August 28

Screen Printing Books: Do It Yourself Screenprinting Book Store

I have finally built a collection of screenprinting books available through the Catspit website. In the past I have often been asked where to buy books about screen printing. The problem was I never really knew where to find those books and on top of that when I did do a Google search, I found it wasn’t really as easy as I thought it would be to find them. All I could do was tell people to do a Google search for them and hope for the best. That is not the case anymore.

I was lucky enough to put this book store together by happily stumbling upon certain websites and services available while searching for screen printing books. The bookstore is an affiliate webpage but I really love it because it provides a very cool resource for the visitors to the website. It contains screenprinting books from Lulu.com, Barnes and Noble as well as Amazon. With these three booksellers, the collection of books is quite complete. You can find educational and do it yourself screen printing books form Bill Hood, Scott Fresener, John Isaacson, Annie Stromquist, and Michael P. Shanley.

So take a moment to peruse the collection of books about screenprinting in the brand new Catspit Productions bookstore. You may find a few books there you have never seen. There's a total of 45 books listed there. They're all in one convenient place for your consideration.

Thanks for reading! Learn how to screen print with Catspit Productions, LLC!

11:39 PM GMT  |  Read comments(0)

August 16

Inkjet Printers & Pressure Washers: What’s The Deal?

As it is easy to guess, I am asked continuously about which products I use and which I recommend for screen printing at home. A few of the common items I am asked about very frequently are inkjet printers, pressure washers and screenprinting books. I have found it difficult to answer each inquiry to my own satisfaction each and every time. And on top of that I felt silly for recommending products and brands for which I would never get credit. These manufacturers or vendors would never know that I was endorsing their products and would never share in the revenues from the business I could possibly be sending them. That’s why we now have a sponsor for screen printing supplies. Of course I don’t mean to try to get rich off of recommending products at all, it’s just nice to know I have a chance of being a part of the sales equation in a way that benefits the website and my visitors at the same time.

Therefore, I have built affiliate pages for inkjet printers and pressure washers as well as screenprinting books. These pages are here first and foremost for educational purposes. I hope that the addition of this information to the Catspit website will be a valuable resource for all visitors. This gives the visitor the benefit of being able to not only see some items for screen printing at home that I suggest, but it also provides an avenue for purchase that gives back to the project. In addition, it gives me a great tool to use when I am asked about these items individually and it makes the information available to everyone. Please remember, these are suggestions, not recommendations.

I really love the bookstore because even with all of the research I have done online accumulating and compiling screen printing information, I have never seen a collection of books like the one I have created. I hope to add more if affiliates will allow but when I first started looking for screen printing books, I found them hard to locate from a simple Google search. After some time looking on specific websites, I found about 34 books that appear to be perfect for the many different aspects of screenprinting at home. Then I was able to find these books available form two online vendors. I don’t think you can find them all in one place except on the Catspit Productions website.

It appears that the Catspit Productions website is the first of its kind to offer information about screen printing all in one place in such complete detail, online 24 hours a day for free. There will certainly be a clone of sorts in the future but remember where it all started and the grass roots effort of one lone screen printer who chose to make this information available to all, free  of charge.

Thanks for visiting the blog and the Catspit Productions website. Learn how to screen print!

5:06 PM GMT  |  Read comments(0)

August 13

Inkjet Film Positives For Home & Hobby Screen Printers

Inkjet Film Positives For Screenprinting At Home

http://catspitproductionsllc.com

Catspit’s Super Inkjet Film Positives - INKJET FILM 8.5 X 11

This is the very same inkjet film that Catspit Productions uses in house. This film can achieve 70% to 80% opacity without RIP software depending on your printer. This is the absolute best film to work with especially if you do not have RIP software. With many emulsions such as dual cures, this film kicks but! I am sure this will be a major improvement to any home created film positives or copier transparencies from the copy store.

This film will blow away your laser vellum/film or copier transparencies!

http://catspitproductionsllc.com/screenprintingsupplies.aspx

Are you having trouble producing a decent film positive at home without RIP software on your home computer? The solution is: Catspit’s Super Inkjet Film Positives This inkjet film for making screen printing stencils is the absolute best to use without RIP software. If you use RIP software, it’s even better!

