Gel Printing with Lavinia Inks

 

Hello crafty friends! Ericka from Strangely Creative here, and today I’m sharing a journal page that started with one question: What happens when you put those gorgeous, juicy Lavinia Dye Inks on a gel plate?

The answer? Lots of vibrant color, beautiful blending, and a background that was so much fun to make that I couldn’t stop at just one!

For this page, I combined a bright gel print with layers of stamping, washi tape, and a dramatic black-and-white bloom. I love the contrast between all that bold color and the detailed flower sitting on top.

Starting with Lavinia Inks on the Gel Plate

I started with my 6x6 gel plate, a brayer, and Lavinia Dye Inks in Sundance, Pink Elephant, Violet Chalk, and Blue Lagoon.

I love working with the Lavinia inks because they’re so juicy and the colors are absolutely gorgeous. I added the inks to my gel plate, used my brayer to move the colors around, and then lightly spritzed the surface with water to encourage them to blend.

 

For my print, I experimented with a piece of glossy recycled paper. And this is where things got interesting!

Why Glossy Paper?

Because the paper has a glossy surface, the inks don’t immediately soak into it. Instead, they have a little more time to sit on the surface, move, and blend together before drying. That gave me those wonderful transitions from sunny yellow into bright pink, purple, and blue.

I loved the result so much that, naturally, I had to make a few more backgrounds while the gel plate was out! You can never have too many colorful backgrounds waiting in your stash, right?

Adding Layers of Texture

Once my print was completely dry, I started building additional layers using the same Lavinia inks.

I reached for an older AALL & Create Background Noise stamp set and added bits of numbers, text, circles, and other marks across the page.

Using the same inks helped all those extra details feel like they belonged in the background rather than sitting on top of it.

I love this part of mixed media—the background starts with beautiful color, but every additional stamp and mark gives you something new to discover.

Creating That Bold Contrast

With such a colorful background, I decided my focal image didn’t need any more color. Instead, I added this beautiful AALL & Create bloom in black and white.

 

I love the contrast! The detailed flower really stands out against all those vibrant pinks, blues, purples, and yellows without competing with them.

Sometimes leaving an image uncolored can actually make it more dramatic.

I also added pieces of AALL & Create Heritage Scroll washi tape around the page. The black-and-white details help connect the flower to the background while adding another layer of texture.

Finishing Touches

To finish the page, I added a sentiment from the Lavinia Uplifting Collection along with my signature hand-drawn frame.

The simple “follow your path” sentiment felt perfect surrounded by all those free-flowing colors and layers.

 

And with that, my journal page was complete!

Thank you so much for stopping by! I hope this page inspires you to pull out your gel plate, experiment with your Lavinia inks, and see what happens when you let those beautiful colors play together.

Have a wonderful weekend and happy creating! 

 

Topflight Stamp Supplies 

AALL & Create - 92 - Anemone Whispers Shop at: TP	Lavinia - Sentiment Stickers - Uplifting Collection Shop at: TP	Lavinia - Elements Dye Ink - Pink Elephant Shop at: TP	Lavinia - Elements Dye Ink - Blue Lagoon Shop at: TP	Lavinia - Elements Dye Ink - Sundance Shop at: TP
Lavinia - Elements Dye Ink - Violet Chalk Shop at: TP	Tsukineko - VersaFine Clair - Nocturn Shop at: AZ | TP	AALL & Create - Washi Tape Heritage Scroll Shop at: TP	Gel Press 6x6 Plate Shop at: TP
Speedball - 2" Brayer Shop at: TP