Some thoughts about woodcut printmaking
The simple process outlined above becomes magical for me every time I start a new work. More traditional approaches require that the ink be perfectly and evenly laid, that the wood grain be eliminated through careful planing or sanding, that the paper be the exact right type, etc etc. To me, the wood must have a voice in the final print, the ink must leave its visible marks, the implement for printing must also leave a trace, the paper, above all, the paper must show its beauty through the design. The entire process has to be visible—the process must show.

Nuff said, learn by doing

A view of the cutting bench	Closer look with block in place	Printing "bench" (aka old desk)

Wood or other relief material such as battleship linoleum or other synthetic materials form the matrix for the future print. I will try anything at least once, more often twice. Wood must be smooth and free of inserts such as plugs and knots.

• Pine and birch plywood are good to start because they are cheap and available. Pine is nearly silent and is extremely easy to carve. Birch has a distinctive fibrous look and carves like butter—okay, maybe like hard cheese.
• Solid cherry wood is the traditional Japanese choice; it is more difficult to get and to carve but yields better results and there is a magic to it.
• Oak speaks loudly in the final print and I use it when its grain suits me; there is no way to plane or sand oak smooth enough so that the grain will not show.

Carving/cutting knives are used to extract the design from the matrix. A beginner's or student set of straight knives and v-shaped and u-shaped chisels are how I started out. Later as I got hooked, I demanded more responsive and specialized tools. Illustrated are a wide variety of tools ranging from a student grade set, a couple of wood-carver's sets and the traditional yet very expensive Japanese knives. I also use roulette wheels, sandpaper of 12 different grits to either hide or bring out the wood grain, razor blades, an x-acto knife set, burins, and engraving needles. Basically, anything that leaves a mark on soft wood can be used. A couple of experiment prints will lead you to wonderful discovery.
 

A good variety of tools leads to variety of line	An American made set of knives and chisels

Ink, water based or oil based is rolled or brushed on the relief parts of the block to obtain an impression. The choice is one of preference. Water-based inks are used with paste and brushes and I have just started to experiment with them (information on traditional methods with water based pigments can be found at http://www.woodblock.com and the many related sites).
 Oil based relief inks that come in cans and tubes are mostly what I use at this time. I keep a minimum palette in stock and mix most colors. Palette usually consists of five basic mixing colors (black, blue, red, yellow, magenta), plus burnt umber and sienna, white, ochre, and violet. I also make extensive use of graphite (etching, for lack of relief), purple, and traditional etching black. I use a white marble ceramic tile for rolling out inks and palette knives for mixing.
Additives are helpful and sometimes essential with oil based inks.

• Daniel Smith Miracle Gel keeps paper from sticking to the block and tearing.
• Transparent base keeps inks from obliterating my beautiful papers and saves $$$ on ink.
• Set-swell compound makes second and third layers of ink dry matte, otherwise they shine (both effects are nice).
• Cobalt drier forces the drying time of the ink and will make me die younger if inhaled, so I don't inhale it.
• Burnt plate oil will magically transform etching inks into relief inks.
• Whiting will stiffen runny inks, and anything else for that matter.

A convenient rolling taboret with cans of ink, rollers, barens, and additives	Close up of brayers and rollers	Inking slab is a white ceramic tile about 15x15 inches

Rollers or brushes are used to apply the ink to the block. I use oil based ink most of the time, so I have a wide variety of rollers and brayers to apply the ink to the block. I have several rubber brayers ranging from 2 to 12 inches and polyurethane gelatin rollers in 6, 8, and 12 inch widths. I use the 3 inch and the 6 inch the most.

Paper is a beautiful thing, said my favorite master once. He was right! (He was also right about the appropriation of the garage issue, but that's a different story). Paper is used to print on. I recommend newsprint for experiments and for proofing and relief printmaking paper for printing. Paper is my favorite material to experiment with, so I break this rule all the time. Japanese papers are the most receptive to ink, but I have also found some other papers that seem to "like" the ink very well. Check out the suppliers section of this web page and get catalogs sent to you, they have a vast information on papers and will send paper samplers in exchange for your hard earned money.
 I have also through the years made my own paper sampler and continue to use the same papers that treat me well and like to be printed on. I don't like wimpy papers, they need to be able to take the punishment of me leaning on them with a deadly baren against a hard wood surface (ouch).
 I often use colored papers and plan my prints around the color, using it as a mid-tone or highlight tone. Black paper presents a special challenge that I often undertake. Finally, there is hardly anything that compares to the powerful European expressionist tradition of images in black ink on white paper. For much more on paper, check out the Paper Notes from the Studio Notes Topics Page.
 

View of the studio window and much fun junk	Glassine, newsprint, some Japanese roll paper, tracing paper in its neat rack

Baren or baren substitute is used to press the back of the paper against the ink block and obtain an impression unless you are rich and/or lucky enough to have a press. The traditional Japanese baren is by far the best implement for this, but being of a meager background and stubborn nature, I use anything but!
 My  favorite printing tools:

•  A wooden egg obtained from any arts and crafts store. It fits the palm of my hand perfectly, keeps my fingers extended and my wrist in a non-painful position, and gives a strong impression. The egg is about 5 inches in diameter lying down and the impression area is about two inches in diameter. Even and dark impressions are possible with this tool.
•  Two round 3-inch doorknobs glued back to back. One doorknob is for grabbing, the other for printing. These are 3 inches in diameter with the printing area being only about 1 inch. Even and slightly lighter impressions are obtained with this tool; it is best for small flat areas or lines separated by empty areas.
•  Other printing tools:
•  A plastic baren with tiny polyurethane "fingers" obtained from Daniel Smith. It is 5 inches in diameter, printing area is 4-5 inches depending on how hard you press. Good for large flat areas, especially of the first states. Very even but lighter impressions are obtained easily.
•  A wooden rosette to which I have glued wood buttons (all obtained in your friendly neighborhood home supply store or craft store). I have made two of these, one with 1/8" buttons (about 45) and another with 3/16" buttons (about 30). Both are good for large flat areas but leave "button marks" if not careful.. Here are the famous "mushroom" barens right to left: tiny-shrooms, champignons, and portabella. Click to enlarge.

•  A round 5.5 inch wood hand-made baren with sides sanded rounded. It is about 1/4 inch thick, I have carved a "coil print" on the formerly flat side and covered the disk with the traditional bamboo sheath. It works so well I am letting go of my egg.
•  A jute baren made in (sort of) the traditional manner. For details on construction of such an implement (the traditional, not the one I made), go to http://www.woodblock.com (yes, again). Finished it and wrapped it in the traditional bamboo covering and it is now virtually effortless to get big areas to print nice and even. This one is the equivalent of a 12-strand baren.
•  Large wooden roller gives an even but soft impression, as do rubber rollers used with some force.
•  Back of hand gives a beautiful soft impression I have yet to use in a real print.

Any other materials will be mentioned along with the basic process explained below, so don't throw in my face that I forgot to mention something. Believe it or not, all these things except the paper fit in a couple of handy taborets. I have a page with suppliers and other links here.

Let's get going! As David Bull likes to say: "Cut! Print!"