Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Final day of screen printing

Day 3 - Setting the design
The next step is to print the design on Acetate paper (this just looks like a clear piece of plastic). The first five printing attempts were unsuccessful. The ink kept bubbling up on the paper. We decided that it may be the paper, so we tried a different brand that was more expensive. Finally, we had the design printed. Next step is to set the screen under a lamp with the acetate paper on top of the screen. This is the process that actually converts the design to the screen. I don't think the directions ever really said how long the screen should be under the light....so we waited and waited. I guess about 2 hours in total.
After the light exposure, the screen needs to be flushed with a strong stream of water. We tried the kitchen sink but the stream wasn't strong enough. So outside we went. The garden hose worked well but it was cold.
We could tell right away that the silk screening did not work perfectly, because we could see areas of the design that were still filled with the emulsion. The Final Step is super easy, just apply the paint to the screen! Most of the design came out perfectly on the t-shirt. All in all the first attempt at screen print went OK, but definitely room for improvement. I think this will work perfecting to imprint the PURDY logo on my products.

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