Silk Screen Printing Equipment

Silk Screening has been around for hundreds of years in one form or another and while nobody really knows where or when it first started we do know that the Japanese were the first to use this process. The process was quickly patented by an Englishman known as Samuel Simon later and then an American by the name of John Pilsworth advanced the art by creating multi color silk screens in 1914. Silk screening quickly took off as an affordable way to create things such as flags or banners, since the silk screen equipment needed was inexpensive and obtainable by nearly anyone.

Silk screening started with the use of silk as a screen, but as the art has advanced, silk screening equipment has become more efficient and things such as nylon and polyester have taken its place. The tools and process vary depending on how complex the process is, but silk screening equipment can either be very sophisticated or completely basic and silk screening is something that can be done by beginners quite easily.

If you are interested in learning to silk screen you will need a variety of equipment most of which can be bought at the art store or the hardware store. You can purchase a silk screen with which to do your work or you can make your own, depending on how handy you are. You will find an assortment of silk screens at art stores however and if you are just beginning this may be the better way to go. You will need mesh to go over your silk screen however the mesh will vary depending on the work you are doing, so you may need a variety of meshes for different projects.

You will also need an Emulsion available in art stores to put over the mesh, this blocks certain areas of the screen so no ink can go through at those spots. You will coat the mesh with the emulsion then dry it in a dark room.

For some types of silk screening a halogen light is used to burn a design into the screen it also serves to permanently dry the emulsion onto the screen so that the ink is unable to flow through the mesh. The last piece of equipment you will need other than your inks is a squeegee that is used in all methods of silk screening to push the ink through the mesh, and onto the fabric or paper that you are silk screening. This is the basics of silk screening equipment but it is by no means a definitive list, there are an assortment of other tools you may wish to pick up along the way as your art begins to flourish.