Designing and Printing yourself-is it worth it?

[steve w]

what's your favorite cheese?

[B-DROID]

...and none of this Kraft singles bullshit.

[mikeage]

Part of it depends on how good you are at printing. I've printed a couple things myself but had to turn to someone else to print my first gigposter. I was nervous I was going to screw it up and didn't want to do that with my first run of 100 prints and the first one for a client. Plus no time to do it over if I did screw it up.

Do as many prints now as you can so you're confident and know the limits of your abilities.

[steve w]

I screwed it up for you

[farleypig]

as a semi-newbie myself, i think printing is important. i was a photo major and i always processed my own film while so many others didn't. If you don't do every part of the process, it is hard to know where you went wrong. and accidents can be happy too - so much so that you need to know how to repeat those accidents. I see printing as part of the art. will probably see it differently if i ever make a living off it.
i think a lot of people on here have had their hands in the ink for so long that they know how to get what they want and can send it off intelligently.
my vote = you start off getting dirty.

[mikeage]

Originally Posted by steve w

I screwed it up for you

But I didn't, that's all I'm worried about.



They turned out great, I like 'em. Haven't heard from the band yet.

[clinttw]

If your looking for ways to save money on building your own shop there are tons of threads about making your own washout booth, printing press and exposure unit on here. There's even step by step plans for a press made by a real master of screenprinting in the premium forum section.

here's how a buddy and I did it:

Built a silkscreen shop in my garage in under 2 weeks...

[Andymac]

This is what premium membership buys - snappy answers - they may not be right, but they're fast.

[boatdreams]

Getting started at home isn't nearly as expensive as you'd think. There are some essentials, such as screens, emulsion, ink, etc. But you can get by with a very basic, stripped down setup and just expand as needed. A power washer is highly recommended, if not totally required.
Like Steve said, if someone can come to you for both the art and the printing, that's easier for them. It's also more money and experience for you. Plus, if you print, you can be the guy who gets jobs outsourced TO him as well as printing your own gigs.
Lastly, nice move on the premium membership! Welcome aboard.

[Zach Hobbs]

I would prefer to get a strict fee for design with the band independently taking care of the printing (if that's youngmonster printing all the better) but bands are spoiled to death right now and expect to get everything for $5 a print. Lately it feels like the design is free.

The elephant is in the room.