Visit catspitproductionsllc.com to learn more about this excellent inkjet film. See samples and pricing. Don’t waste any more time with laser vellum or copier transparencies! Get the good stuff for screen printing at home from Catspit productions, LLC!

http://catspitproductionsllc.com

6:05 PM GMT  |  Read comments(0)

August 09

New Screen Printing Articles Added To Website!

In the past week I hurt my back and I was unable to do much of anything. Believe it or not, this includes sitting at the computer to tend to internet tasks and even editing the last video. Fortunately, I tend to make video footage before I edit and post the video meaning that I often have a few videos already shot but not produced. I was able to get through that last week and as I started to feel better and take more pain medication, I was able to sit at my computer and write 5 new articles for the Catspit website. That’s right, 5 new articles.

The first two I have already announced in a prior blog post. The second 3 consist of 2 major articles and an addition to the Transfer Articles section. The new article in that section is called, “Modern Digital Heat Transfers: Tips On Best Performance”. This article was an overdue addition responding to questions on how to improve and correctly use heat transfer materials.

The next article is called, “Thin Mesh”: Higher Mesh Counts & Lower Thread Diameters”. This discusses new monofilament mesh technology and the advantages of using some of the newest mesh counts available today. Here you will learn how the thread diameter of your screen printing mesh will affect the performance of your screens.

The last article is called, “The Benefits & Challenges Of Water Based Inks”. This article talks about some of the differences in water based screen printing compared to plastisol. I cover some of the benefits and address the most common challenges in working with water based inks.

I hope you find all of these new additions to the website to be informative, practical, and useful. I always try to write from the standpoint of the reader not being a professional screen printer. I hope this facilitates your understanding of the process without being too simple. Thanks of all of your support!

1:54 PM GMT  |  Read comments(0)

August 06

New Screen Printing Articles Added To The Website!

Two new articles have been added to the Catspit Productions website and a third is on the way! That’s correct, two brand new articles about screen printing went live this past week. The first article is a long overdue introduction to vinyl heat transfers. This article is located at the bottom of the Transfer Articles page on the website. In it, I briefly introduce and explain the vinyl heat transfer process using a computer and a plotter. This is for the benefit of those who are trying to understand the benefits and limitations of heat transfers in custom apparel printing. The article is called, “Vinyl Heat Transfers Using A Plotter”.

The second article that has been posted to the website this week is about starting your own screen printing business. This article discusses the common pitfalls that are encountered when in the beginning stages of starting a custom print shop. The article is intended to make you think of very important and critical factors that go into setting up a screen printing shop. Unlike other screen printing educators and suppliers, my goal is to teach you as much as you need to know about the business before you start purchasing equipment and supplies. This way you can really know if screen printing tee shirts is the right business endeavor for you. This article is called, “Starting Your Own Screen Printing Business: Common Pitfalls”.

The third article to be posted is about “thin mesh”. This article will clear up any confusion or misunderstanding about why I say a 110/80 mesh is the same difference as a 135/48 in ink flow. Technically it is not but for the laymen it is good enough to say they will have similar coverage abilities but the 135 will have more detail with just as good or better ink flow. Sometimes I try to just simplify technical issues so that anyone can get the idea. Check out this article later this weekend and see what I am talking about specifically. The article will post later today. I will announce the article posting over the weekend.

Thanks for reading and happy printing!

Learn how to screen print with Catspit Productions, LLC.

10:41 AM GMT  |  Read comments(0)

August 04

New Screen Printing Video: DIY Screen Drying Rack

Finally! This is the video about the screen drying rack I “built”. I say it like that because I took a rack that I received from my sponsor and enclosed it so it would be light safe. So technically I did not build the rack part but I modified it. Any way you look at it, this is a great way to save a lot of money on purchasing a professionally made screen drying rack. When you buy them from a screen printing equipment supplier, they can be very expensive.

The video is called, “How To Screen Print: DIY Screen Drying Rack”. In the video I explain what materials I used and how much they cost. You also get to see me working on the unit. At the end of the video, I included photos of the finished product with an added fan to ensure proper air circulation.

Stop by the YouTube channel today and check out this great screenprinting video by Catspit Productions!

10:36 AM GMT  |  Read comments(0)

August 02

Latest Screen Printing Video Postponed

Just wanted to let you all know I am still here and quite well. I hurt my back this past weekend and it has put a damper on things around the shop. The video that was scheduled to post to YouTube today will now be uploaded later this week. I am finding it very difficult to move about and even sit at the computer.

