Vellum for alternative process

[tnp651]

Has anyone tried printing on vellum? Do wet alt-process solutions work with vellum? The thickest vellum I’ve found is 24 lb (90 gsm) which is likely to wrinkle. I’d like to try orotones with kallitypes.

 

[koraks]

What material are you referring to, exactly? I suspect you mean the tracing paper stuff? I think 'vellum' can technically also refer to parchment, which would be a different ballgame.
I think the main problem with the tracing paper is that it indeed tends to wrinkle and not withstand wet processing very well. I think that's why those Japanese kozo-like papers are so popular in the alt. process corner. Their long fibers give the material the ability to survive the process.

 

[jeffreyg]

I have printed platinum/palladium on cotton vellum and have tried various ways to prevent wrinkles. None have been 100% so I decided that it just adds to the handmade look that each image is a “one of a kind “. I back them with gold leaf or silver leaf. With the right subject it’s a really nice presentation.

 

[nmp]

Has anyone tried printing on vellum? Do wet alt-process solutions work with vellum? The thickest vellum I’ve found is 24 lb (90 gsm) which is likely to wrinkle. I’d like to try orotones with kallitypes.

I suppose all vellum would wrinkle at the end of the process - you will have to press it to straighten it out. Dan Burkholder uses this 24 lb (another larger size is 30 lb) vellum that you can buy on his store recommended for gilded prints. I have seen his prints, gold leafed Pt-Pd and they were gorgeous!

:Niranjan

 

[nmp]

Oh I forgot to add the link:

Darkroom Translucent Vellum, 8.5 x 11 in

Official website for Dan Burkholder. Fine Art Photographer, Digital Pioneer, Artist and Educator

www.danburkholder.com

:Niranjan

 

[Patrick Robert James]

I've printed on Staedler Vellum before. It is 100% cotton. Bought it at Office Max or Staples if you can believe it. They probably don't have it anymore, but you can still probably find it. It has an all blue cover. There is also Clearprint but I haven't tried it. I think I read a while back that they don't make 100% cotton anymore so make sure you check that it is whichever one you buy.

You are right about waviness with vellum. I'll only use it for small prints. If you have a vacuum press then vellum would work well. Very difficult to get the negative to lay flat on it even with a good contact printer with strong springs. Ask me how I know.

Keep in mind too that the thinner the paper is the easier it is to flatten.

Good luck.

 

[Ballinderry-Michael]

What material are you referring to, exactly? I suspect you mean the tracing paper stuff? I think 'vellum' can technically also refer to parchment, which would be a different ballgame.

Sorry to come in late on this with a pedantic "correction". Vellum, as used before books were printed, was calf skin; and parchment was sheepskin. The modern materials are named for their surfaces' resemblance to those.

 

[koraks]

Thanks @Ballinderry-Michael , I stand corrected - and also on the point that we're discussing a paper material here which much more commonly used than I realized!

 

[nmp]

Of course, if the OP wants to do real orotones, glass is the way to go. No wrinkles there. However, it requires a whole different process of using a medium like gelatin to print the image in.

:Niranjan

 

[VinceInMT]

I’m a former draftsman and have a bunch of drafting vellum in rolls leftover. I think it’s 1000H. I’ve tried it for cyanotypes and it works really well, especially if interested in a translucent print. For such a thin paper it handles the wet pretty well although it does wrinkle a bit. I believe it has some kind of coating that allows multiple erasures without lifting the paper fibers and that resists the wet a bit.

 

[jeffreyg]

I have Dan Burkholder’s cd on gilded printing which is very straightforward. As I had mentioned I have done pt/pd prints on vellum. I had bought it from Freestyle and got the gold and silver leaf from LA gold leaf. After printing and gilding I spray both sides with Kamar varnish which I think was suggested on the cd