RCS T-Shirts: Printing Process

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Silk Screen Printing Set Up 

Tools and Materials:

  • Burned screen ready to print 

  • Backing boards (1 inch x 2 inch smooth plywood marked with registration marks and a center line for lining up the t-shirts)

  • Support blocks (wooden pieces to rest the screen on)

  • Spray adhesive

  • Simple green

  • Duct tape 

  • News paper

  • Squeegee

  • Ink

  • Something rigid to scoop ink

  • Cardboard flaps 

  • Drying rack

  • T-shirts 

  • Paper towels (it gets a little messy)

Materials to get started

Materials to get started

Arrangement: 

  • Cover the table that the screen will be resting on with news paper (tape it down)

  • Place two matching support blocks about the same width of the screen on the table for resting the screen on top of. Use these to keep the front of the screen propped up when resting, so ink doesn’t smear on the table and the front of the screen and get ink on shirts.

  • If it’s been a while since the screen was used, wipe it down with some simple green to remove any potential dirt or grease.

  • Prepare the screen by taping off the edges/corners and any stray marks where ink could get to the other side. Be neat with the tape because if there is a wrinkle, ink can get under it

  • In a well ventilated area apply spray adhesive to the backing boards

  • Use the backing boards to line up the collar for registering the shirts, and use the center indicator line to make sure the t-shirt is centered on the backboard.

Carefully tape the edges of the screen, and any places you don’t want ink to pass through

Carefully tape the edges of the screen, and any places you don’t want ink to pass through

Screen resting on wooden support blocks

Screen resting on wooden support blocks

backing board for t-shirts

backing board for t-shirts

t-shirt centered on backing board, and collar placed on appropriate alignment number (in this case, number 3)

t-shirt centered on backing board, and collar placed on appropriate alignment number (in this case, number 3)

Printing Process: 

  • Lay out a thick line of ink above the top of the design. 

    It can be close to the image and should barely extend past the design edges (so there is enough ink to cover the design, but not so much that it’s all squishing over the sides of the squeegee. 

  • Test the screen by printing on scrap paper or newsprint before printing directly onto the shirts. 

  • Line up the center line on the screen with the center line on the backboard. Place the the edge of the screen at the appropriate line 1-3, depending on t-shirt size.

    You will need to slightly fold up the bottom hem of the shirt to see the center line at the bottom

  • When it’s lined up place a cardboard flap between the shirt and the screen 

    This helps lift the screen away from the shirt slightly so that there can be space to press the ink onto the shirt without the screen resting in the ink. It helps create a thick and clean print.

Make the print. 

  • Pull squeegee toward you. Make 2-3 pulls using even pressure. 

  • Carefully lift the screen away from the shirt and move to the resting place.

  • Be careful to not let the ink dry in the screen. Do not leave the screen filled with ink for more than 10-15 minutes. Either continue printing more shirts. Make several pulls on scrap paper to re-flood the screen, or clean the screen out entirely. If you let the ink dry in the screen it’s game over.

  • Carefully lift the shirt from the backing board and place to dry 

  • Lay out the next shirt and repeat 

  • As you print you may need to reapply spray adhesive to the backing boards 

  • If the screen gets over flooded and ink gets onto the backside of the screen make a few lightly flooded runs on newsprint to clean it up (you can even wipe the back side of the screen with newsprint if it isn’t flooded) 

  • When printing the backs of the shirts - line the tag up with the center line, and line the top of the collar with the top of the backboard.

Lay a thick line of ink across the top of the design. Line up the center line on the screen with the center line on the backboard. line up the top edge of the screen with the number 2 for small - large shirts, and 3 for XL.

Lay a thick line of ink across the top of the design. Line up the center line on the screen with the center line on the backboard. line up the top edge of the screen with the number 2 for small - large shirts, and 3 for XL.

Cardboard flap placed between the screen and the bottom of the shirt

Cardboard flap placed between the screen and the bottom of the shirt

printing on the t-shirt backs - lining up the collar

printing on the t-shirt backs - lining up the collar

Krista Printing

Krista Printing

t-shirts drying on drying rack

t-shirts drying on drying rack

IMG_9446.jpg

Clean up: 

  • After the last print do not flood the screen

  • Scrape as much ink as possible off the screen and squeegee and put it back into the jar

  • Spray the design with water to keep it from drying out

  • When you replace the lid of the jar wipe the rim with a damp cloth or sponge to remove any stray ink in order to prevent sticking 

  • Peel back the tape and discard

  • Rinse the residual ink from the squeegee and screen

    Be sure to get everything and that no ink is left in the open areas of the design 

  • Wipe down with Simple Green cleaning solution to be safe 

  • Let everything dry out before storing 

  • Do not store the squeegee on the rubber end. It could warp and ruin. 

Heat Set: 

  • Once the ink has had time to get good and dry, heat set 

  • The shirts can be heat set manually using an iron, or be placed in the dryer on high heat setting (we do 10 minutes in the dryer).

  • Heat setting the shirts prevents the design washing away or quickly fading when people go to wash them.

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Deborah Schwartzkopf

As a studio artist, she makes fabulous tableware that infuses life with purposeful beauty. Deb was inspired by the guidance of amazing mentors along the way. These important relationships fostered her desire to engage and build community through clay. Her adventurous spirit has taken her across the country and beyond to form a depth of experience, knowledge, and a supportive network.

In 2013 Deb established Rat City Studios in her hometown of Seattle, WA. RCS is her home and personal studio, as well as, a creative space for multiple studio members working independently. In 2022 she opened a sister studio, Rain City Clay in West Seattle. RCC is a community art center focusing on experiential learning through ceramics classes of all levels.

With over 15 years of experience, a Master’s of Fine Art at Penn State, artwork included in collections such as the Kamm Teapot Foundation, San Angelo Museum, and the WA State Arts Collection, numerous publications including Ceramic Monthly, Pottery Making Illustrated, and Studio Potter Magazine, she has been recognized and honored in her career as a maker.

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