Silk-screen printing how it is done. Silk-screen printing at home: we apply images to fabric

You will need

Digital camera (not needed if you draw well yourself), scanner, printer and computer, stencil film, water, silk-screen ink.

Instructions

Then glue the stencil film onto the prepared sketch. Remove the backing from the stencil film before use.

Place the sketch with a stencil film on it in a special frame and place it under a UV lamp or on sunlight.

after a few minutes, the film must be placed in water, rinsed, and the particles of excess coating must be removed with a soft brush. Then dry the wet negative under a UV lamp or in the sun. The negative is ready, now you can transfer the image (inscription) directly to the product itself.

Next, place the product on any plastic panel and attach the finished negative to the product. Press the negative firmly to the product and apply any paint suitable for silk-screen printing with a special plastic spatula. The negative, if rinsed with water, is ready to use again. Using silk-screen printing, you can easily apply the logo to almost any souvenir product.

What is required to transfer the image to the surface of the T-shirt

In order to realize your plan, you need to install on your computer one of the programs with which you can edit the photo. You will also need an inkjet color printer, as well as the most suitable digital photo.

You will also need to purchase a plain T-shirt. The color of the thing should be such that against such a background the photo looks the most successful and even profitable.

In a specialized store, you can purchase special paper LomondTermoTransfer. To transfer the image to the fabric, you will need any completely flat surface, for example, an ironing board, as well as an iron with the most suitable temperature regime.

Step-by-step instructions for creating an image on a T-shirt

To begin with, it follows in graphic editor flip the selected photo using the mirror method. It is very important that the image after editing is sharp enough, as transferred to fabric will look a little blurry. After that, on a color printer, the photo should be printed so that the reverse image is obtained on thermal paper.

Before using thermal paper, it is recommended that you read the instructions very carefully. Be sure to ensure that thermal paper is loaded in the printer right side... Then it remains only to follow the instructions on the packaging of thermal paper.

The sheet applied to the surface of the T-shirt must be ironed with a hot iron. The protective layer cannot be removed immediately, as the paper must be completely cool.

In order for a thing with an image to retain its original appearance for a long time, it should be properly looked after. First, it is necessary to turn the product inside out before washing. And secondly, the T-shirt should be washed not in hot, but in slightly lukewarm water.

Sources:

What you need to make a picture on a T-shirt at home
How to take pictures on T-shirts at home

Screen printing or silk-screening at home is a way of applying a pattern to different surfaces by forcing paint through a special mesh. The technology provides for the transfer of images to fabrics, stationery, dishes, plastic bags, etc. No super-complicated manipulations and expensive equipment are needed.

It is profitable to do silk-screening at home because it:

handmade (always relevant and valuable);
there are no restrictions on the types of images;
brightness and colorfulness of the picture;
a wide range of materials - paper, plastic, fabric;
low cost;
simplicity of technology;
compactness - no need for a separate room and bulky equipment.

Screen printing devices take up a minimum of space

Silk screen mesh

The quality of silk-screen printing depends on the printing plate, namely, on its basis (mesh). It happens:

Polyester. It is used for printing with water, plastisol, solvent inks. The type of weaving is also different: canvas (1: 1 - one thread to the other) and twill (2: 1 or 2: 2). The former are used more often.
Steel. It is used exclusively when working with thermoplastic paints.

The nets are white and colored in yellow... The latter provide maximum clarity of the picture with detailed detail.

White and yellow silk screen meshes

Pay attention to the lineature. It is present in the marking. For example, the marking on the grid "No. 120-34" means that the size of the ruling is 120 lines per centimeter, and 34 is the diameter of the thread. The higher the first parameter, the thinner the mesh.

The mesh fabric is divided into categories depending on the thickness of the threads. Each category is designated by its own letter (next to the number: S, M, T, HD - from light to heaviest). Cloth with thick thread is stronger, it is pulled with great effort. The thickness of the filament affects how much ink will pass through the mesh.

When working with a thick canvas, the edges of the pattern lose their sharpness. Chipping may appear. Choose fine meshes for small images.

