Printing+onto+Fabric

There are several ways of printing patterns onto fabric or garments. You could be asked about any of them in the exam or you could use it in a product analysis question. =Screen printing= Silk screen printing in school
 * Most widey used method of printing onto fabric.
 * Fine mesh stretched over a wooden frame. The dye is moved over the mesh with a **squeegee** and forced through it onto the fabric to produce a pattern.
 * The pattern on the screen is blocked out with a paper stencil or chemicals.
 * A separate screen is needed for each colour in the pattern to be printed. Therefore a pattern with 10 colours would cost alot to produce as it would need 10 screens, one for each colour.
 * Videos of screen printing**

Industrial T shirt silk screen printing

Screen printing fabric

=Block Printing= > Block printing =Roller printing= >
 * Traditional method
 * Block made of wood has a design carved into the surface.
 * Dye is applied to the carved surface which is then presses onto the fabric.
 * This can then be repeated.
 * Separate blocks are needed for each colour in the attern.
 * Care is needed in aligning blocks
 * This process is like mechanised block printing.
 * Rollers, with the design engraved on them, apply the dye onto the fabric.
 * It is an extremely quick way of printing and 250m of fabric can be printed every minute. This makes it a cheap process.
 * There is a separate roller for each colour in the design.
 * Therefore designs with alot of colours are more expensive to produce as they need more engraved rollers.
 * Better for simpler designs.> Roller printing

=Heat Transfer Printing (Sublimation Printing)=
 * The design is printed onto special paper, it is then transfered onto the fabric using heated rollers or plates.
 * Can only be used with manmade fibre fabrics.
 * Suitable for detailed, intricate designs.
 * Quite a quick process.
 * Cheap as only printed paper needs to be changed to change pattern.
 * Heat Transfer printing