This is a blog post on how to use drawing fluid for screen printing. I have been going to back to fabric designing and fabric dyeing lately. I wanted to pursue my dreams and things that hit me from my very heart. So I am now been back to my garden shed to experiment and at the same practice fabric printing technique. This method also works on paper printing as well.
There are indeed many on how to print on a stretched silkscreen. This craft has been around for many years. it dates as far back as AD 960 in China. Using drawing fluid is one of the many methods which then block out by screen filler is one of the many ways one can print using silkscreen. I will write more about this printing on silkscreen as I go along. My earlier posts on printing were on mono printing on the silkscreen.
How to use drawing fluid for screen printing
In this method, I use drawing fluid from Speedball. This is easily obtainable from art shops. Daler and Rowney do them as well. It is very easy to apply by using a paintbrush. Therefore this method is only good for prints that don’t require much precision. This method also gives a sense of print printed being hand-drawn in which is makes the textile print produce unique.
It does indeed takes time using this method as one will need to wait till it dries. Then apply the screen filler. The drawing fluid is water-soluble and the screen filler is not. As the screen filler is not water-soluble it will retard any screen print ink when printed. once the screen filler is applied and dried. Then one will need to wash off the drawing fluid. The screen is now ready for printing.
The downside of using drawing fluid in screen printing is that it takes time for both fluids to dry. It is also not easy to remove screen filler. When I first started I nearly gave up and threw the screen away!! Don’t do that as ready-made screens don’t come cheap. I use Mr. Muscle Oven cleaner ?!! Who would have thought? It is easily obtained from shops if you are based in the UK. I have read reviews of Speedball screen remover as Mr muscle is a much cheaper and effective option I have to try anything else.
Thank you for dropping by. Do let me how you get on by leaving a comment.