Frame for silk screen printing

Stencil frames are used not only in printing houses, but also at home. The following requirements are imposed on them:

multiple use - in order to reduce the cost of printing;
chemical resistance - when washing off and applying a photosensitive layer and paint, contact with the frame is inevitable;
rigidity - frames are made of a rigid material that is resistant to twisting and bending deformation;
light weight - the frame should be light, mobile.

The simplest stencil frames for silk-screen printing are made with your own hands from straight-grained wood. They are lightweight, cheap, but sensitive to moisture.

The alternative is aluminum. It is inexpensive, lightweight, and allows you to achieve the required tension. The frame made of aluminum is not subject to chemical attack by the reagents used in silk-screen printing, it is suitable for repeated use, retains its geometry.

Ready-to-use wooden frames

Stencil without exposure and emulsion

Another way to make silk screen stencils is using a heat press. It was developed by the Americans. A laser printer will be needed. Start by printing the desired image on plain xerox or offset paper. Print in black and white.

Now place the printout face down on the prepared transfer paper and send to the heat press. It takes 20 seconds. at a temperature of 110 ०С - the image from the printout will be transferred to the transfer paper.

Place it face down on the frame and put it back in the heat press. This stage lasts half a minute. Working temperature - 180 ०С. The stencil is ready.

This is what a heat press looks like

Drawing on fabric

You will need mesh, frame and paint. If you have artistic talent, the drawing is created with a brush, if not, on a computer. For beginners in silk-screening, we recommend starting with large solid images, that is, without small details and complex geometry.

Step 1. Image selection. Screen printing at home can be any drawing: a logo, a picture, an inscription. It is drawn or found on the Internet and then printed on a printer.

Step 2. You can take a ready-made frame with a mesh or stretch it yourself, securing the edges with a construction stapler. It is necessary to additionally glue them with paper tape or electrical tape - the paint will not spread.

Step 3. The frame is covered with a photographic emulsion. This is a light sensitive compound - a dark room is required. It is applied from top to bottom, carefully working out each section. The frame is allowed to dry in a horizontal position - about 1-3 hours (the time depends on the thickness of the layer).

Step 4. The dried mesh is covered with a piece of dark cloth. This is anti-glare protection. The frame with the grid is placed on a stand, facing towards the light source.

Step 5. The next stage of silk-screening at home is the preparation of a sample for an impression. They take the image as it should be transferred to the product, turn it over and place it on the frame.

Step 6. Now you need transparent glass - with its help the drawing is pressed against the grid. You can turn on the light. For a 60x60 cm grid, it will take an average of 35 minutes with a 150 W lamp 45 cm away from the image. After that, a barely noticeable print appears on the stencil.

Step 7. The stencil drawing must be opaque. To verify this, look at it, aiming at a light source. If the rays penetrate the picture, the quality will be lame. You will need to print another copy and superimpose on the first. Another option is to paint over the sample with a marker.

Step 8. Now you need to rinse the frame with warm water. As the emulsion is washed out, the print will become more and more pronounced - the stencil is ready.

Step 9. The prepared stencil is placed on the product. The outside of the frame with the net should be in contact with the work surface. If it is fabric, for convenience, something solid and even is placed under the bottom.

Spread the paint on the stencil and evenly distribute it with a rubber scraper. The harder you press on the scraper, the clearer the pattern will be. It should be borne in mind that when dry, the paint will acquire a darker shade.

Step 10. The finished product is dried. To fix the image, the fabric is ironed with an iron.

The paint should not destroy the stencil material. Choose one that dries no faster than the printing process.

The picture is bright and full of color

The silk-screening process on fabric is shown in the video:

Outcomes

Silk-screen printing on fabric is possible at home: it is simple and inexpensive.
The technology is used to create unique T-shirts, souvenirs, pens, pillows, mugs.
You can create a stencil with your own hands, what you need: fabric, mesh, frame and paint.
Modern technologies allow you to create stencils without emulsion and exposure.

Many of us are familiar with the relaxing effects of activities such as knitting, making homemade pizza, or reading a good book. It may sound strange, but the process of silk-screen printing on kitchen towels can also relieve nervous tension, induce a feeling of calm and relaxation. We invite you to try yourself in this business, to comprehend the basics of the art of creating screen printing.