Don’t even ask how this happened…LOL. It was very stupid and only gives away my age. I am definitely not in as good physical condition as I should be and maybe this will help me get out there and exercise a lot more. If I had been exercising, this probably wouldn’t have happened.

Remember the old Woody Wood Pecker cartoon where the narrator says, “If Woody had gone to the police, none of this would have ever happened”. Yea, well if Jonathan had gone to the gym, non of this would have ever happened! LOL.

Please stay tuned for the next screen printing video later this week!

6:02 PM GMT  |  Read comments(0)

July 28

New Aquarium Video Uploaded To YouTube!

Check out the Catspit Productions 20 gallon fresh water aquarium. I have had this tank for about 4 years. The plecostamus and danio’s are original fish probably about 3 years old. In Arizona, the evaporation rate of fish tank water can be very high. I recommend keeping the top sealed with some air flow and a water chiller. This will make it easy to maintain a healthy temperature. Very cool marine video to relax to. You’ll feel like Jacques Cousteau.

Take a look today! Community Fish Tank: 20 Gallon Fresh Water Aquarium

10:25 AM GMT  |  Read comments(0)

July 27

Screen Printing Website Has New Colors!

Extra! Extra! The Catspit Productions website is now sporting new colors! I have changed the background color for the content or text. It used to be radioactive green which is one of our company colors but due to some complaints about difficulty in reading, I have now changed it to gray. It took some work to do but I think it looks good. Thanks to all for your input regarding this matter.

Stop by the website and have a look today!

catspitproductionsllc.com

12:44 PM GMT  |  Read comments(0)

July 23

New Aquarium Video On Deck

Hello everyone, I just wanted to stop in and let you know about a really cool video I am working on for YouTube. As you may already know, Catspit Productions has a 20 gallon fresh water aquarium. I made a video of the tank for YouTube and it has done quite well in view counts.

Since I am now using a new video camera, I thought it would be a great opportunity to improve on the quality of the aquarium video and even spice it up with some camera movement and different cuts. The lighting and video quality is way better in the new video and the scene cuts look great.

I really enjoy my aquarium and it is fun to share it with the aquarium community on YouTube. This video was a lot of fun to make and I hope you enjoy it even more than the first aquarium video. There are a lot of new tank decorations as well as new and more interesting fish. The video will upload on Monday, July 26th.

The next screen printing video will upload on August 2nd. It will be about printing white ink on black tee shirts. Stay tuned!

Thanks for reading!

10:25 AM GMT  |  Read comments(0)

July 19

New Screen Printing Video: Stretching Screens With Easy Frame

My friend Jim Larson from Shur Loc Fabric Systems was kind enough to make this video for the Catspit Productions YouTube channel. In the video Jim does a demonstration of his newest fabric and frame stretching system called Easy Frame. This is a similar device to the Shur Loc roller frame stretcher but it uses a new frame designed especially for Shur Loc.

The video is called, “Screen Printing: Stretching Screens With Easy Frame”. This is one of the last show videos for 2010. I may have 1 or 2 more that I pull out from some left over footage but this is the last demo by a vendor. I have one more vendor demo of a direct to screen system and I may yet post that one. But this is the last planned posting for show videos. Stop by the YouTube channel and watch this video today! Don’t forget to rate thumbs up!

As always, thanks much for stopping by and reading the Catspit Blog. Make sure to visit the Catspit website for all your educational information about screen printing tee shirts.

11:16 AM GMT  |  Read comments(0)

July 16

New Screen Printing Video Uploaded To YouTube!

New video uploaded to YouTube! This video is about the website and what you can expect to find there. I answer some questions that I have been asked recently more than once for all to enjoy and benefit from. Please take a moment to watch this video and learn more about Catspit Productions online.

The video is called, “How To Screen Print Tee Shirts: Website Q & A”. In this video I am using a new camera to film. Earlier this week when I was trying to make this video and another, my regular camera overheated and produced very poor video quality. That combined with battery problems and lens debris, made me move on to another, newer camera I have had for some time but never used for videos.

