Need information?
Tips on where to buy things?
Problem solving?
It’s so easy. Just keep an eye on this page as it develops and grows.
Useful printmaking tips, suggestions and connections… Gradually added over time for your printmaking pleasure. And if there is something you’d really like to see included, please email Simone here… She’ll do her best to pop it on :)
Currently listed below:
UV Screen Exposures
Craft die-cutters such as Dorothy-the-die-cutter (aka the Xpress Xcut) and Poppy Crafts and Sunlit A4 die cutting and embossing machines
Process Notes to get you started / help you along & Startup Print Packs of materials
Where to buy printmaking paper?
More resources, coming soon
UV Screen Exposures
Now available, yay!
UStP exposures possible for screens with outer frame dimensions of 50 x 40cm to 60 x 50cm.
Size #2 screens from Jones Print Technologies in Victoria 03 9357 5767 are perfect.
Or purchase second hand screens & squeegees from Leapfrog in Sydney - click here for more.
Transparencies approaching A3 in size. (A3 is ~30 x 42cm).
Preferred screen size 60 x 50cm (outer frame dimensions), that is, size #2 screens from Jones Print Technologies.
$55 strip/coat/expose (incl GST).
1 week turnaround for a clean screen coat/expose.
1-2 week turnaround for a strip/coat/expose.Please email Simone to arrange. (No drop ins thank you.)
Exposed with the Leapfrog el Studente system, exposed from above the screen (meaning your transparency should be reversed for closest contact and good detail) using the Murakami Photocure TXR pink emulsion.
For faster turnarounds, exposing different sized frames or for transperancies/images A3 or more, please contact Norwood Screenprinters (8363 3925) or Paden Printers in Edwardstown (8277 0535).
FYI, our exposure unit is simple and straightforward. Frames wider than 58cm will not fit. And the image on your transperancy should be smaller than A3. If you aren’t sure, please text a photo of your screen and transparency - both including a ruler or biro for size reference - to Simone (0407 079 604) and she’ll get back to you.
Where to Buy a Press?
Enjay Presses
Simone is the South Australian contact for Enjay Presses. She uses a S24 in Stepney, a RP24 in Hindmarsh and carries a RP12 everywhere she goes..
The gorgeous RP12, which she carries from workshop to workshop in her car, is her latest press (image below). It’s light enough to lift one-handed and small enough to slot into an IKEA Kallax bookshelf at the end of the day. The RP12 costs under $2,000, optional blankets $66, with delivery on top via Pack & Send.
Within a week of receiving your quote for your RP12, you could be printing up a storm on your kitchen table… Bank transfers and delivery times allowing, of course :)
If you'd like to know more about Enjay Presses, see one in action or request a formal quote, please email Simone.
And for specialist printmaking materials to set up your studio and start printing, click here.
TThe beautiful little Enjay RP12… at 12kg in weight and with a bedplate 12” wide by 60cm long, it is small enough to lift one-handed and robust enough to easily print both relief and intaglio plates, on paper up to A3 in size. Available in charcoal grey and Dinkum Blue (pictured above).
Simone printing her friend Lisa Young’s lino block at home during Covid on the dining table. The music tinkling in the background is the fabulous Fats Waller on Spotify.
Dorothy-the-Die-Cutter (the Xpress Xcut)
& new die cutters from Poppy Crafts & Sunlit
There are many craft die cutters out there, available online or from your local or online scrap booking or craft store.
The machine of choice for printmakers - for printing and die cutting - is the Xpress Xcut. Sadly it is no longer manufactured. (We haven’t seen an online supplier for several years.) However, they do occasionally pop up in secondhand online marketplaces, so it is worth monitoring these if you aren’t in a rush.
Possible alternatives are the Poppy and Sunlit craft machines.
I haven’t used a Poppy yet, but rumour has it that she is good for small simple linos. You can find her here www.craftonline.com.au/products/poppy-crafts-die-cutting-and-embossing-machine-a4.
