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The Best Way to Register Water-Based and Plastisol Screen Prints
Registering a print is a vital piece of the screen printing process. Printers need to make sure that all screens align with each other and have the proper placement on a shirt. Let’s take a look at properly registering single and multicolor prints with plastisol and water-based ink.
How to Achieve Matte or Glossy Screen Prints
Ink has the ability to look matte or glossy. Sometimes, a print will come out of the dryer looking glossier than expected, or more matte than you’re looking for. Wondering how to adjust the final looks of the ink? Let's look into it.
Best Practices for Adding Screen Printing Ink to a Screen
Adding ink to a screen for the first time can be a bit daunting. It seems easy enough, but once you get the ink bucket, spatula, and screen, you might wonder exactly how to do it. How much ink do you add? Where do you put it? If you’re asking these questions, keep reading. Let’s walk through how to prep ink for printing and how to apply it to a screen.
3 Easy Steps To Screen Print On Wood
Screen printing doesn’t have to just be about printing t-shirts. You can print on just about anything with the right tools and process. One unique material to print on is wood. It’s a fun process that can make you stand out from the pack as a screen printer. Want to know how to do it? Here’s a step-by-step guide to screen printing on wood.
Preparing Art and Screen Printing CMYK with Water-Based Inks
Have you ever wanted to screen print CMYK, but didn't know where to start? Here's a crash course. In the video, print expert Colin Huggins shows you how to do CMYK color separation in Photoshop and how to screen print a photo in CMYK using water-based inks.
Best Practices for Screen Printing Water-Based Ink on Black Posters
Printing posters are a great way to test out prints and get your work past the t-shirt industry. With the proper technique and a little bit of patience, you can print great looking posters without needing an advanced print shop setup. Cory Romeiser, art director at Golden Press Studio, decided to dip his toes into poster printing. He printed a two-color design on black poster (something he’s never done before).Â
How to Prepare A Screen For Water-Based Printing
Prepping a screen for water-based inks can be a little more tricky than plastisol. The print deposit is thinner, the ink dries on the screen over time, and the ink can potentially break down emulsion faster than plastisol ink would. Because of this, you need a good screen to get a good print. Let’s go through the process of making a screen so you’re prepared for your next water-based job.Â
How to Start Water-Based Printing
Water-based ink is becoming more and more popular. With more shops turning to greener methods, printing with water-based ink can be nicer on the environment and your health. Many printers believe that water-based printing is more challenging than printing with plastisol. If you step into it the right way, water-based printing can actually be easier and save you time and money.Â
Why Salt & Pine Co. Prefers to Print with Plastisol Ink rather than Water-Based
A handful of screen printers start out using water-based ink. For some hobbyists and DIY printers, it’s a more forgiving ink to learn the ropes with (for some, others find plastisol easier). If you make a mistake, you can wash it out. But water-based ink does have its drawbacks if you don’t have the proper tools. Sometimes, making the switch to plastisol ink is worth it. Amanda Dunigan, creator of Salt & Pine Co., shares her experience when she switched from water-based to plastisol ink.Â
What is the Purpose of Emulsion Hardener?
Ever had a stencil break down during production? It sucks. Unless you have backup screens ready, production will come to a halt. Your time is valuable. For jobs that need tougher screens, use emulsion hardener to save you time and money.
A Guide to Printing on Youth Apparel
Printing on youth apparel seems simple, right? Everything is smaller, but as long as you size everything to fit, it shouldn’t be a problem. Turns out, it’s a little more complicated than that. The Customer Protection Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA), has enforced safety regulations on children and youth products for more than a decade. Let’s dive into it and find out what it means for you.
Printing with Plastisol vs. Water Based Ink
Screen printers debate which is better: plastisol or water-based ink. Some printers start out with plastisol ink, while others opt to jump right into water-based printing. But how are they different? Why would you use one over the other? Ink master Colin Huggins lays out the differences and nuances to printing each type of ink. You’ll be able to decide which ink is best for your shop.
