Lino cutting - another exercise

Presumably so that we were working with shapes with which we are familiar this next exercise was to create a monogram. I've doodled with my initials first LR then LB since childhood and have never achieved anything that really pleased me. The limitations of my lino cutting skills did help me narrow down my choices and this is what I finished up with:



monogram - 2cm x 3cm

A little playing produced this pattern, it was supposed to be an exercise in layering and wild abandon, the layers are there but it looks like the abandon will have to come another day!

Lino cutting - lesson 1

Last Christmas I put a linocutting set on my wish list, expecting a red handle with interchangeable blades like the ones we had in school. But my daughter knows how much pleasure I'd get from this set:



From the flocked card of the box to the way the tools rest in your hand it's a joy! I've played with tools from time to time, but not having found any suitable books/tutorials haven't really challenged myself. So when Dijanne Cevaal announced that she was doing an on-line course I signed up

Exercise 1 was a kind of warming up exercise, using different tools in different ways to create a range of marks on a 12" x 12" piece:



Exercise 2 focused on positive and negative images, which is something I've struggled with in the past:



Exercise 3 was to create a repeating pattern on a smaller piece of lino - 2.5" square. I made two of these as I wanted to try curved and straight lines: