screen printing help?

[seductionbeach.livejournal.com]

(sorry, text only post - but i need help)

okay, so this screen printing thing - ive never done it before and want to start but i had no clue about it - i checked out and read all the memories about it but im still a little bit confused:

i understand you have to get some sort of frame or wooden backing type thing, and you stretch the screen over that. when you actually print it you put it on the fabric and put the ink over the screen and use a squeegee type thing to mush it through the holes.

heres where i get stuck: when youre putting the ink on the screen, how does that fit in with a stencil? like...how do you use a stencil for that part? it seems like to me if you put the stencil over it and just put the ink through the open part of it, it would bleed and not work very well...

i read about putting something on the actual screen where you dont want the ink, but wouldnt that defeat the purpose of the stencil?

i dont have very much money to go out and buy things, and i'll be using a stitching wooden hoop and a pair of old pantyhose. could somebody explain how you use a stencil and what youre supposed to put on the screen so the ink doesnt go through?

and actually, now that im thinking about it - whats the difference in screen printing and just plain stenciling? do you use different inks or techniques?

thanks!