How to Do Screen Printing on T-shirts at Home
Using a screen printer at home is intimidating to many at first, but it’s easier than you’d guess. You can familiarize yourself with it in minutes and start working on your customers’ orders immediately.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
How to Screen Print Shirts at Home
The screen printing machine functions like a stencil. Instead of cutting images one by one, you just coat the screen in a picture emulsion and cut out the image with the help of a laser.
Here are the steps to follow to screenprint:
1. Create an Image
The first step is to come up with a good high-resolution image, keeping in mind that the artwork is vital for the whole printing process. Coming up with a bad design will make the coating mediocre, the screens won’t be good, and consequently, the design on your t-shirt will not be good either.
Most screen printing machines need at least 300 DPI. The higher the resolution, the better the results. The other reason why I’m insisting on a high-resolution image is because such an image is much easier to prepare for printing.
2. Separation
Separation is a pretty simple process concerned with the removal of individual colors from the design. If your image features different colors, say red, yellow, and blue, each of the colors will be separated from one another and printed on vellum or a film.
Most people prefer using a film, because the film delivers higher-quality results by enabling the production of better lines and dots.
3. Exposing the Image on the Screen
Once the screens are ready for burning, take them to the exposure unit. The exposure unit refers to a box with a light inside. Place the film between the screen and the exposure glass allowing the light to shine through glass and film, and hit the screen. Keep in mind that if the light does not hit the screen, the emulsion will wash out.
Emulsion is just a photosensitive fluid that you apply to the screen before exposing it to the light.
I recommend using a squeegee to apply the fluid to ensure it covers most of the screen. Once the emulsion is dry, keep it in a dark room for an hour or two to prepare it for the separation process.
Read Related Article: How To Make Screen Print Transfers
4. The Printing Process
Your screen is ready for printing. Now, set it on the press and apply ink to it. You might need to mix several inks to attain a certain color.
At this stage, everything is ready and you can proceed to print your garments. If you have small runs, you can do them one after the other using the template. If you have medium or large runs, I suggest doing them on the auto-press, if your machine supports that.
Conclusion
Screen printing happens to be the oldest and most widely used method of printing t-shirts. The fact that this method has been used for such a long time means it is highly dependable and it delivers nothing short of the highest quality.
By following the tactics described above and of course, doing a bit of practice, you will be an expert at screen printing before long.
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