http://www.instructables.com/id/Screen-Printing%3a-Cheap%2c-Dirty%2c-and-At-Home/
Screen Printing: Cheap, Dirty, and At Home
on July 28, 2006
Table of Contents
intro: Screen Printing: Cheap, Dirty, and At Home
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step 1: Gather up Your Materials
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step 3: Spread the Photo Emulsion onto the Screen
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http://www.instructables.com/id/Screen-Printing%3a-Cheap%2c-Dirty%2c-and-At-Home/
intro:
Screen Printing: Cheap, Dirty, and At Home
You don't have to spend a ton of money on equipment or have a screen printing studio to make some pretty good quality prints.
I taught some friends how to reuse old picture frames and curtains to make screens, burn them in the sun, and clean them with a garden hose. While we were at it we
took some pictures so we could share the lesson with you.
step 1:
Gather up Your Materials
Materials you will need include:
The image you want to use. The best is to have your image photocopied onto a transparency at maximum darkness. You can also paint or draw with white out on
transparent plastic (cellophane wrap or clear packaging from toys work). Another option is to make a cut-out with dark-colored construction paper or to lay some
flat object (pieces of lace are nice) on the screen. Objects that aren't flat (skeleton keys, for example) can also work, but you have to move the screen around in
that case to avoid a shadow.
You want your image on the transparency to be super dark because the image won't transfer to the screen if light gets through. If you want subtlety and shading you can
do it with dots, like a newspaper image. In this instructable we're keeping it simple and only printing one color. Very fine lines are not recommended with this technique.
Start out with something big and bold and then start experimenting.
Wooden picture frames which are completely flat on the front surface. You can find these in all kinds of sizes at the Goodwill or Salvation Army or at garage sales
for about a dollar each. You will also be using the pieces of glass that come in the frames. You will need a piece of glass from a frame smaller than the frame you
use to make your screen.
An old, gauzy curtain. Color doesn't matter, but it does need to be in reasonably good condition. It can't have too many holes. The more tightly woven the curtain,
the more fine your print can be, but you can get pretty nice results with any gauzy old thing. I keep my eye open for these at thrift stores and yard sales.
A piece of black or dark-colored fabric big enough to put the frame on.
A staple gun and staples. Don't get staples that are too long or they'll poke out through the frame. Even that isn't such a big deal, but it's preferable to not have
sharp little metal points sticking out along the inside of your screen.
Photosensitive goo and activator. Speedball is the most common brand you will find for this at the art store. You need the emulsion and the activator and they
come in two different bottles which you have to mix together. Don't bother with the screen cleaner. If you want to reunse the same screen for other designs, you
can get screen cleaner.
I recommend buying an art squeegie specially for screen printing. You can get along without one, but it's a lot easier to print with this tool than to do it with a hunk
of cardboard. But in a pinch, the hunk of cardboard will work, too. The lip of a box works best because it has a good straight edge and is rigid yet flexible.
Sceen Printing ink. You can get this at the art supplies store. I have also printed on wood with acrylic paint and gotten good results.
Masking tape
Old cereal boxes or similar kinds of cardboard scrap. You'll want to have a little supply of pieces of thin cardboard around. They are super useful for all kinds of
things, like scraping ink off sreens and putting it back in the jar.
Old newspaper to protect the surfaces you're working on
If you are printing t-shirts you'll need paper to put inside the shirt when you print so that the ink doesn't bleed through the side you're printing on all the way
through to the other side. I use regular printer paper for this, but old newspaper would work fine.
A garden hose. It's best to have an attachment on the hose that shoots the water out with some pressure, but you can get away with not having one. I have used
the scratchy side of a kitchen sponge to help me get the emulsion off while spraying the screen with the hose. It damages the screen a little, but it works. Just
rubbing with your hand even helps.
An old rag for spills
Clothes you don't care about. You're going to mess up your clothes.