Therefore, I am still adjusting to the way the new camera reads light, shadows and color. It will take a few videos to iron out the bugs in my video recording process. Please be patient, I promise not to let you down and I hope to increase the production quality of my videos in the very near future.

Thanks again for reading!

12:51 PM GMT  |  Read comments(0)

July 12

Full Blown YouTube Partnership!

Some of you may have noticed that we went from having 4 videos with YouTube revenue sharing to becoming an outright YouTube Partner. Yes, this is true. I have partnered the Catspit YouTube channel and it is now generating a small amount of revenue through the Google ads. But money is not the reason why I approved this partnership.

The main reason for joining YouTube in a partnership is exposure. As a partner my videos enjoy a higher search ranking than others with similar content or titles. YouTube may also feature a few of my videos sometime and as it is known, YouTube tends to favor partners in general. So, the whole partnership is about growing the channel. The final reason for the partnership is the very cool branding options they give partners. Now the Catspit YouTube channel looks great and has direct links to the Catspit website. And I’ll be honest too, the small amount of money the Google ads generate will pay for the online services I use to run the website and blog. That’s great news because before, this whole project was a charity case and cost me money out of my pocket. Now my bookkeeper and accountant are happy to see the internet project break even and possibly generate a positive income.

Granted the YouTube profits will be very small; I’m no Ray William Johnson! And the topic of screen printing is not popular enough for me to become a “full time YouTuber”. Besides, I make my money printing tee shirts and I don’t think YouTube's partnership will ever compare to that income. So have no fear, I will continue making great screen printing videos for everyone to learn from for free.

Thank you so much for all of your continued support and if you haven't subscribed to the YouTube channel yet, please do so today!

8:56 AM GMT  |  Read comments(0)

July 06

New Screen Printing Video Uploaded To YouTube: Heat Transfer Tee Shirts With Names & Numbers

New Video! Heat Transfer Shirts With Names & Numbers Using Stahls Thermo-FILM®, Player Perfect. This video shows how you can use a good quality heat transfer to do names & numbers without having to screen print everything. These heat transfers can save you a lot of labor which balances out the cost; a lower profit margin but with much less labor. So it evens out to me. Check it out!

The video is called, “Heat Transfer Tee Shirts With Names & Numbers”. This is a great video for all you home businesses specializing in heat transferred products. If you purchase anything through Stahls, make sure to let them know that Jonathan from Catspit Productions sent you!

I hope you all had a great 4th of July! Thanks for all of your support!

12:39 PM GMT  |  Read comments(0)

July 01

Some Pointers On Screen Printing

“Some Pointers On Screen Printing” article by Jonathan Monaco of Catspit Productions, LLC, http://catspitproductionsllc.com, for Michelle Licudine at: http://www.flightsofancy.biz.

One of the first things I advise people to do when working with screen printing and direct liquid emulsions is to use 100% opaque film. This is something that we have become accustom to not having. In the early days of screen printing the film positives were made using a genuine photographic process producing a silver nitrate piece of film that was just absolutely opaque. The density of the image area in the film was 100%. The film was made with “process” cameras or “stat” cameras and processed through small automatic developing machines. As the computer came of age we started to see cheaper and easier methods of producing film positives emerge on the commercial market. The draw back or compensation for the lesser cost is: many computer produced laser vellum products and inkjet or laser films are inferior compared to their true film predecessors. Check out the article called “Outputting Artwork To Film” on the Catspit website.

Another important thing to understand is the different types of emulsions available for making your screen. The basic three types of direct emulsions are Diazo, Photopolymer, and Dual Cure. And note that it is UV light that emulsions are most sensitive to. That is important when choosing your light source for making your screens. Your exposure unit, film quality and emulsion will determine your exposure time; therefore having an exposure source that has a good UV output will be beneficial. The three different types of emulsions will have different exposure latitudes and benefits with different light sources. Take a look at the article called “Understanding Emulsion" and "Trouble Shooting Tips For Direct Emulsions".

Sometimes for beginners it can be difficult to understand which product to use for which application. In screen printing we use on a daily basis what are known as consumables. These include but are not limited to inks, emulsions, and chemicals. Here is a helpful article that is in a chart format to make it easy to identify the information you are looking for regarding consumables. It is a quick reference and you should always thoroughly research your products. Browse this chart to get a quick look at consumables, “Consumables Usage Charts; Inks, Emulsions And Chemicals”.

