Any paper recommendations for screenprinting?

[Former_Member]

Hello all

I'm new to Etsy, and to Printsy, so firstly a big hello to all Printsy members :-)

Can anyone can recommend any particular papers for screenprinting? Or for printmaking generally?

I've experimented with a few over the past few months and by far the best I've found is Fabriano 5 which is a good untextured white paper, 50% cotton rag with a nice deckle on two edges. But... it's quite expensive.

Can anyone recommend any others? Many thanks in advance!

Rich (Beyond Thrilled)
http://www.beyondthrilled.com

[Former_Member]

I don't know about screenprinting-specific papers, but Hiromi Papers is a fun (if expensive) resource: http://store.hiromipaper.com/
You can order sample books so you can fondle all the paper options before buying.

[Former_Member]

Depends. Rag paper is good for editioning, but if you're printing with waterbase ink, it soaks up the body of the ink and flattens everything out. Also plan to print all layers at once to avoid paper swelling and shrinking due to changes in relative humidity in your shop, and the water in the ink.

Uncoated stock from French Paper, and Domtar's Cougar line are both solid picks for inexpensive, nice paper. 100# Cover is a great beginning / all-around weight that can be rolled for shipping.

Otherwise, I've done fine art editioning on Crane's Lettra line and on Coventry Rag, which is a generic cotton stock from Legion Paper.

Think about your artwork as well. Halftone and process work needs a smooth stock for best results. Otherwise the dots deform as they soak in. Cotton papers have more linters, which will clog the screen in some scenarios, especially if you cut down stock before printing.

Sorry for rambling, but there's a lot to learn about paper that is application specific. There's no magic bullet for all things.

Ever visit www.gigposters.com ?

[Former_Member]

You can screenprint on any kind of surface. Just try different kind of papers to find the ones you prefer.

I like to print on Cougar (which are really inexpensive), Academia (inexpensive with a little bit of texture) and fancy Stonehenge paper (2-3$/22x30inc hes sheets).

[Former_Member]

Magnani Pescia Paper is a great paper for screenprinting, I recommend trying out the light blue or gray papers. Also I have had some success with stonehenge papers

[Former_Member]

Thanks for the responses, all good and useful information. I'll definitely investigate Stonehenge and Cougar, and check out Magnani Pescia too.

Appreciate your point about there being no magic bullet Vrooom, I agree about fitness for purpose. Looked at Gigposters a year ago or so, not since - I'll take another look and see what's going on there.

Cheers
Rich

[Former_Member]

Arches 88 is the Cadillac of Screenprint paper, too bad its bout 5.50-6.00$$ a sheet for a 22x30 sheet. But it will hold the best and stay sooper flat forever.

[Former_Member]

http://www.frenchpaper.com/paperlines.asp

[Former_Member]

Just an idea where I buy my paper.(Wet Paint in St. Paul, MN.)...Stonehenge its $1.83 a sheet (22x30) but this store has a deal where if you buy 100 sheets the price goes down to $1.38
so with tax it's about $160.00. I would ask your favorite paper store if they have a deal or are willing to do it. therese Krupp

[Former_Member]

I adore Pescia for relief prints, but I do most of my screen-printing on less absorbent papers, like Canson Mi Tientes, which comes in fun colors and isn't very expensive. It's a little bit textured, though, which you may not like so much.

[Former_Member]

A few good general printmaking papers are Rives Lightweight and Heaveyweight (which are differenet from BFK which is also very good) and Stonehenge is a very good general purpose paper. Never tried any of these for silkscreening. The only SS paper I have used is Arches 88 but it has been a long time.

[jacquidodds]

I use Somerset Satin, White 300gms 56 x 76cm, which is £2.33 in the UK:

http://www.intaglioprintmaker.co.uk/shop/default.asp?ofs=4&search_text=&c2=67

[FilthCakes]

Reeves BFK is a good high quality paper, or if you go to an art store like blick, they usually have a printmaking papers section.

[ShopPicaDoodlePress]

I would suggest Stonehenge. I dont know if someone else already said it. I use it quite a lot and like the smooth texture of it. It works great for screenprinting too.

[Former_Member]

We use Fabriano Rosaspina 285gms. Kills any shine when you use water based inks, but that's what we like. We also use it for etching.

[Former_Member]

I have sort of a dopey question....if I wanted to buy equipment to do screenprinting, not t-shirts, but art prints, what kind of money are we talking? Any recommendations on brands?

[Former_Member]

In college we strictly used Rives BFK, and it isn't too expensive.

That is what I use for all of my prints

[Former_Member]

The set up cost of a home screenprinting studio really depends on how 'home made' you want it to be. We do our screen printing in a professional studio with vacuum beds and a big exposure unit, but there are some really great artists out there doing work from home.

I would definitely say you should get some sort of vacuum set up. There are plans to build simple ones if you hunt around on google. Exposure is a bit of a pain depending on how detailed your work is, but you can do it with really powerful halogens or halides (not amazing results). We got fed up with all the messing about so that's why we moved to a studio. I think it basically goes like this... Spend less money get more problems. $150 an up if you want to make your own bed and exposure set up. $1000 and up if you want to start buying second hand gear. We are in the UK so prices of stuff may vary. Hope this helps a bit. :)

[Former_Member]

We highly recommend Sicars Graphia paper.
Hahnemühle is really good too, even though we have only used it for drypoints and etchings so far.