Block Printing Brand WICKED Transforms Clothing as Wearable Art

When she isn’t whipping up a latte at Thump or covering the latest happenings in the Denver music scene, you might find Victoria Glidden sketching. She often draws inspiration from the chaos of public places, bringing to life the essence of humanity on paper with her charcoal pencil. Now, Glidden brings her sketches to life through block printing under the brand name WICKED, which reads backward to the naked eye but forwards when looking in the mirror, simultaneously sharing her creative outlet and upscaling thrifted clothing. 

Glidden began block printing in the summer of 2023, after she connected with the owner of vintage boutique Atomic Salvage, Jules. Glidden had some experience with block printing dating back to elementary school in her hometown of Dover, New Hampshire, but Jules helped her gather the correct tools to bring her sketches to life. 

“I remember carving [when I was younger] and loving it, and I had all these doodles that I didn’t have anything to do with,” Glidden said. “When I saw Jules succeeding I thought, ‘ok maybe I’ll try and do this’ because I had the extra time.”

Every day, Glidden is drawing. When she finds herself with a drawing that she likes, it is the catalyst for block printing. First, she traces the drawing onto translucent paper using graphite. Then, the paper goes on top of a rubber block, which serves as the actual stamp. She rubs the drawing onto the stamp and begins to carve. 

The next step is using a roller to transfer oil paint onto the stamp, finally stamping it on a piece of clothing. While many use a press during this step of the process, Glidden physically applies pressure onto the stamp for a minute or two. Although it is tiring to put all of her weight onto the stamp, this crucial step ensures that the whole design is transferred to the clothing. From denim to t-shirts, Glidden can transfer her art onto a variety of materials.  The tools themselves were fairly inexpensive, establishing an accessible hobby and a worthwhile way to elevate her art in her free time. 

The most important part of the process is creating the sketch itself. 

“When I’m sketching, it’s usually a combination of what is around me and what I’ve been thinking about,” Glidden said. “It’s fun to have outside stimulation from other people. The chaos of public spaces can show you interesting things if you are sitting there and patiently looking for them.” 

Often, an idea for a sketch comes out of nowhere. Glidden aims to lean into her surroundings and looks at life around her with a different perspective when she is sketching, allowing her to develop ideas that will serve as wearable art once stamped on clothing. 

WICKED began with a stamp in red ink on a white tee, depicting a woman smoking and the smoke artistically drifting above her. The woman is wearing a shirt that reads, “yowza.” WICKED is stamped in red on each sleeve. 

“The first stamp that I chose to make was very much a visual choice. I enjoyed the way the design looked and I thought it would translate well to the medium of stamping,” Glidden explained. 

From there, she must decide whether to carve out the design itself or the negative space, which makes the outcome completely different. She embraces both methods from time to time but has come to prefer carving out the negative space as it allows the design to stand out on clothing. 

The name WICKED was intentional, although written backward was an accident. 

“I over-confused myself and I made the stamp backwards. I thought that I needed to write it backward so that it would mirror forwards but that’s not true,” Glidden said. “As soon as I realized it would read in the mirror, I thought that could be fun and interesting.” 

Born and raised in New England, Glidden shared that “wicked” is often used as slang with a much more positive connotation than in other parts of the country. Glidden distinctly remembers her stepmom calling her and her sister “wicked smart” when they were kids, and the phrase is still used in her family to this day. Therefore, WICKED is a nod to Glidden’s upbringing. 

However, “the world itself came from a drawing that I was doing that had the word ‘wicked’ at the bottom,” Glidden said. “A very good friend of mine said it looked like a signature because I wrote it kind of spooky and in all caps.” 

From there, the name was born and Glidden is eager to continue stamping her sketches on clothes, developing a stylish and unique way to share her art with the world. 

Glidden encourages those aspiring to block print or embrace similar artistic mediums to “keep trying, if that initial attempt isn’t exactly what you want, see what the second attempt looks like.” Several friends of hers are now block printing themselves, and she finds the process to be easy for newcomers to grasp and embrace in their own way. 

For Glidden, block printing is “a way to help a doodle live on forever,” she said. No matter what the sketch consists of, it can be appreciated in its truest form when emblazoned on denim pants, an oversized tee or even a raincoat. It’s only the start for WICKED, and the opportunities for Glidden to share the interworkings of her brain through block printing are endless. 

Check out WICKED on Glidden’s Instagram and stay tuned for more updates as the brand continues to grow.