Screen Printing is a process of applying an image to fabric using a stencil. The artist creates a stencil and adheres it to a silkscreen, then applies a coating of photo-sensitive material over the stencil. When exposed to light, the areas of the screen that are covered by the stencil become hard and will not be affected when ink is applied over the top of them. This gives the print shop the ability to repeat the stenciled image over and over again, producing multiple copies of the same design. Screen printing professional must be skilled at designing and creating stencils for a variety of products, from clothing to furniture, and use a wide range of materials in their work.
In order to prepare the screen, the printer must first apply a layer of photo-sensitive emulsion to the mesh, using a squeegee. Then, the printer must create a stencil in one or more colors on the transparency or Mylar film. This can be done in a number of ways: hand-drawn with opaque ink, painted onto the screen, or transferred by photo-emulsion (a type of Rubylith) using an exposure unit. Once the stencil is on the screen, it must be washed out so that the emulsion will not be destroyed by the ink application.
The stenciled screen is then attached to a frame and a reservoir of ink is added to the screen. The operator then uses a squeegee to push the ink across the screen, filling the openings of the mesh with the ink. The operator then pulls a squeegee over the top of the screen, causing the ink to be pulled through the holes in the mesh and printed on the product underneath.
When a screen is finished printing, the artist will wash the screen with a special solution to remove any residual ink that hasn’t been pressed out of the mesh. This cleaning process helps to prevent any blemishes on the final product, and also prepares the screen for re-coating. The re-coating process removes ghost images, which are the faint lines left behind in the mesh by previous stencils.
The final steps of the screen printing process involve a lot of preparation, and the printer must be very careful to avoid any accidents with the ink. The screen is rinsed off with a high-powered jet wash hose, and then wiped down with a cleaner to get rid of any residual ink and allow the photosensitive emulsion to return to its normal state. This is a very important step, as it prevents the ink from sticking to other screens, and it will also help to ensure that the final product will be color-fast. The stencil is then removed from the screen, and the frame is washed in a special washing fluid, so that it can be used again. The process of preparing the screen, applying ink and then pulling it again will be repeated as many times as the artist desires to create a batch of shirts.
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