Screen-printing process

Screen-printing is a printing technique whereby a screen (a mesh stretched over a frame) is used to transfer colour pigments onto a substrate (fabric in our case).

Screen-printing consists of three elements: the screen which is the image carrier; the squeegee; and ink. It is a versatile printing process that allows you to print on many substrates – fabric, wood, plastics, metals and so on. A design stencil is created on the screen through a pre-press process where an emulsion is spread across the mesh and exposed to light through a stencil. The light burns away the emulsion in the stencil areas leaving behind a clean design patch in the mesh through which inks can be transferred onto the fabric. A wooden blade or squeegee is moved across the screen manually to fill the open mesh apertures with ink, and a reverse stroke then causes the screen to touch the fabric and transfer the desired design.

The trained screen printer moves the wooden blade in a firm and steady to and fro motion, spreading the pigment uniformly over the screen. After the ink has been spread on the screen, the screen needs to be lifted up carefully without smudging the pigments below. In screen printing, you have to print one colour at a time. Different screens are therefore made for different colours in the print.

Heat guns are often used to dry the pigments faster. Another method of drying is by passing the printed fabric through a textile dryer. A textile dryer consists of a heated chamber in which the fabrics are placed on a belt and passed under the heat element in the chamber for a pre-set amount of time determined by the belt speed setting.

See our picture gallery to understand the process better. We have used this screen-printing technique for our ‘Earthen Hues’ collection for girls and have achieved beautiful pantone hues and nature prints through it.

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