New in the Studio: Screen Printed Tea Towels

Here’s a look inside my studio from the side of the room that I haven’t shown before. I did a mini makeover last year with several more DIY projects, which included building a new work table for screen printing.

With all of the focus on doing home improvement projects, I wanted to make an accessory for the finished space, in this case the kitchen.  Here’s a look at the process and finished pieces.

 

 

They are designed to be functional for everyday use and the linen will get softer with every wash.

Also, a tutorial for this wreath as seen in the photo above will be coming to the blog within the next week.

This board and batten wall works well for hanging fabric to dry too. The tutorial on how I built is here and was recently featured on Apartment Therapy.

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Process: Screen Printing

Last week I was filling out some forms, describing all of the stages that go into making a Shibang purse. What I realized was that there is one important stage that I don’t highlight very much, screen printing. I use screen printing as a layer in the design and then add dimension with embellishment on top.

The branches are the design that I am referring to. They were first drawn with charcoal onto tracing paper, then exposed onto the screen (which was coated with photo sensitive emulsion). This design with the branches began as a way to create a lighter look for the felt by adding blossoms or smaller flowers. What originally was a spring/summer look has now been continued through to winter styles by changing the colours. The colours that I mix up for the pigments change every few months as well for a slightly different look.

First I cut the pattern piece and then individually print each piece.

Usually I print a batch of one colour at once and then get the mess cleaned up and back to sewing. Once I’m done printing I roll the vinyl cover back over the table and continue to lay out the fleece and construct the bag.

This is the rest of the table that I wanted to include because I made it myself, and for me it was a big project.