Screen Printing 101 for the Art Room

My students recently came up with the idea to screen print t-shirts to raise money for a cause. It all started when I challenged my 8th-grade students with a class project called “You in Society.” For this projects, students had to create an art project that impacted their community through art.

My first class to decide to print t-shirts came from an emotional desire to help out a classmate, who at the time was very sick and waiting for a kidney transplant. Students designed the t-shirts with their classmate in mind. We sold over 100 shirts! The profits from the project went to her and her family. Since this first event, we have screen printed for Relay for Life and other charities.

Print your own t-shirts with this easy tutorial!

First, organize your pre-orders.

With a project like this, you want to make sure that you will raise money. Pre-orders let you know how many of each size you’ll need and allow you to collect money up front so you can be sure you’ll be profitable.

You’ll want to help your customers visualize what the finished t-shirt will look like. You can print your design on a flyer, but if you can print a sample t-shirt, even better! I create a pre-order form with spaces for the student’s name, homeroom or advisory teacher (as this is the way most things at the middle school are sorted back to students), t-shirt size, and quantity.

After you collect the money and pre-order form, then you can go and purchase what t-shirt sizes you need. This is the beauty of a pre-ordering. You will have money on hand to purchase the number of t-shirts you will need. You know exactly how many you need and in what sizes! I always grab a few extra, just in case!

Then, print your t-shirts!

After researching various methods I found, Drawing Fluid and Screen Filler. The process is student-friendly and effective. I think students in grades 4-12 could handle this process, but you know your students best!

Check out this great YouTube video that helps to visualize the process:

Here are the steps to Screen Printing using Drawing Fluid and Screen Filler.

Prepping the Screen

1. Have students work together to draw a design. Make 2-3 photocopies.
2. Have students place a photocopied image under a screen. Then, have them paint the Drawing Fluid onto the screen using the image underneath as a guide. Keep in mind the ink will show up wherever the Drawing Fluid goes. Let the Drawing Fluid dry overnight.
3. The next day, squeegee on the Screen Filler. The Drawing Fluid will resist the Screen Filler as the Screen Filler creates a coating on the screen that will block the ink from going through anywhere else.
4. After the Screen Filler dries, simply rinse the screen under water. During this step, the Drawing Fluid will also wash away, leaving open space on the screen.

Printing

1. Once the screen has been prepped, grab any color of fabric screen printing ink or mix colors to create your own custom color.
2. Cut pieces of cardboard to put inside the shirt just in case the ink bleeds through.
3. Place the screen on top of the shirt and place ink at the top of the screen.
4. Have students squeegee several times to make sure they print a great image!
5. Pull the screen slowly away from the shirt to reveal the image.
6. Finally, if needed, place a piece of paper over your image to heat set the screen printing ink with an iron.

To finish up, you’ll want to organize the shirts by homeroom and size so you can start delivering them to your customers!

The Reaction

When my students see their designs walking around the school, they feel pretty empowered! As an art teacher, the added work is worth it. Plus, this often is a project that reaches a few of those kids who are otherwise not engaged.

Screen printing for a cause is a win-win. My students get to try out a cool technique at no cost to the art program, and the extra money goes toward a great cause. Students see that they can use art to make a difference in the lives of others. Each year, we bring in a few hundred up to eight-hundred dollars. Wowza! Who knew that making t-shirts would make the world a better place?!

Have you ever tried screen printing with students? Tell us about it! 

What questions do you have about the screen printing process?