Simple screen printing using everyday items
A tutorial and product review
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As mentioned in my welcome post, I used to specialise in hand printed and painted textiles that I made into various fashion and home items. That was many years ago and although I continue to sew and work with fabrics, I haven't designed or printed my own textiles in any significant way for a very long time.
Deciding to dabble again I felt really frustrated that I'd got rid of my screens and equipment. Why do I always need things when I've got rid of them?
Anyway, it did give me the chance to do a bit of supplies shopping - and I was very restrained! A new screen, squeegee and some inks were ordered and put into use on a new fabric design, which I will write about in another post very soon.
New inks = colour samples
This brand of eco-friendly, water-based inks were new to me, so I wanted to prepare a few colour samples; I decided to use a really quick and simple temporary method using an embroidery hoop, fine mesh window voile and a permanent vinyl stencil cut on my Cricut Maker (you could use hand cut vinyl or paper too) rather than using my large screen.
Get involved!
This method is so quick and easy to do at home and you will be able to make some amazing, unique, printed items in no time! Follow along below and be sure to tag me in your creations @cloth_curios_coolthings on Instagram or on the Facebook page @clothcurioscoolthings.
Tutorial
Using permanent vinyl will result in a printing screen that will not hold up to being cleaned and kept for use again. For something more robust, you could use heat transfer vinyl, applying it carefully using an iron or heat press (with a pressing cloth) onto the voile fabric.
Items needed
Wooden embroidery hoop
Window voile or organza fabric
Masking/painter's tape
Permanent vinyl (not HTV heat transfer vinyl)
Fabric, paper or card to print
Old tea towel and/or paper to protect your surface
Scissors/knife/digital cutter/die cut machine
Steps
Make your screen
Cut your voile or organza fabric slightly larger than the hoop, place the smaller hoop on the surface and lay the mesh over the top. Don't loosen the screw on the larger hoop too much so when it slips over the smaller hoop it helps to tighten the mesh fabric. 
Do the screw up really tight and use the excess fabric around the edges to pull it as tight as you can. Once you are happy, trim away the excess.
Make your stencil
With the vinyl, cut your stencil design on your digital cutting machine, die cutter or by hand. Don't forget that you will need to mirror the design so it is back-to-front when you cut it (if it's not plain and symmetrical like my heart shape).
Weed out the area of the design that you want the ink to pass through to show on your fabric or paper. Keep the surrounding, negative piece; this part is your stencil.
Prepare your screen for printing
Attach your stencil using transfer tape to the flush, flat side of the hoop screen mesh and ensure that it is really well burnished down. Be careful not to loosen the mesh.
On the other, deeper side of the hoop screen add masking/painter's tape to cover all the gaps around the stencil. This will help to stop splodges of ink escaping onto your printing surface.
Prepare and protect your work surface
I've used an old tea towel folded with a piece of card sandwiched in the middle, which I've taped down to stop it shifting. The tea towel adds enough friction to grab the fabric to stop it moving around. If you're printing onto something like a t-shirt or tote bag, place a piece of card between the layers of the item to stop the ink seeping through.
Inking & printing
Working with the mesh side of the hoop screen directly against your printing surface, use a spoon to add some ink in a line above your design. Hold the frame firmly in place with one hand and, using an old plastic card or squeegee (wider than your shape), pull the ink down over the design in one smooth movement. Use an angle of about 45 degrees and apply firm, even pressure. Rapidly repeat this movement once again. This should be enough, but if you see lines, missing areas or uneven splodges in the ink, repeat until it is uniform.
Once you are happy that you have even coverage over your stencil, remove the frame carefully to reveal your lovely print.
Allow to dry thoroughly and (if fabric) heat cure as per the manufacturers instructions. Mine needed heat pressing for 2 - 3 minutes at 160 degrees. I used my Cricut mini press with a pressing cloth for protection.
Product review
Hunt The Moon Screen Printing Inks - UK manufactured eco friendly colours.
I was really happy with the inks. They had a nice consistency, were low odour and really easy to clean up with soap and water. Perfect for use in my spare room studio. A little went a long way, so they were very economical and the wide aperture jars allowed excess ink to be scraped back in, avoiding wastage. I tested them on various, light coloured cotton and silk fabrics and the prints were vibrant, even and opaque. The handle of the printed fabric was quite soft after drying and curing, although I have not yet done a wash test.
I'll definitely buy more of these inks and I'll leave a link to the company I used below. As well as screen printing equipment they offer a good range of mixable screen printing ink colours and metallics in addition to frequent limited edition bundles. The inks are manufactured in the UK and are environmentally friendly. The company is B Corp certified and plants a tree for each order it receives. I was really impressed with their service on this occasion and would certainly recommend.
This is not a sponsored post and I sourced and bought the supplies myself. However, if you use the link provided below, I will earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you.
UK based screen printing supplies & services: Hunt The Moon
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