It may seem to any inexperienced person in this matter that screen printing (also called silk-screen printing) is an incredibly complex process that only specialists armed with special equipment can do. Not true! It turns out that you can create silk-screen prints at home without much difficulty.

So, let's get acquainted with the basics of silk-screen printing technology. In general terms, it looks like this: you cover the grid of a printing plate with light-sensitive ink and allow it to harden, when the surface painted with a photo emulsion dries, you place an image for a print on top of a layer of ink and expose this entire structure to the bright light of lamps. A stencil mesh covered with an image on top will not harden, as it is not exposed to light. Therefore, after you have “lit” and dried your printing plate, the non-illuminated photographic emulsion of the grid, which is located under the image, can be easily and simply washed off with water. This area in the form of a picture or text is your stencil drawing. Run the dye paste through it to create a crisp stencil print on your T-shirt, bag, or kitchen towel.

Is everything clear? Not really? OK. Let's try to explain it again. With the help of photographs ...

First, you need to decide on the picture you would like to get a print of. As an example, we decided to focus on the image of the silhouette of a Christmas tree. For the first experience with screen printing, we recommend selecting large solid pictures without thin lines and small details. Images like this tree or lettering are ideal for beginners.

You can print the selected image on plain paper and then carefully cut it out, or copy the image onto special transparent paper. In any case, it should be remembered that the picture must be LIGHT-RESISTANT. If you are not sure that your stencil is not showing through, try looking through a bright light source. If the rays of light pass through the image, then it will not be opaque enough to obtain high-quality silk-screen printing. In this case, we recommend that you print another copy and superimpose the pictures on top of each other or paint over your sample with black marker.

You will also need a frame with a fine-mesh "silk" mesh stretched over it. In fact, polyester is used as silk. This mesh can be purchased at specialized stores... Make sure you buy 110 size polyester stencil mesh.

At this stage, we suggest you take advantage of the opportunity to choose: you either buy a ready-made frame with a mesh stretched over it, or purchase a frame and several meters of polyester linen and fix the material on the frame yourself. If you are fond of handicrafts, you can build a frame yourself.

In order to pull the fabric over the frame, you can use a regular construction stapler. The material is stretched taut, but not so tight that the fabric creeps in the places where it is fastened with staples.

After you have attached the fabric to the frame, trim off any excess material around the edges.

To prevent the paint from spreading, tape the edges of the frame with tape inside and out. To do this, you can use ordinary electrical tape, but if you do not want to waste time scraping off the remnants of the electrical tape from the surface of the stencil mesh, then it is better to purchase a special paper adhesive tape in an art salon-store and use it.

Now that your stencil form is ready, it's time to coat it with liquid photo emulsion. It is a special compound that reacts to light. Therefore, this stage of work should be performed in a darkened room. Leave the net soaked in the emulsion in the same place until it dries completely. Attention! The stencil mesh should dry in a completely dark room. If you decide to dry the frame in the closet, make sure that light does not penetrate through the door slits.

Usually the emulsion is supplied in two parts. This is the container that you can see in the photo, and a small bottle of chemical reagent that must be added to the container in order to activate its contents. Nothing supernatural. Instructions for use are attached. You just need to shake the solution bottle vigorously several times.

The emulsion is applied with a rubber scraper. You can use an existing scraper or buy a new one.

In a dark room, apply the emulsion to the stencil mesh. We recommend to apply chemical composition from top to bottom, carefully painting over all areas of the surface of the form.

Using a rubber scraper, the emulsion is applied to the surface of the entire mesh. Try to apply the composition in a good even layer, do not forget that this type of work must be done carefully and very quickly. After applying the emulsion, place the mold in a dark place to dry. The frame should be installed horizontally, not vertically. Depending on the thickness of the applied emulsion layer, drying will take from one to three hours.

