Just wanted to drop a post in here to inform everyone that I have a new method of creating screens.  I now use a Screenfax rather than a Thermofax.  It can expose the 200-mesh which can do much more detail.   It works great for DIY projects such as Wedding Invites, Business Cards, Event Posters or Fine Art.  Also,  I no longer feel the need to do a test print because the results are much more consistent.

~Projects~

Small Screen – This screen is approximately 1/4 of a letter size sheet of paper.  This size works well for business cards.  Printing on small items such as children’s clothing.   This is also the required size for use with the Gocco Stamp.  Which is great if you are creating a pattern by repeating the same image over and over.  The stamp works with mounted or unmounted screens

Medium Screens – These screens are approximately a half a letter size sheet of paper.  They work well for wedding and other invites, save-the-dates, greeting cards, postcards, printing on ceramic tiles, repeating patterns on fabric, small clothing.

Large Screens – These are approximately a full letter size.  They work well for printing posters, t-shirts, flyers, patterns on fabric, fine art.

X-Large Screens – These are narrower but longer than the Large Screens and can be also be used for posters, tees, flyers, posters, etc.

Gang Printing – Several images can be placed on one screen and areas taped off.  However, when printing this way, it is necessary that you do not tape the shiny/smooth side of the screen or it may tear the plastic coating off your screen and ruin it.  Place tape on the fabric/rough side and it will come off easily without ruining the screen.

~Mesh Guide~

Basically, I recommend the 100-mesh for fabric and the 200-mesh for paper .

The 100-mesh is more open, allowing for more ink to pass through.  This is necessary for printing on fabric.  The ink must penetrate the fabric slightly in order to adhere properly.

The 200-mesh is a tighter mesh which works well for paper.  Too much ink on paper will pool up and cause blotches on your print, so the 200-mesh helps you have more control.  It also allows for more detail necessary when printing on paper.

~Ink Guide~

For Paper – I recommend Liquitex Heave Body acrylic paints.  They are easy to control which makes finer/crisper prints.  Also, they are quite opaque which means light colors will shop up on darker papers.  They can be found at all arts and crafts stores in a variety of colors. The downside is that these inks can dry a bit quicker in the screen which blocks it and ruins it.  I have never had this happen, though.  I have always been able to wash the ink out when my prints start looking a bit blotchy.  Then, I just re-ink and keep going until the ink starts to look blotchy again.  I can usually do about 5-15 prints before washing and re-inking.

Speedball screenprinting inks for paper also work well.  These inks are bit looser than the heavy body paints but are also acrylic. The upside is that they do not dry as quickly in the screen.  The downside is that sometimes the wetter ink is a bit difficult to control.  Also, these inks can be quite transparent.  So, if you are planning on printing on dark paper, I recommend adding a bit of the white to your color (the white ink is opaque and makes a good base for the other colors). 20+ prints before washing screen.

Gocco inks for paper – These inks work well but keep in mind that they are oil-based and cannot be cleaned up with water.  You must use the ink cleaner specifically made by Gocco. Other solvents will destroy the screen. Many Gocco inks are transparent, so be sure to check color charts if planning on printing on dark colored paper. 20+ prints before washing screen.

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For Fabric – I recommend Speedball Screenprinting Inks for fabric.  These inks can usually be found in art stores.  Again, they can be quite transparent so mix with white if printing on dark fabric.  They also sell a line of opaque inks, but they have a pearl shimmer to them, so just be sure you want that before choosing these inks.  If printing on white/light fabric there is a wide variety of color choices including glow-in-the-dark and fluorescent colors.  Similarly, the Jacquard and Versatex inks for textiles work well.

I also recommend,inexpensive fabric paints that come in small containers and that are available from craft stores.  Such as Folk Art for Textiles (the metallics are really nice and show up well on dark fabrics). Just take care not to allow these paints to dry in your screen.  Stop and wash after every 5 prints or so.

I do not recommend Tulip fabric paints.  These inks for some reason will destroy the screen.  Seriously, stay away from these paints.

Plaid actually has a new line of small fabric screenprinting ink bottles available.  I tried them and they seem to work similar to other fabric paints.

Plastisol inks can be used but it is quite a hassle to clean.  I don’t recommend storing screens with plastisol ink on them because this destroys the screen after several weeks.  However, several prints can be made and the screen re-used if it is cleaned after each use.  To clean the screen you must use a citrus-based, drainage system-safe cleaner.  Also, you must use 100-mesh screen because the higher meshes get ruined more easily and cannot withstand the rigorous cleaning required.  Also, keep in mind that plastisol inks must be cured. Definitely, want to do your research previous to working with these difficult inks.

~For other surfaces ~

I have used glass/ceramic paint (water washable) with these screens and they work well.  I used Perm-Enamel from the craft stores. Take care to wash often and do not allow paint to dry in screen.

DO NOT USE SOLVENT INKS with these screens (such as sign paint) they will eat through the plastic film

Purchase screens here.

For information on printing with these screens click here.

Okay let me just start by saying that this technique is far from perfect, but it works and that, to me, is really exciting because it means it might be possible to outfit a Gocco machine with a reusable strobe flash and possibly eliminate the need to use disposable bulbs.

I don’t think that this strobe flash is powerful enough to properly expose a screen.  A more powerful flash is needed or maybe some type of reflective housing could be used to increase the power of the flash.

This works because flashes contain Xenon flash bulbs which are what thermofaxes and Gocco machines use.  So, I would imagine that some types of flashes use different technology and would not work at all.

Anyway, here are the mixed results of my experimentation.

I used 70-mesh film and a test flash on Promaster 5500 set on FULL

I found it helpful to place a cushion (a piece of craft foam) on the bottom so that I could apply more pressure.  Contact seems to be really important.  I also put a piece of glass on top of my screen to keep it from curling up.  I exposed several times and got mixed results.  It is in no way consistent.

Foam, Xerox copy(face up), screen (shiny side down) and glass. I found putting pressure on the glass while flashing seemed to help because contact is very important.

**UPDATE** Okay nevermind the glass.  I’m getting better results by flashing directly on the fabric side of the screen-mesh.  SO, foam, xerox face-up, screen shiny side down….Flash two or three times in the same the same spot then move to another spot.  Push down on the flash to ensure good contact between Xerox and screen.  Peel back screen slowly.  If not exposed in an area, reflash that area.  It’s easier to line up if you haven’t completely removed the screen that is why you want to peel slowly while checking.

Here are pics of my first couple of tries.  This is 70-mesh which is not great for paper and I’m working really small.

Not too bad, I missed the bottom part a little

I used duct tape to create a frame

This one didn't come out too well.