Study the painting you are going to make into a lithograph. Make a grid of equally sized squares over the painting and the stone with string and pins. Anchor the string with the pins. Transfer the image to the stone by noting where the drawing lines intersect the grid. Copy each individual square from the painting to the stone. Choose a light yellowish or buff-colored stone for a softer image. Use a harder, bluish-gray stone for sharp definition of lines, allowing more finely detailed work.
Grind the lithographic stone to remove the previously etched image and prepare the stone's surface for the new drawing. Either grind two stones of equal size together or use a levigator. A levigator is a heavy, round, metal grinding tool with an upraised grip. Wash the stone to remove any dirt, dust, or grit. Cover the stone with a thin film of water.
Use a rough grit of large-grained sand or carborundum, a silicon-carbon compound, as an abrasive. Evenly and smoothly grind the stone with the rough-grit abrasive until all traces of the previously etched drawing are gone. Continue grinding with a finer-grit abrasive to grain the stone. Grind in a regular figure-eight pattern across the stone. Experiment with different ratios of water to abrasive for the right consistency. Keep the mixture thick enough to prevent it from running off the stone. Use the finest grit for a smooth surface, which allows fine detail and sharp printing.
Use a black pigmented grease pencil to draw the painting's composition, in reverse, onto the stone. Draw on multiple stones for each color for a multiple-color lithograph. Mark the stones with grease pencil. Pencil in small marks on the paper. Line the marks up to prevent printing the colors out of register. Draw with thick crayons and thin pencils to vary the line width. Grind up part of a grease pencil. Mix it with water to make a greasy liquid for wash drawing. Sprinkle rosin over the stone to fix and protect the drawing. Coat the stone's surface with a fine layer of talc to enhance the etch.
Use a wide brush to apply the etching solution, composed of gum arabic and nitric acid, evenly across the face of the stone. Let it sit for an hour while the acid and the calcium carbonate chemically react to etch the stone around the grease lines. Remove the grease drawing with mineral spirits. Moisten the stone with a sponge and apply the printing ink with a rolling-pin like ink roller. Make practice prints to determine the proper ink thickness for the desired look. Place a sheet of print paper over the stone and run it through the printing press. Carefully peel the paper off the stone. Let the ink dry and repeat the process for each color when printing multi-colored lithographs.