A very important tip I like to give to beginning screen printers is about mesh tension. Using a tightly stretched screen has benefits beyond print resolution. You can achieve better coverage in certain applications with the correct mesh count. Or you can conserve ink by using tightly stretched screens with higher mesh counts to print lighter colored shirts and get great coverage there too. Learn a little more about proper mesh tension by reading the article called “Proper Mesh Tension: Getting Better Stencil Performance” on the Catspit website.

On a last note, artwork is the single most important step to creating an excellent, high quality print. If your artwork is not set up properly for screen printing, not only will the print look bad but the job could be very difficult to print. It is important to educate yourself on how screen printing renderers graphics and understand how to set up your art to easily print what you want. Take the most time working on your art and be sure of it before you even think about going to screen. If you are unsure of how to do the art, seek out a graphic artist who has experience with screen printing. This will save you much materials and headache.

By better understanding the way screen printing is technically applied to achieve optimum results is an asset to your printing success. Learn the principles and techniques of commercial screenprinting and adapt them to your home application. Whether or not you intend on printing tee shirts for fun or for profit, learning the technical details of the process will facilitate your efforts. In the end, this methodology will give you better print results with less effort.

12:50 PM GMT  |  Read comments(0)

June 28

Tee Shirt Art Contest Entry Deadline This Wednesday!

The deadline for the first ever Catspit Productions tee shirt art contest is approaching very quickly. Wednesday is the last day for entries into the contest. No entries will be accepted after 9 a.m. on July 1st.

Make sure to check out the video and contest rules for more information about the contest and how to enter. I appreciate every entry and I thank all who participate to make this contest a success. The outcome of this contest will determine whether or not I will do any more in the future.

Audience participation is very important. Rating and commenting on videos is greatly appreciated. Making comments in the Catspit Guestbook is also appreciated and lets me know how I am doing and who is interested in what. The discussion board on the Catspit Facebook page has been opened and I started a discussion for you to suggest ideas for future videos. Please feel free to stop by, become a fan and suggest some ideas for new screen printing videos for the Catspit Productions YouTube channel.

Thanks for reading!

9:59 AM GMT  |  Read comments(0)

June 24

New Screen Printing Video Posted To YouTube: Silver Glitter Ink On Black Shirts

Another cool video from Catspit Productions has been uploaded to YouTube. This video is called, “How To Screen Print: Glitter Ink On Black Shirts”. In the video I show how a metallic silver, sparkly ink can be printed through 110 mesh onto black tee shirts with great coverage. I admit I get a little excited in this video because I like the ink a lot. The video also compares how printing the silver glitter ink on black is basically the same procedure for white on black with no flash and double hit.

And don’t forget to enter the contest to win custom printed shirts, hinge clamps and more! The contest entry deadline date is June 30th so get to work on that winning artwork. See this video for more info: Contest. Good luck, thanks for your support.

Learn how to screen print with Catspit Productions, LLC!

2:35 PM GMT  |  Read comments(0)

June 21

Catspit Productions Screen Printing Newsletter #1

Hello everyone and welcome to the first ever Catspit Productions Screen Printing Newsletter #1,

First I want to thank all of you for your continued support and thanks for visiting the Catspit Productions website! I appreciate your taking the time to watch my YouTube videos and read the great screen printing articles on the website. Thank you all.

Website Updates:

If you haven’t visited the website in some time, please do so again. There have been many additions and updates since the launching of the website over 1 year ago. It went live with 5 pages and has over 50 pages today.

One of the newest sections is the Article Archive page where all the latest screen printing articles are being posted for easy access by title. Make sure to have a look at that:

http://catspitproductionsllc.com/articlearchives.aspx

Help spread the word about Catspit Productions; connect with us on MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter! Embed one of these widgets on your website or social networking page:

http://catspitproductionsllc.com/networkingonline.aspx

New Website Sponsor:

Catspit Productions now has an official sponsor. You can learn more about this development by reading this blog entry:

http://catspitproductionsllc.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!185B454BE8D0048B!312.entry

Google Partnership:

You will notice some Google AdSense ads running on select pages of the Catspit website. Some YouTube videos have also been partnered and now display Google ads. To learn more about why this is happening, please read this blog entry:

http://catspitproductionsllc.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!185B454BE8D0048B!321.entry

Tee Shirt Art Contest:

Last but not least I wanted to make sure you all knew about the first Catspit Productions YouTube tee shirt art contest. You can win custom printed shirts, Speedball hinge clamps for printing and Catspit shirts. Make sure to watch this video and read the contest rules for more information about how to enter and win!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52aPUWoED88

Contest Rules:

http://catspitproductionsllc.spaces.live.com/blog/cns!185B454BE8D0048B!318.entry

Thanks again to everyone for helping make the Catspit Productions internet project a success. I look forward to providing you with more great free information about screen printing in the future.