While the prepared stencil is drying, you can start arranging the exposure area. Technically, you can simply expose your shape to the sun, but that comes with some risk. The point is that the frame must be irradiated for a certain time. If you overexpose the mesh to light, you will not be able to wash off the emulsion from non-illuminated areas. If you underexpose, then your image will not be fixed, but will be washed off the frame along with the uncured emulsion.

It is best to expose with light from a 150 watt bulb. Usually, the instructions for the photographic emulsion indicate the time of ultraviolet irradiation of the mesh, depending on its size. The instructions also provide information on the optimal distance between the light source and the exposed object. For exposure, photography lamps are very convenient. They are usually equipped with special domed reflectors to help focus the light on the desired area... If you do not have one, you can try using a metal cup or jar of shiny finish, or slightly increase the exposure time of your image to light.

In addition, the exposure requires a matte black stand on which you place your stencil grid. You can use an old board. A black piece of cardboard will work as well.

Once the exposure area has been prepared, you can start cutting out printed patterns for silk-screen prints. You can cut the outline of the picture using a special knife with a swivel head or use scissors.

When your stencil is dry, cover it with a dark cloth to prevent light from entering, and place it on the prepared exposure area.

Place the mesh frame on the black matte surface of the stand. By placing the surface with the applied emulsion "facing" the light source.
Place your image in REVERSE on the grid. Take the picture in your hands, rotate it the way you would like to place it on the T-shirt, then turn the picture over and place it on the stencil frame grid.
Press the image firmly against the grid using a clean piece of clear glass.
Turn on the light source.

The exposure time of our grid (dimensions 60x60 cm) was 35 minutes, when exposed to a 150 W lamp, placed at a distance of 45 cm from the picture. The exposure time to light may vary depending on the size of the frame and the image itself. Perhaps your first exposure experience will be unsuccessful. Don't despair. Determining the correct exposure time for images may take some time.

Set a timer and leave your image alone. No need to press on the glass or adjust the picture. After the required time has elapsed, remove the glass and cut out paper sample. You will notice the faint print of the picture on the stencil mesh immediately.

Take your frame to the bathroom and rinse it out under a good pressure of warm water. Just point the shower head at the stencil and you will see how gradually, as the emulsion is washed out, the contours of the image will become clearer and the drawing itself will become brighter. You have just created your first silkscreen stencil. Impressed?

Place the T-shirt or any other item you would like to print into the prepared working area protected from possible paint splashing.

Place your newly made stencil on top of your T-shirt. The outer side of the frame with the stretched mesh should be in contact with the fabric of the T-shirt, and the sides of the frame will be at the top.

Line the paint over the top of the stencil. In our case, a mixture of black and white paints was used to obtain a deep dark gray shade. Remember that when dry, the paint will take on a darker shade than when painting. Use a rubber scraper to paint over your image. There is no need to press on the scraper while trying to push the paint through the stencil onto the surface of the fabric.

Then, applying pressure, sweep the scraper over the image again in the same direction.

If you apply slight pressure to the scraper, the resulting stencil print will appear slightly faded.

The harder you press on the scraper, the more saturated the printed image will be.

Dry the product with the printed image.

After the print has dried, it is necessary to fix the image by ironing it with a hot iron. The silk-screen print is ready. Agree that screen printing is not such a complicated process and the effort spent on creating a print pays off with the pleasure received from the work.

Many have heard about silk-screen printing. Using this technology, you can make various products: business cards, labels for various products (matchboxes), branded bags, inscriptions on pens, lighters, inscriptions on various souvenir and gift products, as well as textiles.

To obtain high-quality and multi-color images and photos on porcelain, metal, fabric and other products in the traditional way for creating silk-screen printing, previously bulky and expensive equipment was required, as well as not a little experience.

Plan... Recently (from America) the latest technology for the CIS and Eastern Europe has appeared, which immediately became very popular, since with its help you can make silk screen printing at home... Using this technology, you can make all the same products as with the usual method, only your desire is enough.

To work, you need a computer, a printer, you may need a scanner, later you can purchase a digital camera. If you are good at drawing, you can do without computer technology.

The process takes place in two stages: the negative of the image is prepared, and then transferred to the product and developed.

