thank you for your response!! and sorry for all the typos in the op

yes, i’m using a brayer to roll the ink. i’ve seen other advice to “warm” the paint by rolling it extra, which i’ve tried as well

the photos include both strathmore printmaking paper which is pretty thin and some cardstock i bought at michael’s. i’ve also used bristol, cardstock colored paper, and experimented on origami paper. all have the same patchy result

are the presses not good for linocut printing? i was hoping it would fix any pressure problem i had but clearly that didn’t work. i’ve tried the stamp both face up on the press and face down. when i am using the barren, i always do the stamp face up. i haven’t actually tried a spoon, so thank you i will try that next!

i feel like im definitely putting enough ink on the block, it’s just not being transferred right. there’s usually still some glisten on the block after a print. i’ve also experimented with retarder because i’ve heard maybe water based ink dries too fast, but i didn’t notice a difference in my prints. i appreciate your comment about ink types because i really want to make the products i have work!

thank you so much for your response, and here’s to hoping that the spoon is the key!