Making Sun Prints (Cyanotypes) with Children

We thought we would share a project that has always brought us so much joy.  The simple art of making sun prints or cyanotypes is something each family should try at least once.

According to Wikipedia: Cyanotype, also referred to as “blueprinting”, is the oldest non-silver photographic printing process. It involves exposing materials which have been treated with a solution of potassium ferricyanide and ferric ammonium citrate to a UV light source such as the sun. Negative or positive images can be obtained by blocking UV light from reaching the sensitized material. For example, a negative image can be produced by placing a leaf upon paper treated with this solution and exposing to sunlight for 10 to 20 minutes. The paper will retain the image of the leaf after it has been rinsed with water. Once the paper dries, parts that were exposed to the sun will turn a shade of Prussian blue (ferric ferrocyanide), while parts that were covered by the leaf will remain white.

At first, the idea seemed daunting to us but after our first attempt, we saw how simple it really was.  The transformation is very quick and it takes very little time to see the beautiful results. Perfect for anxious little artists! The possibilities are endless with this activity, so let your child’s imagination run free!  What we love best is that this activity encourages creativity, explorations in nature, chemistry and countless other educational components.  

The first step is deciding whether you would like to use paper or fabric to create your art.  Each method will have its own set of detailed instructions so be sure to follow them closely.

Cyanotype Paper by SunCreations

The paper is ideal for framing, making cards or even wrapping presents.

Cyanotype Fabric by Jacquard

The fabric can be turned into a pillow, stuffed animal, stretched over a canvas or framed in an embroidery hoop for display.  We made hoops and hung them in our living space and they look so striking. I love that they are a memory of what we found in the garden that day.  

Embroidery Hoops by Caydo

We have used fresh leaves, herbs and flowers from our yard or have used items we have pressed before hand.  We did find the pressed botanicals worked best and had such stunning results.

Flower Press by Nature’s Press

There’s always the option to purchase your leaves and flowers all pressed and ready to go.

Dried Pressed Flowers by UOKWIWI

Other ideas to use would be: favorite toys, hand prints, twigs and rocks, seashells, a movable alphabet to write out words, feathers or even nuts and bolts.  The possibilities are endless and we want to try them all!

A word of caution, be sure to always keep your creations away from direct sunlight as this will cause the vibrant blue to fade!

If you are looking to dig a little deeper on this subject, I highly recommend this beautiful picture book biography of botanist and photographer Anna Atkins.

Anna published the book Photographs of British Algae: Cyanotype Impressions with text and cyanotype photographs. It is considered the first book of photographs ever published!

Here is a sample of her work:

Notecards by Anna Atkins

How inspiring!  Let us know your experience with sun prints!  

Sue 

 

 

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