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How to Print on Fabric at Home: Top Methods Explained

by Winnie Li Posted on November 16, 2023

There is a creative genius in everyone — and one way of finding your creative expressions is by printing your fabric at home.

Home fabric printing is becoming increasingly popular by the day. One contributing factor to this popularity is the affordability of modern printing technology. Aside from that, there's a plethora of printable fabrics. Nowadays, anyone with the right tools can print on fabric at home. 

Printing your fabrics at home helps in personalizing your favorite belongings. It's a sure way of imprinting your unique style and personality on your things. Aside from the personalization that comes with printing your fabrics at home, home fabric printing saves you money!

Custom-printed fabrics are somewhat expensive. However, everything you need to print your fabric at home is affordable — and opting for home fabric printing helps you redirect the extra cash into something else.

Speaking of extra cash, home fabric printing could be a means to earn some cash. Yes, fabric printing could be that side hustle or business you've been looking for. In this guide, you will discover the different methods of fabric printing.

Hint: No advanced technical skill is needed! All you need are some affordable tools and the xTool Screen Printer.

xtool screen printer for fabric printing

The different methods of fabric printing are:

  • Screen Printing on Fabric
  • Digital Heat Transfer
  • Block Printing on Fabric
  • Digital Printing on Fabric

In This Article

  • Screen Printing on Fabric
  • Digital Heat Transfer Fabric Printing
  • Block Printing on Fabric
  • Digital Printing on Fabric
  • FAQs of Printing Fabric at Home
  • Conclusion

Screen Printing on Fabric

If you're like most people, the traditional screen printing process is what comes to mind. The traditional screen printing process takes time. It's quite lengthy — and it takes a couple of days to print your own fabric at home.

Materials and Tools Needed for Screen Printing on Fabric

Traditional screen printing requires a wide range of tools like:

  • A printer
  • A frame and screen
  • A squeegee
  • An emulsion
  • A scoop coater
  • An exposure unit
  • Inks.

You will also need a controlled space for washing and drying. It's quite cumbersome, and not the best fit for DIYers who may be working with limited space and tools.

However, screen printing has evolved over the years — and you don't need to go through the cumbersome, complex traditional screen printing process.

DIYers (or small business owners) who are looking for how to perform a sleek, quick screen printing should opt for the modern method.

Modern screen printing methods require just two tools — the xTool Screen Printer and a laser engraver, such as xTool S1. And all these tools can be gotten for under 1,000 dollars. Whether you're a DIYer or a small business owner, you can start printing your fabric without breaking the bank.

The laser engraving process has made screen printing easy. You can dive right into the screen printing process and get your desired product in a few hours. The xTool Screen Printer is six times faster than the regular traditional process — and the entire process can be completed within three hours!

process comparison between traditional screen printer and xtool screen printer

Precision and versatility are the two words that define the xTool Screen Printer. Unlike traditional methods that struggle to maintain the patterns of the original design version, xtool doesn't have any of these issues. The original design will be replicated during the screen printing.

laser engraved stencil with xTool screen printer
screen printed t shirts

Furthermore, the axial adjustments of the xTool can accommodate multiple stencil changes, and that makes it easy for the tool to handle multi-color printing.

How to Screen Print on Fabric?

For the traditional screen printing process, you will need to prepare your design. The design preparation is typically done with graphic design software. After that, you will have to convert it to a format that's suitable for the film creation.

Film creation involves the creation of a positive (or negative) image of your design. To do that, the film is exposed to light, and areas on the screen where ink should not pass through are blocked off. 

Other steps during the traditional screen printing process are:

Step 1: Screen Stretching

It involves stretching a mesh screen in a frame. This helps in the absorption of ink by the mesh screen. The mesh screen is typically made of polyester or silk.

Step 2: Emulsion Coating

Using an emulsion scoop coater, the screen is coated with a photosensitive emulsion. The design stencil is created from the emulsion. If done properly, you will have an even layer of photosensitive emulsion spread across the mesh.

emulsion coating

©ILiketoMakeStuff – YouTube

Step 3: Film Printing

Your preferred design should be printed onto a transparent film. Using a transparent tape, attach the transparent film to your emulsion-coated screen.

film printing

Step 4: Screen Exposure

The emulsion-coated screen is exposed to an ultraviolet light source. Emulsion not covered by the design is hardened by the light. Screen exposure is the magic ingredient that helps in developing the stencil.

screen exposure

Step 5: Screen Washing

The unhardened emulsion is washed off with water (or a developer solution). This leaves a stencil on your screen — and it also serves as the route the ink passes to create the print.

wash off unhardened emulsion

Step 6: Screen Drying

After washing, the screen is thoroughly dried to ascertain that the screen is set for ink application. A thoroughly dried screen is one of the key factors that guarantee a clean print.

Step 7: Printing

Your fabric should be placed on a printing table, and your printing screen should be carefully positioned above it. Using a squeegee (or a scoop coater), apply some ink on top of your screen. The printing screen is carefully lowered so it makes contact with the fabric. The ink is forced onto the fabric through the open regions of your stencil. The pushing (or pulling) movement of the scoop coater (or squeegee) is what exerts the force needed for the printing process.

spread ink with the squeegee

Pros and Cons of Traditional Screen Printing

Pros

  • It's versatile and can be used for printing on a broad range of fabrics
  • The end product is durable and resistant to washing and wearing
  • Bold, high-quality prints are produced
  • Good fit for bulk printing production.

Cons

Setting up the traditional screen printing process can be time-consuming. You will need more time when working on multiple colors or complex designs. The xTool Screen Printer eliminates all these issues. You're ready to go in a few second