The sketch is printed on a printer or drawn on a sheet of paper.
Then, after removing the preliminary control, the stencil film
stick on your sketch.
The sketch with the film is placed in a special frame and placed in sunlight, or you can use a UV lamp.
After a few minutes (according to the instructions), the film is placed in water, rinsed, and the remnants of excess coating are removed with a soft brush.
Dry the wet negative on a napkin or cloth under UV or sunlight.

Now you can start directly transferring the image to the product.

Place the negative on the product by placing any plastic panel under the product.
Paint is applied to the negative tightly attached to the product with a special plastic spatula. Any ink used for silk-screen printing is suitable.

After rinsing with water, the used negative is ready for use an unlimited number of times!

For work, it is proposed to purchase a starter kit consisting of an exhibiting frame, 5 A4 sheets for ordinary drawings, 5 A4 sheets for high-resolution drawings, a plastic spatula. The price of the kit is $ 268.

Recently a large number of those wishing to try themselves in an independent business has increased significantly. Aspiring entrepreneurs, naturally, first of all pay attention to the most common types of activities that, as they think, can bring good income. At the same time, do not forget that most areas and niches of business are already sufficiently saturated, and in order to be successful, along with long-standing legal entities and individuals, you need to make enough efforts and spend a considerable amount of funds.

On the other hand, less well-known and developed industries may also qualify for success. One such activity, which is rapidly gaining popularity and momentum, is printing T-shirts and other types of clothing using the silk screen method.

Our business valuation:

Initial investment - 100,000 rubles.

Market saturation is medium.

The complexity of starting a business is 5/10.

Why silk screen printing?

Choosing any type of business for the possibility of earning a good income, you need to be aware of what positive sides he has. In entrepreneurial activities related to printing by silk-screen printing, there are such obvious advantages:

The final products obtained after printing are currently in great demand among buyers.
Silk-screen printing on T-shirts ensures good quality of the printed design, as well as its durability compared to other types and methods of printing.
The silk-screening technology is quite simple and allows you to apply a picture even at home, which, as a result, removes such a significant item of expenses as paying for the rent of the premises;
This printing method allows you to apply images to various fabrics, and therefore the range of products manufactured by the workshop can constantly expand and change, focusing on consumer demand and fashion trends.
The ability to apply an image consisting of several colors to a T-shirt or other fabric.
High print quality. Clothes, a drawing or image on which is applied in this way, is in higher demand among customers, since even after a large number of washes, the print remains the same colorful and bright.
In the process of business development, it is possible to produce products in the quantity that you consider necessary to attract customers at first. In the future, according to the experience of already operating workshops, it is more expedient to use silk-screen printing to order - this method almost completely removes the overspending of raw materials and downtime of the finished product.
With sufficient funds, you can buy equipment for silk screen printing in any specialized company, of which there are now sufficient numbers. At the same time, at the very beginning of work, having not so many funds, it is quite possible to make a machine with your own hands at home.
The cost of silk-screen printing is slightly higher compared to other types of printing, but at the same time, the high quality of the products ensures the constantly growing demand for such products.
Low price of consumables, as well as their availability for purchase almost anywhere in the Russian Federation.
A relatively low level of competition - this type of business is only gaining momentum and with a sufficient amount of effort it is possible to achieve a good level of income and compete with already operating firms and organizations.
The silk-screening method allows you to apply a pattern to a wide variety of materials. In connection with this fact, in the future, if you want to expand your production, you can also produce other products, such as:

Commercial advertising products (business cards, envelopes, letterheads);
Stickers that are printed on or paper (with the subsequent possibility of applying them to any hard surfaces made of various materials);
Small souvenir goods (lighters, key rings, etc.);
Packaging made of cardboard material;

Such a factor can also be a kind of advantage in the event that you decide to completely abandon clothing and convert to the production of such products.

