spoke-right-education-for-everyone
Screen Printing
.Fabric paint (or acrylic paint mixed with fabric medium) can be used instead of silk screen ink to print with the Bison screen I made (see the original post above). The kit does not come with lots of ink (three colors only).Intro to Stencil Screen-Printing. Project Description: A screen-print is created by adding stenciled image to a fine mesh screen, then pushing ink through the holes using a squeegee.180 to 200 mesh counts are perfect for printing somewhat detailed images in light inks on dark fabrics. 230 to 280 mesh count screens will deliver detailed prints with a softer hand feel; however, because they allow for lighter ink deposits, prints created with these fine screens won’t be as bright or vivid.Screen Printing. … Screen Printing is a technique which uses a a silk screen to transfer images drawn on the screen to your chosen surface. Here the System 3 acrylic colours are mixed with either a Screen Printing medium or a Textile Printing medium, if you wish to print on textiles.The mesh size is determined by counting the number of openings it has per square inch. The paper cut out will help you keep track of the line of openings as you count them. Align the edges of the cut out square with the warp or wires that form horizontal and vertical lines in the mesh.
As the mesh number increases, the size of openings decreases, thus the larger the mesh number, the finer the filtration. Micron is a term of measurement used to describe the size of tiny particles. Thus in filter screens, micron size refers to the maximum size of a particle that will pass through the filter screen.
You can mix the Lascaux Screen Printing paste directly with acrylic colours such as, Matisse, Lascaux or Liquitex paints. The paste will slow down the drying time of the acrylic paint, making the clean-up much easier than compared to working with commercial screen printing ink. Also, when working with high quality acrylic paint, such as Matisse, Lascaux or Liquitex paints, you automatically have a high pigment load, which makes the process very cost effective.
The first step to printing on shirts is to register your screen. Registering your screen makes it much easier to line up the frame for doing multiple colors. This step isn’t needed if you’re only doing one color.(
Shirts are a lot different than paper because shirts are made of fabric and fabric stretches. If the shirt stretches, it will be hard to line up the screen for multiple colors. I take a piece of foam core and stick it in the shirt. Then I take pins and pin the shirt to the board.
(Then, figure out where you want your print to be. I like my prints about 4 or 5 inches from the collar, but that’s just me. After you put your screen down on the shirt, make an outline of the screen with tape. Do a good job of this because if you mess it up, you’ll have a hard time lining up your screen every time
Once you are ready to mix your paints, there a few paint characteristics to consider.
Unlike some of the other acrylic brands, Matisse acrylics come in two consistencies, “Structure”, which is a firmer and a more impasto style paint, and “Flow”, which is a runnier acrylic paint. According to Trent Walter, the thicker Matisse Structure is most suitable for smaller prints. However, it tends to become too thick once you work on a larger scale. For large-scale, water-based screen prints, Trent Walter suggests combining Matisse Structure and Flow to the consistency you require. It is essential to mix the paint thoroughly, as the paint has to be the same consistency all the way through. Adding the Lascaux Screen-printing Paste to your paint before printing will extend the open time of your acrylic paints and allow you to coat the screen evenly without the paint drying up too quickly
