Wednesday, May 20, 2015

Crafts-Scratch Board


Scratch boards are a combination of crosshatching and working in the negative to create a picture. For those unfamiliar with what a scratch board is, it is a thick sheet of paper covered in dried ink that you scratch away at to reveal the paper behind and create a picture. Here are the steps for not only doing a scratch board, but also how to transfer a sketch to the board.


Start out by drawing a simple sketch of what you want to draw. For example, I chose a scene from the book "Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children," by Ransom Riggs. (A very good book) Then once you are done, turn the page over and cover the back in pencil and, if you want to save time, place the drawing on a light board and cover only where you drew in the picture. The outlook should look something like this:


Then take the scratch board, and cut if needed to make sure that the sketch paper and board are the same size. Line the two papers up, and tape on one side to ensure they won't move. Then, with the sketch face-up on the top taped to the scratch board on the bottom, retrace the sketch over. If you shaded the back dark enough the graphite will rub off, creating a replica of your sketch on the surface of the scratch board. Now all you have to do is scratch! I used a scratch tool that you can find at your average craft store (seen in first picture) and more likely than not they come with the board. But if not, any toothpick or chopstick can do the trick, even a fork. Remember, in a scratch board, you are making the LIGHT parts of the picture, the opposite of drawing, where you are making the DARK. Use crosshatching to make the lighter and darker shades, and once you remove something, you can't get it back! When you are done, it should come out something like this:





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