Negative aspects of silk-screen printing business

Are there any disadvantages to this type of business? Like any type of business, silk-screening has the following negative aspects:

Danger of not being competitive. Although this type of business is underdeveloped, but with a large number of similar workshops in your locality there is some risk of stagnation of manufactured products due to market oversaturation. To avoid such a problem, before opening an individual entrepreneur or LLC, it is worthwhile to carefully study existing competitors, their production and sales volumes, types of products, prices;
Making forms for printing pays off only if you use them more than once - for example, it makes sense to make a stencil for silk screen printing only if you plan to apply a certain print with it at least 50 times. Of course, such a fact is no longer significant when increasing turnover, since, having gained a certain number of customers, it is already possible to use stencils for individual orders, slightly increasing the price of original goods.

Principle of silk screen printing technology

Silk-screen printing is a method of printing, in which the ink remains on the surface (fabric, plastic, cardboard, etc.) by forcing it through a stencil through a special mesh, which has a large number of tiny cells. At the same time, the only requirement for the surface on which the seal will be located in the future is its maximum thickness - up to 50 microns.

Silk-screen printing on clothes is performed with the sequential implementation of the following operations (on an industrial scale):

Making a layout;
Color separation;
Conclusion of films - in this way, a separate layout is made for applying each individual color;
Making stencils, with the help of which the print will be applied to the fabric, installing it on a printing press (for each individual color there will be a separate form);
Directly the process of drawing a picture;
Intermediate drying, which prepares the fabric for the final stage;
Final drying, which dehydrates and sets the paint layer, after which the T-shirt or any other garment can be used for its intended purpose - to wear, wash, iron, etc.

Separately, it should be noted that, like most fabric products and, especially, with drawing, certain requirements are imposed on ready-made T-shirts, the observance of which ensures the durability of the applied print. It is worthwhile to directly warn buyers about such features so that incorrect operation does not subsequently lead to complaints about poor quality:

It is better to wash by hand. If such an action is carried out using a washing machine, then only on a gentle mode;
It is not recommended to use clothes or wash them immediately after the printing process - the best option will wait for a day when the paint has finally fixed on the fabric and the danger of damaging it will disappear;
Ironing of such products is best done in medium mode, since contact with a too hot surface can somewhat spoil the applied image.

Organization of printing at home

How to organize silk-screen printing with your own hands, if you want to open a small production at first? For such a business at home, a small room with a size of 15 square meters and several special devices and aids.

To understand how to make silk-screen printing at home, it is worth considering in detail the entire preparation process necessary materials and the printing process itself:

The choice of a picture that will be applied to a T-shirt or other type of clothing. In the absence of experience, it is better to use large parts with clear edges.
Cutting the required stencil on a sheet of opaque paper, preferably black or another dark color (multiple layers can be used to reduce permeability).
Purchase of a ready-made frame for silk-screen printing with a polyester mesh stretched over it (standard size 110). How Alternative option, the net can be bought separately, and the frame for it can be made from scrap materials (wood, former frames, pieces of furniture, etc.). The silk screen should be pulled tight enough so that it does not sag, but also does not creep. In the best way its fastening will be the usual construction brackets.
Removing excess fabric edges.
Gluing the edges of the frame with tape (you can use regular adhesive tape or purchase special adhesive tape at an art store).
Covering a stencil form with a special liquid photoemulsion - a special composition that reacts to light. In this regard, such an operation must be performed exclusively in a darkened room and leave it the same way, completely without access to light until the solution is completely dry. At home, the best option for this procedure would be a bathroom, a shed without windows, or a dark closet. The very application of the emulsion is carried out using a rubber scraper, which can subsequently be reused for such actions.
Passage of the drying process of the applied emulsion. On average, three to four hours are enough to exclude harmful effect light on her. An important point is the horizontal arrangement of the frame.
Preparing the light source - the best option would be to use a 150 watt light bulb and a domed reflector (as in special photo developing devices).
Preparation of a black support (preferably a matte structure) for a stencil mesh;
Placement of the frame with the dried mortar on a matte surface.
The location of the future image, cut from paper, on the grid. Please note that it is positioned in the opposite direction to how it will be displayed on the T-shirt.
Pressing the image against the mesh using glass.
Turning on the light source at a distance of 45 centimeters from the frame. The approximate exposure time is about 35 minutes (it is very important not to increase or decrease the time by more than two minutes, as this can lead to a damaged stencil).
After the required time has elapsed, turn off the light and remove the glass.
Rinsing the frame under a strong pressure of warm water - after such a procedure, the image of the previously cut shape will become clearly visible.
The next operation, the silk-screening method, involves direct printing on the product, in our case, a T-shirt. To do this, it is placed under the made stencil, and the squeegee mesh itself should touch the T-shirt tightly.
The silkscreen ink is placed on the stencil with a rubber squeegee - the more you press on it, the clearer the image will be on the garment.
The printed T-shirt is drying and may already be on sale.
The stencil frame is washed with warm water and can be further used to apply a similar shape of the impression.

