DIY Simply Screen screenprinting kit.

I've always been a HUGE fan of screenprinting. I've done it with Mod Podge - do you remember my screen printed t-shirt? Well recently Plaid, makers of Mod Podge, released a Simply Screen screenprinting kit and let me try it. The exciting part of this kit is that you can 1) make your own design, 2) get detail that you can't get with Mod Podge screenprinting and 3) use the screens over and over. This makes this product great for personalizing, parties, school crafts or even Etsy selling if you are so inclined. It's way easier than traditional screenprinting and doesn't involve the expensive supplies, plus it's non-toxic. I'm thrilled.

I wanted to get started, so I quickly jumped in to making my own screen. I used free clip art of a deer (aren't they called stags when they're dudes?) to test the product and see what I thought. My experiment resulted in a basket with silver glitter and a hand towel with metallic silver paint. I can tell you that I was really pleased with how the projects turned out and LOVE my new screen. Take a peek at the process I went through, as well as some tips and tricks if you end up getting one of these bad boys for yourself.

Gather These Supplies

Simply Screen Silk Screen Kit
Simply Screen Paints - Metallic Silver
Simply Screen Foil and Glitter Adhesive
Simply Screen Glitter - Precious Metals
Surfaces to silk screen
Clip art

This is the kit, which comes in a handy little box that is essentially your own lightroom. All the goodies are in there, and you'll use the box to make your screen.

Choose your art. I downloaded artwork from a free clip art site and printed it in black (you'll want to do this for the best screen development possible). You can also see the little house set up and ready to go. Read the instructions carefully and thoroughly before you start, since there a few steps that are really important.

I followed the instructions by cutting out my design and placing it face down onto the emulsion sheet.

I taped down the design (just with Scotch tape) and added a piece of glass on top to hold everything down. I had gotten this tip from Plaid. This is an important one - you can just use glass from a frame.

Let everything cook for 25 minutes. Set a timer, because 25 minutes is important. You don't want to overexpose or underexpose the screen.

Fill the plastic container that comes in the kit with tepid water, then scrub the design (after 30 seconds) with the sponge that comes with it as well. It doesn't take much scrubbing before you'll start to see the emulsion disappear where your design is. Don't scrub too hard - medium force is fine.

It took me about three minutes to scrub away my design. I had to scrub a little bit more near the ends of the antlers. After you're done, dry your screen.

Tape the screen down to your fabric surface. Either side works.

Apply a thin line of paint or, in this case, adhesive to the top of the design and use the squeegee to pull it down. You'll see that the adhesive will go down into the screen (through the mesh) and down onto the fabric.

This is the adhesive when wet. It's got great detail.

Sprinkle glitter right on top with the little poofy thing. Let it dry and then knock it off - you'll have a sparkly deer left behind!

Now time for the hand towel. Adhere the screen to the hand towel and squirt a line of the paint up at the top.

Use the included squeegee to bring the paint down and right onto the fabric. Let it dry.

Here are my two projects - I love them both. The results exceeded my expectations - and I can't wait to use my screen on more items! I'm also looking forward to making a larger deer screen and using it on larger items. What do you think? Are you excited to try DIY Simply Screen?

Read More

I finally screen printed with Mod Podge.

I finally did it! I screen printed with Mod Podge. I've talked about this before, always wanted to do it, and I finally did. Let's not talk about the fact that I want to use wallpaper with Mod Podge too and haven't done it yet - no, let's not even go there. I'm so pleased with the results of my project that I bring you a tutorial. I'll start with something easy and then tell you about my shirt above.

Here's my first try, the snowflake tote:


To do screen printing yourself, you need to gather a few supplies. Here's what I pulled together.

Embroidery hoop - doesn't matter if it's wood or plastic
Sheer curtain panel - I got mine for $1 at the dollar store
Screen printing ink - any kind or colors, Speedball is great
Mod Podge - I used Fabric
Flat paint brush
Sheet of paper, any kind
Pencil
Cotton bag
Scissors

I like to jump in, so you should to. Take your sheer curtain panel and fasten it into the embroidery hoop. Screw it closed and pull the curtain tight, tight, tight.

Now turn your hoop over and cut the excess curtain material around the frame. Put the extra curtain aside and then pull your screen taut again.

Now get as crafty as you want to! You're going to need an image, so either hand draw one or print something off of the computer. I wanted a simple snowflake, so I hand drew mine (I first marked off the hoop so I wouldn't do it too big or small). Notice it would have been easier for me to print something or use a ruler, but I like to make things as difficult as possible and do lots of erasing.

Go ahead and place your screen on the design you just drew (or printed). Trace directly onto the screen with a pencil. All the tutorials I've seen use a pencil, so that's what I used. Not sure what happens if you use a pen, but I really didn't want to mess this up so I didn't try and find out.
Yay, my favorite part! Using the brush, paint Mod Podge on your screen where you DON'T want the ink to go through. This is called the "resist" because it resists the ink coming through the screen. I thought about it long and hard, and I decided to use Fabric Mod Podge. Why, because if it's washable, then it would be easy to wash the ink out (Mod Podge staying behind) and then use the screen again for multiple prints. I know, I know - I'm smart.
Let your Mod Podge screen dry for a few hours until it's completely clear. I did a few layers of Mod Podge because I was nervous about the ink getting through in some areas if I didn't do it well enough. Your host is also a neurotic screen printer.

This is the second fun part - place your screen down on the bag and paint! One important thing: place something between the layers of fabric, so that the ink doesn't bleed through. You never know. Be sure when you are painting through the screen to get the corners well. I did several layers of paint before I pulled up.

Pull the screen off and allow to dry. Check out my finished project again! If you found you messed up in any areas, go back and touch up with the brush. Follow the directions on the packaging of your screen print ink to finish your project (wash or heat seal, etc.).

Once I did the bag I was more confident, so I created this mini snowflake screen in the same way that I did the large snowflake one for the bag.
I grabbed a gray t-shirt and mixed together some black and white screen printing ink, then followed the steps I listed above. You'll notice I did several shades on the t-shirt. Gray tonal makes me happy, so printed one snowflake, then added more white. Then did it again. And again. And one more time. Finished t-shirt!
To completely finish her off, I added some buttons, because you know I love them. Great thing is that the screen is reusable, you have tons of curtain material from your sheer panel to make more and now your friends and family all want you to make them a shirt.

Read More

DIY Screenprinting - video primer.

I've discussed screenprinting with Mod Podge before. Because I think that sometimes the best way to learn a technique is to watch it done, I've added a new video from ThreadBanger.com that I've found. Learn a little bit about screenprinting from the pros, but then also check out the DIY version with Mod Podge!


How to Screenprint, Threadbanger - The best free videos are right here

Read More

Red on blue screen print.

I don't know that much about screen printing, but I've seen a lot of hype about it lately on DIY sites and then in mags like CRAFT.  Apparently it's really easy, and that makes it very attractive to me! I was surprised and pleased to find out that Mod Podge can be used to screen print, and the effect is very cool (as displayed here by Marisa Lynn).

Find an entire tutorial here.

Read More