A garden hose, the more pressure the better, but you can by without an attachment if you have to.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Screen-Printing%3a-Cheap%2c-Dirty%2c-and-At-Home/
step 2:
Build Your Screen
1. Take apart the picture frames. Remove all the little metal bits and put the glass aside. You will need a piece of glass from a frame smaller than the one you are using
for your screen. Watch out for the edges of the glass. Don't cut yourself.
2. Cut a piece of the curtain rather larger than you need to cover the front of the picture frame and wrap around the edges. You are going to stretch the curtain over the
frame just like stretching a canvas for painting. It helps to keep an edge, so that you have a straight line to go by.
3. Stretch the fabric over the front of the frame and staple it into Place. Try to keep the fabric as straight as possible. If you staple it on diagonally, with the grain of the
fabric too far off from the square of the frame, you will run into trouble later. You don't have to be too anal about it, just try to put it on straight.
Staple the fabric onto the sides of the picture frame fairly close to the front edge. Pull it hard to make it as taut as possible.
I recommend putting a couple staples on one end, then a couple on another end, then on one side, and then another, and keep going round and round, pulling all the
time.
4. Cut the excess fabric off around the sides of the frame. Don't cut too close to the staples or the fabric will fray and come loose.
That's it. Now you have a screen for printing
http://www.instructables.com/id/Screen-Printing%3a-Cheap%2c-Dirty%2c-and-At-Home/
step 3:
Spread the Photo Emulsion onto the Screen
This is where all those scraps of cardboard come in handy. The backs of old notebooks work particularly well.
Read the instructions on the emulsion and activator bottles and follow them carefully to mix them together properly. Pour a little bit of the emulsion onto the screen and
spread it as evenly as possible onto the screen. You have to coat both sides. You can scoop the excess back into the pot of emulsion. Don't put it on too thick. You need
a thin coat, as even as possible, and on both sides. Try to avoid drips. Again, you don't have to be a perfectionist. Just do your best.
Once you've got the emulsion on there, put the screen in a darkish place to dry. Closets work pretty well. It doesn't have to be totally dark like a photo lab or anything. I
like to point a fan at the screen to help it dry faster.
Once it's dry you're going to want to go straight on to the next step so that the emulsion doesn't get exposed and harden completely on your screen. You can touch the
screen to feel if it is dry.
step 4:
Burn Your Image
1. Once the screen is dry, take it out in the sun and lay it face down on a piece of black cloth. The back of the frame is facing up and the screen is flush against the cloth.
You need UV rays to expose the emulsion. Even on a cloudy day, you can get exposure. A lamp at night will not work.
2. Now place your transparency (or bit of lace or leaves or whatever) on it, inside the frame and lay a piece of glass smaller than the picture frame on top of the image.
3. Leave it there for a while.
The sun is going to harden the emulsion. You'll notice it change from a lighter green to a sort of blueish color. Be careful of shadows. Even the piece of glass can cast a
shadow. It's a good idea to carefully move the whole thing a little bit to avoid shadows. If you do end up with a shadow, you can always patch it up later by dabbing a bit
of photo emulsion on the gap. Still, it's preferable not to have to do that.
Any part of the screen which doesn't get hit by the sun is going to wash clear. Be very careful not to let your image move around. The glass helps keep it in place and
also makes sure no sun gets in under the edges of the image.
How long this takes depends on how much sun you've got.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Screen-Printing%3a-Cheap%2c-Dirty%2c-and-At-Home/
http://www.instructables.com/id/Screen-Printing%3a-Cheap%2c-Dirty%2c-and-At-Home/
step 5:
Rinse off Your Screen
Once you feel pretty confident that the photosensitive emulsion is hardened in the sun, take your screen to the garden hose and start getting the emulsion off where your
image was.
This is easiest to do with a lot of water pressure, but it's still possible to do without a hose attachment. Rub the screen with your hand to help the emulsion wash out. I've
even gently rubbed with the scratchy side of a kitchen sponge. This can damage the screen a little bit, but it works pretty well. Don't scrub hard or you'll screw up your
screen.
I find this part to be the hardest part. I always get a little frustrated that the emulsion doesn't wash off fast enough and worry that it'll harden while I'm in the process,
especially on a sunny day. If your image was opaque enough you shouldn't have any troubles, though.
step 6:
Print!
