Lamp Printing
A lot of people don't sun print because they think they don't get enough hot sunshine to sun print properly. I showed in my sun printing tutorial that it isn't the sun that's making the magic. This is not a heliographic process. Sun printing is about the speed with which the fabric dries. As the fabric dries the fabric under the mask stays wet longer so that the wet (paint) is wicked out from under the mask and that's how the print works.
That said, certainly the sun helps a lot. You get a stronger print the faster the fabric dries and nothing dries out fabric like a hot sunny day. If the sun is at a low angle you will even get a shadow because the fabric in the shadow dries slower than the fabric getting the direct light. So I still prefer to sun print with the sun.
That said, certainly the sun helps a lot. You get a stronger print the faster the fabric dries and nothing dries out fabric like a hot sunny day. If the sun is at a low angle you will even get a shadow because the fabric in the shadow dries slower than the fabric getting the direct light. So I still prefer to sun print with the sun.
When lamp printing you are limited in size by the amount of lamp light. the bulb puts off heat and that facilitates the drying. So smaller pieces are best.
I was limited anyway because I only had one stencil. So I could only print one image at a time. I did my printing on a day when I was doing some quilting so I was around to check the print and set up the next one about every 30 minutes. I mixed my paint (about half water and half DyeNaFlow) and put it in a container with a lid and I kept my paint brush in a ziplock bag so I didn't have to was it out every time.
I was limited anyway because I only had one stencil. So I could only print one image at a time. I did my printing on a day when I was doing some quilting so I was around to check the print and set up the next one about every 30 minutes. I mixed my paint (about half water and half DyeNaFlow) and put it in a container with a lid and I kept my paint brush in a ziplock bag so I didn't have to was it out every time.
My print surface is a piece of cardboard covered in plastic. In this image I've painted the fabric placed the stencil on top. You can tell that the fabric is pretty well saturated.
Here's my set up. I have the lamp clamped to a shelf and I'm using a standard flood bulb. I set the fabric directly under the bulb.
It took each of my prints between 20 and 30 minutes to completely dry. It's a great way to get some nice prints when the sun isn't shining.
