I've only started carving back in December. Started on making rubber stamps, and now I'm working with linoleum.

I have tried to make my own linoleum block print with several color blocks, and so far I have been separating each "mass" of color and doing my best to prevent any overlapping colors.

I noticed in the video that some of the colors are just layered over an existing layer of color, like the red for the temple, and the brownish color for the island's rock foundation.

Is there any particular rule for layering down colors on top of each other? like what colors can be layered? Do the colors stay more or less the same or is there a mixing action when layered? Like if I put a blue layer on top of a light yellow layer, am I going to see a green color or a blue color?

Hi Karl,

You say you're using linoleum, so would that mean you are using oil-based ink with them? That would be the typical, and typical those are fairly opaque. The woodblocks use a water-based pigment that in general has transparency, varied by the amount of pigment used. In your case I don't think there would be a lot of mixing unlike Dave's prints. It has been about a decade since my last lino cut, so I may be a bit off. I'm sure David can correct be or at least better explain this.

Jakub is correct that linoleum block prints typically use opaque oil-based inks. There is no use layerings these inks.

However, I like both the look of the shin-hanga style with many layers of color, and the ease and inexpensive nature of linoleum. So my method uses multiple blocks of overlapping color, and watercolor ink mixed with Charbonnel Aqua Wash Oil. I apply it with a standard hand roller.

As far as ordering of layers, they seem to go from lighter and wider swaths to darker and more detailed shapes. Dave has so many step-by-step examples on his site, so you can see how he does it. He posted the steps for this print starting here: http://mokuhankan.com/conversations/images/process/0302/step_01.jpg

Thanks for the clarification. I'm using Speedball water based inks, and rolling them out with a brayer. I think from some tests I did the ink without any modifications is opaque.