It should be noted right away that although home silk-screening can be carried out independently, it rarely brings income on a large scale. In this regard, if you have a certain margin Money, try to buy a silk-screen printing machine - a special device that will make it possible to produce high-quality products in a short period of time.

Equipment for the application of silk-screen printing in a mechanized way

In the event that you plan to immediately launch a workshop for the production of significant volumes of finished products, you should turn your attention to mechanized devices for carrying out such a process.

Of the equipment you need, the following are worth noting:

Washing booth.
Exposure installation with a light source.
Dryer.
Silkscreen printer. We should dwell on such equipment separately, since it is it that determines the speed of production of finished products and the quality of the applied print. At the moment, on the market of devices for businessmen providing silk-screen printing services, there are the following types:

Manual. Their practical use is possible at home and the cost starts from 35 thousand rubles. As noted above, such a device can be completely made by hand and can only be used for the production of T-shirts and other clothing in small volumes;
Semi-automatic. Such devices make it possible to produce large quantity products with silk-screen printing and at the intermediate stages between applying colors to dry the product in a specially designed dryer. The cost of such equipment will already be somewhat higher and start from the size of 70 thousand rubles;
Automatic. This type of equipment is fully equipped with all the necessary elements that practically exclude manual intervention - beforehand, before starting the process itself, you only need to enter the specified parameters. The price of devices, in comparison with manual and semi-automatic ones, is much higher - in the range from 150 to 300 thousand rubles, depending on its manufacturer, but such costs subsequently pay for themselves very quickly. Silk-screen printing on fabrics, applied in this way, is distinguished by the highest indicators of quality and wear resistance, since precisely entered values ensure compliance with all technological parameters (time, speed, temperature), which ultimately give the best properties of the finished print. The most popular among these types of equipment are carousel machines, which, due to their design, allow you to simultaneously process several items of clothing (or other types of products), while not requiring replacement of the squeegee.

In addition to the main equipment, screen printing requires the availability of such consumables that a novice entrepreneur will need to purchase:

Stencil ink for the manufacture of substrates;
Chemicals additionally used for molds;
Stencil frames;
Squeegee holders and finished squeegees;
Special adhesives for fixing clothes on tables.

Workers to organize production

To organize a business for printing on T-shirts and other types of clothing using the silk-screening method, you will need to hire the following personnel:

Equipment maintenance operator. When buying automatic machines, two workers will be enough for one printing press;
Auxiliary worker - for unloading raw materials, distributing them to a warehouse, production, as well as packing finished products and sending them to a warehouse or loading;
Sales Manager. You should not, especially at first, rely that customers will come to you on their own - building a customer base and promoting your products is quite hard work. The responsibilities of the manager will need to include directly searching for clients, drawing up commercial offers, placing advertisements in in social networks, mass media, banners, organization of various kinds of actions;
Programmer, his main functions will be the processing of images that need to be applied to the ordered types of clothing. In addition, it may partially relate to advertising, creating a website for your company and posting on it detailed information on the price of silk-screen printing, the main terms of cooperation, and possible options for finished products. It will not be superfluous to establish feedback so that potential customers can receive timely answers to their questions;
Production manager, accountant.

Possible profit margins

The estimated profit margins will depend on many factors, including the presence of competitors, the economic development of the region, the amount of funds invested, and the professionalism of employees.

In general, as statistics show, the payback period for this kind of entrepreneurial activity is at the level of one to two years and its indicator will depend on the well-coordinated work of the entire team of your shop.

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