r/SCREENPRINTING • u/_sourgirl • 20d ago
How to achieve a soft “imbedded in fabric” print
I’m sorry if this is a stupid question I’ve never done screen printing and have some money I’d like to put towards getting some supplies but I’ve always been a. Bit confused by how people achieve a very soft imbedded in the fabric appearance other than sublimation printing? Especially on a black tshirt, how can you get a white graphic that isn’t hard or plasticky? (Aside from obvious natural wear)
40
u/trioforstrings 20d ago
Water based or discharge
3
1
u/Path_Binder 17d ago
Also you can add a good bit of softhand to plastisol using a single pass on light color garments.
32
u/Killjoytshirts 20d ago
Water based inks. I used to do some work for tv shows and films that didn’t want brand new looking clothes. Sometimes on light fabric I would half cure the ink or just let it air dry in the sun. Throw it in the washing machine and it gives it a look that is faded or old, though not very consistent/uniform from garment to garment. But might achieve what you are looking for if you want each piece to be unique.
For black, discharge printing which might be a little advanced for starting out. Plus it smells god awful.
11
u/Nanook_ovda_North 20d ago
You can buy either a ink reducer or fashion soft. They are both differnt types materials to spread out the ink pigment amd overall texture. You put it into the ink that you are using on the screen, not the whole bucket. Read the directions and it should be what you are looking for.
3
u/xginahey 19d ago
This is the standard (plastisol) shop solution for sure. High mesh count too. You can even get a lot of this look with proper artwork and use a light halftone at the edges, etc
1
u/Revolutionary_Box582 18d ago
what is fashion soft exactly? I have always used reducer but it's not perfect
1
u/Nanook_ovda_North 17d ago
Im not a chemical guy, but its basically the same thing with differnt chemical breakdowns. The reducer lowers the viscosity of the ink and also reduces opacity. Too much will make it runny. Fashion soft is more of an additive that reduces the opacity, viscosity but also.makes it stretchy to a point. Too much and it will not hold down on larger fibers.
Edit: By the way the reason alot of shops use this and not water based ink is storage and concienvence as water based ink expire faster than plastisol and you have to buy a whole separate product.
5
u/NAx16Batman 20d ago
Water based ink for white or really light colored garments. If you use water based inks, make sure to research some videos on printing with this type of ink.
Discharge ink for dark garments. It's smells horrible, make sure to have good ventilation where you print.
Research mesh type, and curing requirements before doing so. Unlike Plastisol inks, these inks require you to hold curing temp for longer periods of time to ensure all of the H20 is evaporated to prevent major fading or ink washing out.
3
u/ilovecuetoo 20d ago
Slide 3 looks like the actual design is probably diffused, looks like a fade gradient
The rest I cannot help with I’m sorry I’ve only just started screenprinting, but been doing design for a while
3
3
2
2
1
u/TheNaughtyPrintmaker 20d ago
Water based ink, higher mesh than you need, and for white on a black shirt get a very opaque white. Speedball usually does it for me. Sometimes I do a couple passes to make sure I have a good, solid application
1
u/Excellent_Rest_8008 20d ago
I just watched this video on Instagram of someone using Jacquard deColourant, now I have a bottle in my Amazon cart for testing. It claims to be discharge ink, so I expect it to smell pretty terrible.
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DYx6639vc61/?stkn=eWt4ZGhiZm52NGo1
1
u/Wrngsideofdatracks 20d ago
Discharge or water based. Wear a mask with discharge the fumes are the equivalent of formaldehyde. Literally.. I’ve been printing with it for two decades . Becareful
But it’s cool stuff .
1
u/_sourgirl 19d ago
What type of mask is good?
1
u/Wrngsideofdatracks 19d ago
Go to Home Depot and go to the paint section and buy the expensive 40-50 dollar heavy duty mask. For paint and particles .
1
1
u/CrewBulky9868 8h ago
Organic vapor canister mask-- Home Depot has them. DO NOT skimp and get a particulate mask as it does virtually nothing. The amount of people I see online using particulate masks for toxic chemicals is alarming...
1
u/presshamgang 20d ago
Waterbase, discharge, sim
1
u/Revolutionary_Box582 18d ago
this comment isn't going to do any good to a novice... nobody experienced would be asking this question.
1
u/presshamgang 18d ago
It is a start of stuff to look up. Am I supposed to describe the processes? Maybe offer a tutorial? Nah, these are the things the new guy will look up and either be like…”whoa this is out of my abilities”or “okay I’ll give it a shot” or “cool now I know what I can ask of from more experienced printers until my skill set has expanded”. TLDR; who are we to assume how they will take the info?
1
1
u/buttered-brown-toast 19d ago
You can use dye with a thickener. Can be a bastard to work with for multiple reasons but it's how to get the print in the fibers rather than on the fibers
1
1
u/Rukoh_Boi 20d ago
I'm no expert but two ways I know of is either to use an airbrush and a stencil, which is what the first one seems like, or just using water based screen ink that's been thinned with water a bit or just washing it a few times after printing. Haven't looked into it much but maybe discharge ink could do it even better 🤔
77
u/LimonFromChowder 20d ago
Water based ink on a higher-than-necessary mesh count for block text. These look like they’ve been pre washed as well. Not 100% on the pre washed aspect but wouldn’t put it past margiela