Comments on: Screen printing start

By: Dan C

Dan C — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 21:32:37 +0000

wow! i’m an experienced printer and i think this is really great textile work, especially for your third try! you will be very happy when you start using photo emulsion. its gonna make you life a lot easier.

keep up the good work.

By: smokingdrum

smokingdrum — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 08:15:53 +0000

Hi Michelle,

Thanks for your kind comment. Unfortunately I haven’t progressed the screen printing any more recently as I’m trying to sort out my job so I’ve been working on my folio.

I am very keen to get back to the print designs, though, and have had lots of ideas so hopefully soon we can start to work on them.

As for Alice, Lorna…I have two wives. The secret is finally out! No, seriously, Alice and Lorna are the same person - my lovely wife. She just likes to have two names to use as the mood suits her…

I am checking out your Flickr stream…such fantastic designs!

John

By: Cicada Studio

Cicada Studio — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 13:25:56 +0000

I found you thru your wife’s blog today. Firstly, let me say I can sympathize with your G5 woes… my relatively new iMac mysteriously shuts itself off these days and I am not ready to bring it into the shop just yet- they may keep it longer than I can afford. I find it a bit of a testament to their *superiority* that they can keep on going for a time with such critical problems looming. I suppose the day when it won’t start at all, will be the day I have to concede that it is time to go.

Well done for the first time screen printing. I used to silk-screen religiously years ago, but I admit I am now intimated by the technique with all the emulsions and such. I have a fear it will go all wrong. Luckily, my local screen printer can burn my screens of a reasonable cost. That is next year’s project however.

Oh, and one other question? Lorna? Alice? Which is it!? I’m so confused!

By: smokingdrum

smokingdrum — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 10:55:10 +0000

Thanks, I am planning to work on new prints tonight and at the weekend so I will definitely post the new work soon!

By: Jacqui Dodds

Jacqui Dodds — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 08:30:51 +0000

Hi John
Thank you for your reply - I have used Daler Rowney System 3 screenprinting onto paper but not onto fabric so I will have to try this. I have been doing some block printing with lino blocks which has been fun. Sounds quite difficult with the drawing fluid. Will check back to see how you are getting on.

Lucie - thanks for your comment about the thermoscreens I will check their site as I think your fabric printing is great too.
Jacqui

By: smokingdrum

smokingdrum — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 08:56:32 +0000

Hi Lucie and Jacqui, thanks for your comments!

Lucie, I’ll have to look at your site when I’m not at work. Looks like you have some great designs! I think I have a long way to go to design really good prints. It took ages to paint the screens by hand and I almost gave up at one point. I seriously want to do the photo emulsion thing. I can see that, not only would you get better results because photo emulsion is accurate to the original, but it must be a real time-saver.

Jacqui, Lorna got me the Daler Rowney screen printing kit. I designed the print in Illustrator, printed it in black on paper and then traced it onto the screens with a pencil. I referred to the print while I was painting on the screen fluid as the pencil was quite hard to see in places. Not the best way of doing it!

My goal is to help Lorna’s textile work by designing and printing fabrics, I have lots of ideas in progress and will be working on them more this week so maybe something new soon…

By: Jacqui Dodds

Jacqui Dodds — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 08:03:08 +0000

I think this is a fantastic result and you have only just started! Can I ask which screenprinting kit you have and also how did you transfer the image onto the screen - did you draw it/trace it as I imagine it is difficult with drawing fluid getting the exact image? It is much easier with photo emulsion but then you have to have a strong light source.
Jacqui

By: lusummers

lusummers — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 07:44:22 +0000

hello! i’ve found this post really interesting becasue i too have just started screenprinting my own fabrics. i’m so impressed you painted these screens, i’m not surprised it took forever! i get mine made into thermofax screens - a little bit expensive but perhaps worth you checking out for reference? http://www.thermofaxscreens.co.uk. you basically send them a photocopy of the design and they create a screen for you. available in 3 sizes, and they send them pretty quickly. this design is lovely by the way - the design in illustrator is goegeous as it is too!

By: Raspberry » Blog Archive » printing, flowers and storage

Raspberry » Blog Archive » printing, flowers and storage — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 16:05:43 +0000

[...] I wanted to explain a bit more about the fabric that we printed on the cushions which are now in the shop, but John has written such an excellent post on his blog, I think you should go read all about it there! [...]