Introduction Textile Printing the application of dye pigment or other chemicals to produce designs in specific areas of yarns and fabrics Selection of colorant depends on factors such as fiber content type of design printing method quantity to be printed end use and cost Dies are fabric specific pigments are not Resin binders in pigments bind the color to the fabric Hand printing methods have evolved Mechanized printing makes up most of fabric printing today Type of print depends on how the design was created and printing method Motifs divided into naturalistic stylized geometric and abstract Hand Printing Block Printing Ikat tie dye batik flat screen and transfer Block screen and transfer are direct printing Batik Ikat and tie dye are resist printing Hand printing plays an important part in cottage industries all over the Designs are printed are cotton rayon wool and jute for apparel and home Techniques have been modernized to be more cost effective and less Mechanized printing is used to imitate traditional printing in order to be more cost effective and produce in larger quantities world furnishing labor intense Block a fabric Steps include Wood or other material is carved into a design to be stamped onto 1 Fabric is prepared on a padded surface 2 Blocks are dipped in dye paste and then pressed against the fabric to transfer the design Typically done on cellulosic and protein fibers Require after treatment Size of the repeat pattern is limited to the size of the wooden block Tie Dye Resist Printing method Fabric is tied to prevent dye penetration Common in India Japan Nigeria Ghana Liberia Used for home furnishing and apparel Fabrics made with cellulosic and protein fibers such as cotton rayon and silk are generally used for tie dye Methods for tie dying depends on regions Ikat Resist Printing method Yarns are tie dyed before hand weaving the fabric Typically used in Guatemala India Indonesia Cotton and Silk mostly used Mechanized Printing methods used to create imitations Warp Ikat tie dye yarns used to warp the loom Weft Ikat Weft yarns are tie dyed and yarns are used to weave fabric Double Ikats both warp and weft yarns are tie dyed Batik Made by applying hot wax to fabrics before dying to prevent dye penetrations in specific areas Indonesia is known for their Batiks Tjap is used to stamp design onto both sides of the fabric Steps 1 Design is traced 2 After wax is applied fabric is dyed in cold water dyes 3 Process for applying wax progresses from lightest to darkest 4 After the dye is then removed by dipping fabric in hot water 5 Lastly to completely rid the wax the fabric is ironed layers of color absorbent paper Flat and Flatbed Screen Manual process Print paste is applied and pressed through a screen onto fabric Thickener with dye or pigment used Binder attaches pigment to the fabric Certain areas are covered to prevent the dye from penetrating through screen onto fabric Traditional technique was labor intensive Modern version uses light sensitive emulsions to make screens Screen is placed on the fabric then a squeegee pushes the print paste through holes onto the fabric Different screen for every different color must be used Small screens used for t shirts Transfer Transfers design from paper to fabric Requires heat and pressure Low temperature setting for adhesive backed plastisol Screen and digital printing typically used to create the designs for The durability depends on the colorants temperature and press the heat transfer applied Normal for some prints to pucker peel or crack Commonly used for printing apparel and finished goods Mechanized Printing Roller screen heat transfer Roller and Screen are direct printing methods Roller Commonly used to print large amounts of small stylized or geometric designs at low price Rotary Printing now used instead of roller printing Fast process for large quantities of fabric Good for designs where the design repeat is not bigger than the Initial setup costly and labor intensive diameter of the roller Care when printing knit fabrics designs can smudge if stretched Flatbed Screen To increase production Screen is stationary and fabric is on a conveyer belt Fast process slower than rotary screen printing The screens were originally made of silk but are now made of nylon and polyester Designs for the screens are created through computers then printed onto clear acetate film separate print for each color The designs are transferred from the film onto the high fabric count mesh which is on a frame Mesh size determines how much print paste goes through the screen finer mesh is used for fabrics with small details Both the hand and mechanized techniques for screen printing are used for fabrics that have large repeat designs no fine lines Screen printing uses print paste that has a dye or pigment added to a thickener For an opaque plastic texture plastisol ink is used mostly for knits Rotary Screen Uses cylinder shaped screen Most common printing method in US Easier and more cost effective than roller printing Screens have to be replaced Good for printing stripes Repeat size depends on the size of the roller being used Commonly used dyes include vat dyes pigments and reactive dyes Fabrics printing with this method can be identified by register marks along the selvage not all Heat Transfer Fabric and preprinted paper is passed through heat rollers in order for dyes from the paper to print onto the fabric Meant for polyester fabrics with disperse dyes dyes that sublimate and change from solid to gas when under heat but can now be used for synthetic fibers The prints used in heat transferring can be created through screen Simple method used for printing a variety of patters large prints digital printing fine lines etc Low set up cost Short changeover time to print new design Environmentally friendly Digital Printing New technique Designs created using software Dyes and pigments used to create ink for printing selected based on fiber content Reactive dyes cellulosic fabrics Acid dyes protein and nylon fabrics Disperse dyes polyester fabrics Pigment inks polyester and cotton blend fabrics Can be used to print a large variety of designs Fabrics preparation required Printed fabric evaluated for dye fixation then washed Used to print banners and flags Printer ink and costs prevent digital printing from being used for high volume printing Types of Prints Applied blotch and overprint Discharge resist flocking and burn out Print depends on the