By Jess
8th May, 2008

Firstly, thank you to Long Chang Printing Machine Factory for using our blog as an advertising space - too bad most of our customers aren't looking to buy a screen printing machine!

Third Challenge - Screen Printing Knowledge - In the Know

It is important the person you trust to do your screen printing knows what they are talking about. There is no point sending your garments to somebody who uses the same type of screen for everything. What does the screen have to do with it? This is where your screen printer needs to be "in the know"!

While it is good to use the appropriate ink (as discussed in the first challenge), it is vital to use the right sort of screen. Screens come in various sizes and densities. If the wrong type of screen is used, the print becomes is patterned and produces a moiré effect.

Similarly important is the application of the layers of ink. If you would like a three colour job screen printed, the order of colour application can be critical to the quality of the final print; if the colours are black, white and green it might seem best to do white, green and than black, but in some cases this isn’t the case. The order of colour application is changed for a number of reasons; darkness of the colour, type of ink used, amount of one colour in design, garment material as well as the overall look trying to be achieved. If this order is taken lightly, and your screen printer simply always prints from lightest to darkest, they are limiting their ability to achieve high quality prints.

Finally, I would like to discuss a fundamental step that is often rushed or overlooked by screen printers – artwork preparation. I will cover this fully in the next blog, but this is something that people think is simple and quick, but is actually the reason each print works out. If your artwork and films aren’t prepared correctly, your print will look unprofessional and nightmarish.

The challenge still stands – Is Zulu Graphics the best screen printer in Newcastle? As of today, they still practise the basic screen printing knowledge, they still answer and they are ‘in the know’ – what more could you ask for from your screen printer?

If you would like to know more about the overall screen printing process, please visit this month’s Set In Print.

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