A HOMEMADE SQUEEGEE:
Wrap a piece of inner tube or thin rubber
around a stiff strip of metal or thin plywood.
Then mount it in a wooden frame.
16-13
SILKSCREEN PAINTS AND INKS:*
You can buy special silkscreen inks, or make your own low-cost inks and paints
with materials commonly found in a village store. For coloring you can use ink,
food color, tempera (paint) powder, or any kind of dye that will dissolve in water.
Tempera powder makes the most brilliant colors.
The following silkscreen paint recipes have been used successfully in a cool
climate. If you try them in hot climates, please let us know how well they work.
Recipe 1
• Non-instant starch
120 ml. (1/2 cup)
• Boiling water 350 ml. (11/2 cups)
• Soap flakes 120 ml. (1/2 cup)
• Coloring
Mix starch with enough cold water to make a smooth
paste. Add boiling water, and cool until glossy. Stir in
soap flakes while mixture is warm. When the mixture
is cool, add coloring.
Recipe 2 (quite lumpy, but this does not affect the printing quality)
• Cornstarch 60 ml. (1/4 cup)
• Boiling water 460 ml. (2 cups)
• Soap flakes 30 ml. (2 Tbs)
• Coloring
Mix cornstarch with a small amount of cold
water. Stir it into the boiling water. Bring to a boil
again, and stir until thickened. Add soap flakes
while mixture is warm. Then add coloring.
Recipe 3
• Cornstarch 120 ml. (1/2 cup)
• Gelatin (unflavored)
1 envelope or 15 ml. (1 Tbs)
• Soap flakes 120 ml. (1/2 cup)
• Water 700 ml. (3 cups)
• Coloring
Dissolve cornstarch in 170 ml. (3/4 cup) cold water.
Dissolve gelatin in 60 ml. (1/4 cup) cold water. Heat
460 ml. (2 cups) of water, pour in cornstarch, and add
dissolved gelatin. Boil and stir until thickened. Cool and
add soap flakes and coloring.
Note: If you add 1 or 2 teaspoons of glycerine to these inks, they will be smoother
and easier to use.
These paints should last for several months if stored in jars with
tight-fitting lids.
Never let dried particles of paint get mixed into the paint or fall onto
the screen, as they may puncture the silk during printing. A small hole
in the silk can be repaired with a drop of shellac. (Fine nylon cloth is
tougher than silk, and does not puncture as easily.)
Be sure to wash the screen after you have finished making copies.For the
homemade inks described above, wash the screen with soap and water. But if you
use an oil-based ink or paint, wash it with turpentine, kerosene, or gasoline.
*From Village Technology Handbook, p 405 Available from Enterprise Works/VITA, 1100 H Street, Suite 1200 NW,
Washington, DC 20005, U.S.A. www.enterpriseworks.org