12:57 PM GMT  |  Read comments(0)

June 15

YouTube: A New Stage With Partnership

YouTube has been hounding me for several months now to partner 4 videos. At first, I was very hesitant and I really didn’t want to partner anything on my YouTube channel. I figured that it was a fair trade. My excellent content for some free exposure. But YouTube does not see it this way and they do react if you do not partner.

After refusing the partnership about 3 times, I noticed my activity on the YouTube channel and videos dropped quite drastically. Believe it or not I also noticed a drop in traffic to the website too. Remember that Google owns YouTube. So I got the impression that YouTube and Google tend to “punish” you if you do not accept their partnership offers. I have heard the same thing from other larger YouTube channels as well. Other channels that are far more successful than mine. It seems some of them suffered this punitive action as well and ended up partnering with YouTube in the end for the good of the channel.

That is where we are today. After sticking to my refusal for about 2 months I realized that it was not in the best interest of the YouTube channel or the website. Therefore, as of last week sometime, 4 Catspit videos have been partnered by YouTube and display advertisements in the small pop ups that appear at the bottom of the video player. There will certainly be more videos coming up soon that will be eligible for the same partnership and I will allow it for those as well.

I just figured that cooperating with YouTube and Google will be in the best interest of the entire Catspit internet project and allow for as much exposure as possible through the free venues such as YouTube and the Google search engines which rely on website content. I am not interested in earning money from the YouTube partnership, although any revenue earned will help keep the project going.

I just want to make it clear that this is not about money. It is about getting the most traffic out of these free venues. If no one visits my website or watches my videos, then what is the point of my continuing efforts? I am also going to be adding some Google AdSense to the home page of the Catspit website. I believe this may help with the Google search results.

If you think that Google treats every website fairly and bases search results solely on website content, I think you are mistaken. I believe, with good reason, that cooperating with Google or YouTube will put you in good standing with them. If you partner with them and let them advertise with you, I think they will be more prone to index my content and display it on search results. After all, if they never show your page with AdSense advertisements on it, they will never earn anything from it.

Therefore, as I have said, I am going to play with having some AdSense advertisements on the home page of the Catspit website. I will study the results and see if the traffic improves as a result. If not, I will remove the ads. If it does prove to be beneficial to search engine results on Google, then they will stay on the homepage only.

Please know that I am interested only in increasing traffic to YouTube and the Catspit website. I am not trying to make money from YouTube or Google AdSense. It is just a tactical maneuver which I hope will ensure the continued traffic to my YouTube channel and website. Maybe it will even increase the activity for both venues.

If you have any questions, comments or concerns, please feel free to contact me. Thanks for reading!

9:44 AM GMT  |  Read comments(0)

June 07

New Screen Printing Video Uploaded To YouTube: Fluorescent Pink On Black

A new video about screen printing has been uploaded to YouTube. This video is an actual production run. It features a fluorescent ink printed on black women's thermals and black cotton hoodies. You also will se a metallic silver glitter being printed on these garments. With this print run, I set it up on 110 mesh because the fluorescent pink was a high opacity ink. But in the end it looked much better with a hit, flash, hit. But the metallic silver really covers well on most any color so that printed just as intended.

The video is called, “How To Screen Print: Fluorescent Pink On Black Thermals & Hoodies”. Make sure to stop by YouTube and check it out today.

Sometimes when you actually get to press, you will find that things either don’t work out exactly as you intended or that a print just looks better done a specific way. It is up to you to choose which way to print and remember to always consider the happiness of your customer. Ultimately, a happy customer is worth so much more than a quick sale.

Thanks for reading!

5:52 PM GMT  |  Read comments(0)