Now that you've got a screen you are ready to print.
1. Mask the edges. The main weakness of these home screens is the edges. It's a good idea to put some masking tape along the edges of the screen before you start
printing so you don't get any sloppy leaks off the sides.
2. Place your fabric on some papers to protect the surface underneath. If you're doing a t-shirt, put a piece of paper inside the shirt.
3. Put the screen down on your fabric, put some printing ink along the top of the screen, and pull it over the image with your art squeegie. If you can't afford a squeegie,
use a piece of cardboard.
Be very careful not to let the screen move while you are printing. Hold it down firmly. You absolutely have to print on a good flat surface or you will get terrible results.
4. Lift the screen and admire your work. You rule!
http://www.instructables.com/id/Screen-Printing%3a-Cheap%2c-Dirty%2c-and-At-Home/
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Comments
50 comments
says:
Sorry this might be a very dumb question. I don't really have a bathroom where I could use the power hose to wash off the screen. Would you recommend
waiting till it gets dark to wash out the screen outside!? I couldn't expose it to any light during daytime correct!? I assume the emulsion can get pretty solid in
a matter of seconds on a sunny day...
Thanks so much for your help! This post is very enlightening!:)
says:
Hey,
i have been making tshirts for about 6 months now... i decided to go for the simple stencil with brush an acrylic paint (mixed with textile medium) but now im
kind of wishing i could spend less time on makin shirts, an was wondering if i can use acrylic paint with a silkscreen... i have alot of paint i dont want to put it
all to waste... any advice/help?
says:
i've used acrylics before and they will stay if you heat set em. just iron the area for like 5 mins being careful.
says:
yes make a squegge and your away get nail varinsh remover to clean screen when finished
says:
I wouldn't use acrylic on something that is going to get washed. Acrylics are generally water-based which means they will wash out. If you screen print on
something that won't get washed then it should be ok. You could do cards, plaques, stuff like that.
says:
Mar 17, 2008. 7:06 PM
(removed by author or community request)
http://www.instructables.com/id/Screen-Printing%3a-Cheap%2c-Dirty%2c-and-At-Home/
says:
rad shirts.
You are going to love screenprinting. It is way faster and takes a lot less ink or paint. It has a completely different feel from brushed on. I like both,
but looking at your stuff, I think you are going to love the way screenprinting makes your designs look.
I think you should experiment with the paint you've been using and then come back here and let us know how it goes. I've used acrylic paint to
print on furniture and paper, but never things I want to wash.
says:
I've done a lot of stencil work on t shirts with acrylic paint, just the 1$ basic painting stuff from the craft store, and while it's a little stiff at first, it
softens up with washing. If you put too much on it'll crack but I've never had a problem with it washing out.
says:
First of all, I'd like to thank you for posting this tutorial.
The instructions are simple, and very easy to follow.
I'm actually following your instructions for a school project.
However, I'm having a great deal of difficulty washing off the emulsion after it has hardened. I was hoping you could tell me some possibilities on why that is.
Or perhaps, an easier way to wash off the emulsion? I'd appreciate it.
Thanks in advance.
says:
when finshed with screen leave steeping in bleach for 30 mins and then you need to powerhose it or the professionals use a soloution called seristrip mix
with water rub on screen with brush give it 1 min then the emulsion just washs of in seconds still with powerhose
says:
you need to have the image on the outside of the screen with the sun shineing on the artwork which is stuck to the screen stick with spraymount a light
spray or use 3m scotch tape to firmly hold image to screen then leave out in sun for at least 50 mins or 20 mins under uv light you should see a diffrent
colour ghost image on your screen befor you wash out image you need a bit of presure from the water when washing out image start of by just lightly
wetting it
says:
Mar 19, 2009. 10:30 AM
First off, you are my personal hero for posting this. I'd have gone out and bought one of those $300 Yudu things if not for this instructable.
