craftgrrl | Studio Style Silk-screening Tutorial

Warning: this entry is both text and photo heavy.

Otherwise, hope people find it useful and feel free to ask questions.

Step 1: Sketch or out pick the design you want silkscreen

You’ll want something with a lot of contrast so it pops out from your background color unless you want to do layers, which I don’t suggest until you’ve had some experience first.

I chose a gun and drew it on some printer paper I had lying around (though I have a bunch of different ones on my screen throughout the tutorial).

Step 2: Getting your design ready to put on your screen

I tend to use acetate to draw out my images (it’s a clear plasicy material). You can either draw your design directly onto it in sharpie a few times and then a fabric pen over that to make it dark or do what I do (which I don’t recommend) and paint onto the acetate with acrylic ink.

… or you can buy special plastic sheets that you can print off from your computer, but I didn’t learn about this till recently. Boo.

*Starter Hint Remember that if you use someone’s or a companies image, text, or work, you MUST alter it in someway to make it uniquely your or your infringing upon their copyrights and you can be sued!

Step 3: Clean your screen!

Dump some detergent if you’ve been using inks on it hosing it down and scrubbing things off before spraying on vinegar to get it all de oiled (Hopefully you don’t mind getting wet because I always do).

When your done set it somewhere to dry and don’t touch the screen with your hands or your emulsion might not stick in that place, which is annoying.

Step 4: Put the weird brown stuff on, bake, and then it’s power washin’ time!!!!

NOTE : Can’t take pictures of some of this part of the process because emulsion is photo (light) sensitive.

With your screen leaning against a wall, opening framed part at the back, brush emulsion onto your screen (using a piece of equipment I can’t remember at the moment, ugh) starting from the bottom and going up, trying to keep the covering thin and even, and then scrap the extra emulsion off the sides of the screen and back into it’s container before cleaning the sides. Emulsion is expensive.

When you’re done, put the screen the darkroom to dry (around 5 minutes).

As soon as the layer of emulsion is dry take your screen and bring it to the vacuum and light box. Place your acetate design(s) on the glass somewhere in the middle of your screen (the best place for printing) and then carefully put your dry emulsion screen on top. If someone before you didn’t clean the glass there will be brown spot that you’ll need to scrap off unless you want holes in your design.

Next, following the directions for the machine (which vary) you close and lock the top, which vacuums out the air and then lights up so it can bake your design onto your screen.

When it’s done you should see a lighter area in the shape of your design on your screen when you hold it up to the light and that means you can clean your screen, let it dry, and get ready to print!

Step 5: Decide what colors you want to use, the paper size, and print print print

*Starter Hint - Have a pile of proof paper and print paper ready before you print so that your ink doesn’t dry on your screen between prints, especially if it’s very warm when your printing.. or you like the table near the door which gets a TON of direct sunlight.

Take your screen and attach it to the printing surface (there are usually two hinged clamps at the top of the table) with your screen face down so that the frame is raised (this hallow is where you’ll be printing) and place a block under your screen to keep it raised and off the table (you’ll find out why later). Then select your inks, your squeegee, spoons or spatulas to mix and pour your inks.

Now your ready to do a test print!

Place ink in a thick line longer then the width of your design (or splatter ink directly on your design for a marbled effect) and flood your screen by drawing the squeegee towards you and then scrapping the excess of the rubber edges and dabbing back above your design just like you did before.

Now place paper under the screen and remove your block so that it lays directly on the table and the paper and draw the ink towards you again with the squeegee. The ink will then go through the screen where your design is and onto your paper!

Lift your screen, carefully remover your paper and repeat as many times as you’d like remembering to flood between prints to conserve ink.

*Starter Hint - clean your screen as SOON as your done printing. Otherwise the ink can be a pain to get out of your screen.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Before you go out and buy a screen or any of these things you’ll probably want to know what all the materials and tools I’ve mentioned cost quite a bit (aka A LOT) and that the process that I’m describing is how things work in a specially setup studio.

...which means quite simply that most of this wont be possible for at home crafters without investing a ton of time, money, and setup. Big time boo, right?

So do some independent research before jumping into the process, as I am right now, or stay tuned. I'm going to try do some at home experimentation myself this summer so I'll probably be making many of the same or unique errors that you could avoid.

My wallet cries already...