The screen printing industry has been around for a long time now with a variety of screen printing supplies. With each passing year this industry continues to grow by great leaps and bounds. Before you get started in this industry though, you will need to have some very special supplies to use. They will actually play a key role in the quality of the items that you are able to produce. Therefore, it is important to understand what they are so that you will be able produce high quality screen printed items.
Screen Film
One of the first screen printing supplies that you will need is screen film. This is a clear, transparent film in which you print your design. It plays an important role in properly transferring the design to your t-shirt or other material that you are using. Keep in mind that regardless of what type of film you use, it has to match your printer (i.e. laser, inkjet). You can buy it in a variety of sizes to fit your needs.
Emulsion
Whenever you are transferring your design from film to mesh you will need to use some special, photosensitive emulsion. This is what you must coat your mesh screens with before you expose them to extreme light and pressure wash them to reveal the design that you just burnt into your screen.
Once you are ready to start printing with the screen you will need to have the right colors of ink for your design. You will use your ink after you have placed your product onto a flat surface and put the screen on top of it. Whenever you are done doing this you will need to pour some ink onto your screen.
Squeegees
After your ink is finally on your screen you will need to use a large squeegee to pull it across the screen, through the screen and onto your product. Whenever you choose a squeegee you will want to make sure that it is one that will allow you to be able to make a smooth, hard swipe because the ink needs to cover all of the different areas.
Mesh Screens
The mesh screens are the most important supply that you will need. These screens are specially crafted to hold your design after you are done transferring it. They are what allows you to print your design with key registration and quality. If you don’t have a lot of money to invest in screen printing supplies right away, you should note that it is both quick and easy to make your own mesh screens. You can find directions for how to do so online.
Other Screen Printing Supplies
While the main screen printing supplies have already been mentioned above, you should know that there are also other items that you will need before you get involved with the screen printing process. These other screen printing supplies include:
- Wood strips that measure 8 1/2 x 11″
- A staple gun with staples that you can use to join the nylon over the wood if you choose to create your own screen or if your screen needs to be repaired somehow.
- Some water-resistant masking tape
- Old newspapers are great to keep around in order to prevent messes from occurring
- A piece of cardboard that you can insert inside of a double layer of fabric (i.e. a t-shirt or a cushion cover)
- A stencil of your design
In Conclusion
Once you are armed with these screen printing supplies you will be able to start the screen printing process. Of course, as you continue along within the screen printing process you may find that there are other screen printing supplies that you could benefit from owning. The point is that these are the screen printing supplies that you will need to have available before you can even get started.