Table of Contents

Introduction 6

1 Imagery Color, Ink, and Fabric 7

What to Print 8

Color Basics 10

Textile Inks, Other Colorants, and Base Extenders 13

Mix Custom Textile Inks 16

Fabrics and Other Substrates 17

2 Getting Started 20

Setting Up Your Studio 22

Taping Your Screen 28

Make a T-Shirt Printing Insert 29

Build a Simple Print Board 30

Pin Fabric to Print 32

Ready, Set, Print 33

3 Low-Tech Prints 36

Brief Overview 38

Tools and Materials 39

Found-Texture Stencils 41

Contact Paper Stencils 44

Acetate Stencils 45

Freezer-Paper Stencils 46

Drawing-Fluid and Screen-Filler Stencils 48

4 Detailed Prints 50

Tools and Materials 52

Editing and Manipulating Your Images 57

Construction Paper Stencils 60

Coating Your Screen 61

Exposing Your Screen 62

Calibrating Exposure Time with Test Swatches 64

Reclaiming Your Screen 66

5 Placement, Patterns, Repeats, and Registration 67

Placement Printing 68

Implied Repeat Patterns 70

Interlocking Repeat Modules 71

Measured Repeat Patterns 72

Design a Repeat Module 75

Print Square, Brick, and Half-Drop Repeats 78

Register Multiple Screens to Print Together in Repeat 82

6 Beyond Ink 86

Safely Handling Dyes and Related Chemicals 88

Tools and Materials 89

Brief Overview 95

Washing Fabric with Synthrapol 96

Making Stock Solutions and Pastes 97

Printing with Thickened Dyes and Discharge Agents 99

Steam-Setting Your Fabric 103

Immersion Dyeing Fabric 105

7 The Projects 108

Puffy Cloud Pillows 110

Butterfly Chair Cover 113

Travel Backgammon Set 116

Honeycomb Folding Screen 120

Bicycle Beach Tote 122

Ferris Wheel Skirt 124

Ogee Curtains 128

Meadow Cardigan 130

Tough Guy Baby Jumpers 132

Prize Winner Pet Bed 135

Koi Streamer 138

Waves of Grain Scarf 140

Night and Day Quilt 142

Mail a Mini Mobile 145

Templates 147

Resources 158

About the Author 159

Acknowledgments 159

Index 160