I've seen on the Speedball instruction sheet and on some other instructables that you can use a 150W lightbulb or something to do the emulsion exposure
indoors--what are your thoughts on that? (I've been stuck waiting for the weekends just to try and get good sun for the exposures, and I'm getting impatient
to make more designs!) "slimguy379" says he uses that on his DIY for like 15-20 minutes, but then again, he also makes his own emulsion so it might not
work the same as the Speedball stuff.
says:
i have a 150w bulb and a 10.5" reflector pan, and exposed the screens according to the directions on the speedball kit, and after an hour and a half, i
noticed some smoke coming off the screen...it burned a hole right through the material ( i was using curtain fabric). you could try to play wit the distance
of the bulb from the screen, but it will likely take a lot longer to expose the whole thing.
says:
this is a very helpful tutorial, however I want to point out, if you are using the "curtain screen" material - you have to be careful when you expose it under a
bulb and reflector, because the heat of the bulb can burn a hole in the screen.
i found out the hard way : (
i'm waiting for a sunny day to try it out and compare to the expensive screen material.
says:
Mar 15, 2009. 12:07 PM
omG this is so helpful i bought my boyfriend a $400 set to do this and it came with everything except the lights which were $600 alone , he doesnt know how
to burn the image without lights and a dark room to do the emulsion step, this is awesome hes gonna be super happy 2 use this . thanx u r awesome!
says:
I just did an experiment with a more loosely-woven cotton curtain and it didn't turn out very well. The curtain was white and I suspect it may have suffered
some bleaching in its former life, which weakens fabric pretty dramatically.
I've also got a screen made from a regular cotton bedsheet, but I haven't tried printing it yet. It soaked up a lot more emulsion than the screens pictured in
this how-to. So far in my experience, the nylon curtain was best.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Screen-Printing%3a-Cheap%2c-Dirty%2c-and-At-Home/
says:
Jul 25, 2008. 1:09 PM
coerul--thanks for the extra stretching tips.
Update on the cotton frame experiment: ugh! The fabric is super thirsty and sucks up the ink without letting enough through. Also, the cotton sheds fibers
and doesn't make a good, flat image.
says:
Would polyester work? I'm having no luck finding a nylon fabric...
says:
Mar 15, 2009. 11:18 AM
I think so.
says:
Hi there.
this is great! I have one question though. what would be the best way to try and do a multicoloured print? i also did this a long time ago at college, using their
kit, but i'd like some ideas on matching up colours, or even overprinting. i'm geussing perhaps some registration marks or something would help, though
obviously the point here is that we're trying to do this simply?
anyone tried doing, say, 2 colours?
A very handy, as they say in these parts, instructable.
Cheers
says:
I've done mulit-color prints before without registration marks, just lining things up by looking through the screen.
You can put more than one layer on one screen, if they'll fit. You have to just cover the one that you aren't printing with masking tape. You can make a
design stand out more by just printing it first in white and then printing your color on top of the white layer.
I think that whether or not you need registration marks really depends on how complicated your design is and how important to you it is for your design to
be perfectly aligned.
says:
Hey - love your tutorial!
We're doing some thermalfax printing in my textiles class and for practice we printed on sturdy paper (think file folder paper) then used an exacto
knife and cut out different parts of our design so we could later print the pieces of the design we cut out of the paper (the cut paper we called masks).
I've seen the masking tape way of doing it and that just looks like it's very complicated and wasteful of masking tape. I love using masks because you
can also print through a blank screen and the cut out mask to create a background in the same shape without detail.
Thanks again for your tutorial! thought I would add what I know
says:
Great instructable! Going to use this for my team's jersey. Just one question: How permanent is the printing?
says:
Use the right fabric ink, set it with the hot iron, and it is completely, utterly, totally, 100% permanent.
says:
Feb 23, 2009. 10:58 AM
I paint pin graphics on autos. I am looking for a "mini" silk screen process that allows me to print logos etc directly onto the vehicles surface. I know the
process exists because I've had to try and match several, like the cadillac wreath and crest, the ford logo, the bmw mini logo etc. Can anyone point me in the
right direction? The size I'm looking for would allow printing logos down to a half an inch or so.
