Creative School Supply Printing Foam A4 Pack of 15

Printing Foam is an easy, economic and very popular introduction to printmaking, designed for all age levels! Made from a thin, soft polystyrene, Printing Foam is lightweight, stores easily and is very safe to use. There is no need for any sharp or dangerous tools, no press or special tools required. Although it’s excellent for younger children, students of all ages can achieve fantastic results!

• Size: A4 (210 x 297mm), 3.5mm thick
• Pack of 15

How to use Printing Foam:

1. Produce the ‘block’ by simply pressing lines and shapes into the special soft foam surface. Use a 4B pencil or a ballpoint pen. For larger areas, press into the foam with a popstick, spoon or similar blunt object.
2. Ink the Printing Foam surface with any type of water-based printing ink or paint, using a foam roller.
3. Carefully lay a sheet of paper over the inked surface and rub all over with a clean hard roller, or with the back of a spoon, palm of the hand or with a baren.
4. Peel off the print, slowly. Repeat the inking and rubbing for as many prints as desired. Experiment with different coloured inks and different coloured papers.
5. To wash the block, simply hold under the tap or soak in a dish of water. The surface and lines may be carefully cleaned with a soft brush. The block will store easily for future use, when completely dry.

Extension ideas:

• Single & multiple colour printing: Follow the “How to” steps above to achieve your design. Experiment with different papers and printing inks. This example is a design drawn directly onto the foam and printed on black paper using white paint. You may also wish to hand colour the finished print.
• Print with multiple colours: Multi-coloured prints may be achieved by the reduction method. Draw lines on the printing foam where you want white lines and print with a light colour. Allow to dry. Add more lines on the foam where you want the first colour and print with a darker colour. Put in registration marks to correctly line up the prints with each colour.
• Chine-collé Printing onto pre-printed paper: Create interesting effects and depths to your design by printing on a variety of paper surfaces. Experiment with these backgrounds: Create a collage of torn tissue paper, use sheets of metallic papers, pre-printed papers or painted backgrounds to vary the results.
  This is great for all ages depending on the skill base the broader are the opportunities.
• Hand colour prints with coloured pencils, markers, Gouache, Food Dye or Oil Pastel
• Cut shapes out of the Printing Foam to create a collage of printed areas.