screen printing tips/advice

[breynolds]

so i have been doing some research on the said topic - been thinking about trying it out, and was wondering what my fellow team mates thought on the subject. what are some good products? anything tricky about the process? i did find a really thorough d.i.y on instructables http://www.instructables.com/id/Photo-emulsion-Screen-Printing and was wondering what you seasoned printers thought of it.

[SquidInkKollective]

I would suggest buying supplies from an actual screen printing supplier, I'm pretty sure anyone can buy from them. I'm fairly new to Austin, but have found this place: http://www.rivercitygraphicsupply.com/ it's run by a younger couple. They are at least a lot cheaper than buying low-grade products from a general art store. For example, check out their screen prices!

We use water-based inks, Nazdar, because they're much less toxic. But a majority of printers use standard plastisol textile inks; I can't recommend any particular brand.

The process is fairly simple, but so many things can go wrong, particularly with burning screens! I suggest going to the We Make Stuff event tomorrow and hammering the Under Pressure screen printers there with questions Plus apparently you'll be able to burn and print your own design there, that would be great experience, right? That way you can have a visual image to connect to questions about emulsion, screen size, mesh count, and so forth. They'll surely be using plastisol inks there which you can talk to them about.

Good luck!

[SquidInkKollective]

Miller supply also carries screen printing supplies: http://www.millerblueprint.com/
They're downtown.

[wildmoondesign]

is getting a YUdo worth the cost or can one do screen printing - like for your kids class or soccer team - cheaply and nicely by hand?

Thanks,
Anastasia