Thanks Perry
says:
Feb 20, 2009. 10:41 PM
What should I do if my image is too big to print on transparency's. I have printed my image using 2 pages that over lap(but are glued together). How would i
make a big image on transparency?
says:
Make multiple photocopies and tape them together.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Screen-Printing%3a-Cheap%2c-Dirty%2c-and-At-Home/
says:
Feb 21, 2009. 10:44 AM
thanks, so the tape wont affect the light going through?
says:
Good paper
says:
Just from having done a bit of silk screening a useful tip is that after you've washed your screen, take it back out into the sun / UV light and let it sit for a
while and harden up. This will make the emulsion tougher for those long print runs.
says:
Dec 10, 2008. 2:17 PM
After I washed my screen I took the hair dryer to it for a few minutes. Apparently the heat also helps the emulsion set. It also dries the screen faster,
which is nice if you are impatient like me and want to get a-printin'.
Also, with regards to photocopying your image onto a transparency, I had no luck finding a place that could get it really dark. But I ended up using three
photocopied transparencies, which I aligned really well and taped, and it worked out fine.
says:
Jan 24, 2009. 7:16 AM
janetg, if you have an A4 printer, you can make great positives yourself. It is when you go to print, go into the printers properties dialogue box and
then the advance tab. What you are doing is telling the printer to put down as much ink as possible. Set paper to high quality (even if it is not), best
photo or image, contrast to high and brightness to low. You can do this even with plain paper and get great results. You will have to muck around with
the printer settings to find what combo works best, if you are going to use a photocopy you should also set it to dark. If you hold your positive up to
the light and you can see through it, then the light can pass through it.
says:
Dec 11, 2008. 4:35 AM
The equipment that they used to use to make those high contrast transparencies was a bromide camera. There probably aren't that many around
these days, so using multiple photocopies works just as well. You might lose fine detail, but you were going to lose it anyway - it is a silkscreen after
all.
says:
approximately how many minutes do you suggest for outside, sunlight screen burning? i've seen videos where a guy leaves the screen outside for about a
minute and a half and in another video, he uses an indoor lightbox and leaves it for about three minutes. your results look very crisp and clean so what time
range do you suggest? please answer back quickly, i've just finished making my own frame so i need to think ahead. thanks a bunch! :D
says:
Jan 24, 2009. 7:03 AM
It all depends on your emulsion type & thickness, your positive and the colour of the mesh also the mesh count you are using. But basically on a very
sunny day it can take 1 &1/2 to 2 min on white mesh & about 3 min on yellow mesh. (white mesh exposes faster, yellow mesh keeps better detail). It is
the UV light spectrum that cures (hardens) the emulsion, and the sun is a great source of UV. I have done exposures in a light sprinkle for 20 min and got
great results. You may want to get out the old SLR camera and use the light meter to take a reading each time you expose and record your results, so
next time it is easier. It is a bit of trial and error, but once you get it....it is so much cheaper. Based on Australian sun.
says:
i want to put white ink on a brown shirt. is that going to come out all muddy or is there a way to make it look nice? I love all the instruction though. the used
frames thing is a great idea!
says:
Jan 20, 2009. 2:35 PM
If you get opaque ink, you should be ok. Do a test on some dark scrap fabric to see what it looks like.
says:
Jan 20, 2009. 3:36 PM
Thanks, tracy. So basically I want a white box with a blue picture inside on a brown shirt. For the white screen, do i need to stencil around my blue
picture, or can i just make it a big rectangle and put my blue ink on top of it? does that make any sense? I obviously get that i need a screen for each
color, but do they have to be inverse images or can I dye on top of white dye?
says:
Jan 21, 2009. 1:54 AM
I'd make the box with a stencil. Print the stencil white.
Wait and wait and wait and wait for the ink to dry. Go buy groceries. Don't just sit there waiting, or you won't wait long enough.
Next, print the blue image on top of the white rectangle.
