![]() ![]() you can also get in there with the x-acto knife to keep the vinyl from sticking to the tape.ĥ. If the vinyl starts to pull up in spots, try pulling the tape at a different angle or from a different direction. Back on the shirt side, slowly peel off the masking tape. We need them to want to stay on this fabric!Ĥ. Pay extra attention to the small pieces of vinyl. I used mainly the edge of my thumbnail with a lot of force. From the squeegee side, force the fabric into the vinyl. Flip the ring so that the vinyl is on a hard surface. The goal of this step is just to evenly apply the stencil, not to get good adhesion. This will keep the floating sections of vinyl in place during transfer.Ģ.Peel the adhesive backing off of of the vinyl, and LIGHTLY apply it to the shirt side of the fabric. After cutting your vinyl pattern off of the roll, cover it in masking tape. This is the side of the fabric that can be pressed onto the shirt without the ring getting into the way. When I say " the squeegee side" of the fabric, I'm talking about the side inside the ring (the one pictured in the previous step.) When I say " the shirt side" of the fabric, I'm talking about the other side. We'll be doing stuff on both sides of the fabric during this step, so just so we're clear: I'll be inking one item for this Instructable, but there is enough stuff here to make many more screens without needing to buy anything else. The rest you should be able to source locally. Cheap! Some of this stuff you may already have. Scrap piece of cardboard - Used during the inking process as both a backing and a squeegee.Īnd that's it. Depending on the selection at your craft store, you may need to spend more on a larger amount. I was able to spend $4 on a 2oz bottle of ink. Silkscreen Ink -This is probably the biggest variable in the kit. (~$2) Pencil & Pen - These are for transferring our image to the vinyl. Masking Tape - Used for transferring the vinyl to the fabric, and for masking-off unused areas of screen. I'm not adding this to the cost because if you don't have scissors, you should probably buy a pair to have anyway. I got mine for $1.29 Scissors - For cutting the fabric and vinyl roll. ( I think this would work) 8" Fabric Hoop - This will hold the fabric taut. You're looking for a mesh that's open enough to allow the ink to go through, but tight enough for the vinyl to adhere. Sheer Fabric - I used an old window-curtain, but you can buy this stuff at any fabric store for $5 a yard. I don't have one however, so I used an x-acto knife (~$2.50) to cut my pattern into the vinyl. (~$10) X-Acto Knife - If you have a vinyl cutter, by all means use it. I used this stuff, designed for the Cricut vinyl cutter. Adhesive Vinyl - You can probably get this cheaper online, but I wanted to use something that I could buy locally. Here's what you will need: Printout - An image of what you want to silkscreen, mirrored from how you want it on the shirt. I added a few tweaks, and the rest is history. The fabric-hoop idea I got from here, and the adhesive vinyl idea I got from here. This procedure is basically a mashup of two other Instructables. The goal here is that you can walk into a fabric/craft store, spend about $20, and walk out with everything you need to make some decent-quality prints. This is the instructable I wish I had found many years ago. I wanted something I could neatly stow away and play with when I felt like it. Because I didn't know if this is something I would even like, I didn't want to have big picture frames or emulsion chemicals lying around. Even the $100 screenprint "systems" seemed too expensive what if I didn't like it? what if the quality was crap?Īs far as DIY methods I found, nothing quite scratched my itch. For years I'd wanted to try it, but I couldn't justify the cost. ![]() This instructable seeks to significantly reduce the cost of silkscreening small numbers of shirts. No more excuses! For $20 you can make a dozen screens, each with the ability to ink many times. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |