How to tetra pak print

It can sound complicated but Tetra Pak printing is actually such a therapeutic, messy and fun way of creating art.

Step 1) Find any old cartons you have, juice, milk etc.

Step 2) Cut them up into strips, make them as big or as small as you want the design.

Step 3) Use anything sharp that will make a dent in the carton, this could be a pencil, art knife, scissors.

Step 4) And just start making patterns and lines in the carton strip. You can peel bits off, cut bits out or just carve an illustration. It’s great advice not to be too precious with it, the messy parts and the creases of the carton actually end up being the most interesting. Create as much or as little texture as you’d like.

Step 5) The next step is smushing ink onto the design, you can do this by dabbing at it with an old rag, and then wipe off any excess ink you don’t want.

Step 6) Then just like a lino print, you can place your design facing upwards and place your printing paper on top, use an old spoon or palette knife to push down on the design, peel away and reveal your new artwork!

As with anything, doing these steps over and over will help you improve your designs. Learning where the ink sits and what parts you need to wipe off to get your desired designs.

We collaborated as artists and writers on a whole book of nonsense designs and words.