Here's something I did with two colors you can see to get an idea
http://www.instructables.com/id/Screen-Printing%3a-Cheap%2c-Dirty%2c-and-At-Home/
says:
Dec 29, 2008. 3:13 PM
Ok I have just started looking into this and wonder if the process where you trace your design onto the screen and then paint with modge podge (excluding
the areas where your design will be) will actually work. I do not have sunlight much at all here (Alaska Bush) and even if we did the screen would freeze
within seconds. Is there another way to burn the design into it and another way to wash this off? I don't think using a hose outside would be wise for me. Any
advice would be helpful.
says:
Dec 30, 2008. 3:15 AM
I'm not experienced at burning a screen without sunlight, but a UV lamp ought to also work if you have one. There are some comments about burning the
screen with artificial light. I was trying to do it with a halogen at one point, but that's not UV and I thought it was working because the sunlight coming in
through the windows of my apartment was exposing the emulsion.
I've done this process indoors in the winter in Boston. I burned the screen with sunlight coming in through the windows, and then I washed the screen in
the bathtub with the shower head.
says:
Dec 25, 2008. 9:02 AM
what a great instructable! but I have one question about the burning, is it possible to over-burn it? and how long does it usually take.
says:
Dec 28, 2008. 3:01 AM
Well, yes and no. If the thing you are burning is really, really, really opaque (like a cut out made of black plastic) and no light at all can get through it, then
you can't over-expose.
But a photocopy or print transparency, even doubled or tripled, is not 100% opaque and a teensy bit of light gets through. When that happens you can
get spots that don't want to wash out. It's happened to me before. With a transparency you'll have an easier time washing out the emulsion if you do it as
early as you can.
says:
Dec 27, 2008. 5:23 PM
Tracy, I am in trouble and really need your help! The last time I silkscreened was in the summer and I set my image in the sun to burn, without any problems
whatsoever. It took about 3 minutes to set, and it washed out perfectly. It is now winter where I live and I have decided to move my operation indoors. I am
using an indoor setup which includes a 250 watt photoflood lightsource which I set about 12 inches above my screen. Since I started using this method I
have not had much success and I'm starting to get really frustrated. I let my image burn for approx. 15 minutes or so (which I have read is the correct amount
of exposure time for the size of my image) and when I go to wash out my image the sections around the image that were exposed directly to light are starting
to wash out! Now I'll admit that I can get a bit impatient after waiting two hours for my emulsion to dry on the screen so perhaps it has to do with not waiting
long enough for the emulsion to set. Or: is 15 minutes not enough time for the image to be exposed? Also, I do not have a reflector housing around my
photoflood, so maybe this has something to do with it....Help! I do not want to wait for summer to roll around to start printing again. Any suggestions or
advice you have to offer would be GREATLY appreciated. Thanks!!!
says:
Dec 28, 2008. 2:57 AM
I exposed a lot of screens indoors near the window. You have to put the screen on a piece of black fabric so that you can turn it around to avoid
shadows, but it works fine. Turn the whole piece of fabric, don't try to just move the screen or you'll shift your transparency and screw everything up.
I judge when the emulsion is set by the color--compare it to a screen that's already done. The color changes from light green to a darker blueish green.
When the part that's showing is about the color of an already-exposed screen, you know it's good.
says:
Dec 16, 2008. 3:07 PM
ooooorrrrr you could just get fabric spraypaint which is like $7 a can
says:
Different aesthetic, but also nice.
says:
The activator is not so cheap and dirty -- hobby lobby lists it at 29.99. Is there something I'm missing?
says:
Oct 20, 2008. 11:04 PM
Jesus! What is that a GALLON of sensitizor?! You must be looking at industrial quantities.
Here are a couple links for you.
sensitizer
http://www.dharmatrading.com/html/eng/1940327-AA.shtml
photo emulsion
http://www.dharmatrading.com/html/eng/1940956-AA.shtml
I'm sure you can find other places to buy from, these were just the first links I found.
http://www.instructables.com/id/Screen-Printing%3a-Cheap%2c-Dirty%2c-and-At-Home/
says:
Oct 30, 2008. 11:17 AM
Unfortunately, the only place I could get it in town was Hobby Lobby, and they only sold a $30 kit with emulsifier and cleaner.
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