Fabric Block Printing Kit

Soft carve blocks (rubber-based, the "Speedball" or "Easy-Cut" type) carve smoothly and precisely without the grain and hardness of wood — far easier for the stamp-carver, and they hold fine detail. Wood blocks are the traditional (and durable) alternative but demand sharp tools and grain-reading. The soft block is the beginner's and the fabric-printer's choice.

Fabric ink (a textile screen-printing or block-printing ink) bonds to the fiber and survives the wash (when heat-set); acrylic craft paint sits on the surface and flakes off in the laundry. The fabric ink is the difference between a washable printed shirt and a one-wash craft. Heat-set (iron the print for a few minutes) to fully bond; then it is laundry-safe.

Ink the block (roll the brayer in the ink tray, roll onto the block), position the block on the fabric (align to the previous print or a grid), press evenly, lift. The repeat is the registration — a grid guide or a corner-to-corner alignment keeps the pattern even. Print in rows; the slight variation (no two prints identical) is the hand-printed charm.

After the ink dries (24 hours), iron the print (no steam) for 3-5 minutes — the heat bonds the ink to the fiber permanently. Without heat-setting, the ink washes out; with it, the print is laundry-safe. The heat-set is the finishing step that makes fabric block-printing wearable; do not skip it. Then wash inside-out, cold, to maximize longevity.