I also haven’t use a Sunlit, but this vimeo by the excellent Printmaking Sisters shows how easy she is to use for small prints https://vimeo.com/566421394.
Most of the notes below include processes that can be printed on Dorothy. (With the exception of the 2mm Acrylic Drypoint which requires an etching press.)
And no, Dorothy isn’t her real name… It’s just that Simone names ALL her presses! Dorothy is more commonly known as the Xpress die cutter, brand Xcut, model/product code [XCU268300] 317937. (Poppy really is called Poppy. And Sunlit really is Sunlit!)
Here are pictures of Dorothy, Poppy and Sunlit , so you can be sure you buy the right ones…
(What you are looking for is a die-cutter that has two metal rollers with an adjustable height - in Dorothy’s case, the adjustable height is via the black dial on top of the uppermost white section, when open. Poppy’s is the white knob to the side. Sunlit’s are the salmon-coloured knobs on the side. To the best of our knowledge, Dorothy, Poppy and Sunlit are the only craft die-cutters with adjustable heights.)
Poppy Crafts’ A4 die cutting & embossing machine.
Sunlit Crafts’ A4 die cutting & embossing machine.
Dorothy-the-Die-Cutter… better (and more officially) known as the Xpress Xcut. (No longer manufactured, so difficult to source.)
Great notes…
And start up packs of materials…
These processes are each distilled into double-sided A4 summaries to help you print effectively and well. They are updated regularly, as materials and suppliers change, so the latest version appears below. (They are also the notes you receive when you enrol in the workshops for beginners printmaking, drypoint, lino printing and printing without a press, so if you are regional or interstate, they may help with basic problem solving.)
Click for a free sample - Acrylic Drypoint in a Cylinder Etching (Intaglio) Press - to give you an ideas of what kinds of things the notes cover.
The remaining sets of notes can be downloaded for AUD $15 each, or the complete set for AUD $50:
Cardboard Drypoint in a cylinder etching press such as the Enjay RP12 or Dorothy-the-Die-Cutter.
Monoprinting in a cylinder etching press such as the Enjay RP12 or Dorothy-the-Die-Cutter (image c/- artist Lisa Young).
Lino Printing in a cylinder etching press such as the Enjay RP12 or Dorothy-the-Die-Cutter (image c/- artist Lisa Young).
Adhesive Foam 1 & Adhesive Foam 2 in a cylinder etching press such as the Enjay RP12 or Dorothy-the-Die-Cutter.
Scratcher Foam in a cylinder etching press such as the Enjay RP12 or Dorothy-the-Die-Cutter.
And each of these processes can be printed in a regular cylinder etching press such as the Enjay RP12 as well as Dorothy-the-Die-Cutter.
To order these notes, please email Simone.
You can also order a Beginners / Startup Printmaking Pack of materials for yourself or as a gift by emailing Simone…
Where to buy printmaking paper?
Bulk specialist printmaking paper is best purchased in the twice-yearly paper sales from Melbourne Etching Supplies - June and November each year. (If you are working to a deadline, do ask about delivery times. MES paper sale deliveries are sent out on a first-in-first-served basis.)
Other shops selling western intaglio cotton rag papers or Japanese awagami-style papers in Adelaide are:
Union St Printmakers, in person, by appointment (check paper stocks here & then text/email Simone your order in advance). Available through the UStP shop: Somerset printmaking/cyanotype papers, Stonehenge white/coloured printmaking papers, unsized mulberry/fibre papers, unsized Awagami relief papers, Awagami rolls, Awagami selection packs, Awagami creative packs & imported sized Mokuhanga papers.
Art to Art at 69 Glen Osmond Rd, Glenside & Shop T114, Harbour Town, SA.
Port Art Supplies at 83 Commercial Rd, Port Adelaide, SA.
Premier Art Supplies at 75 King William St, Kent Town, Adelaide, SA.
Eckersleys at 18 King William St, Adelaide CBD.
What Print is That?
To see examples of different kinds of prints, go to the Union St Print Pinterest page or the Union St Printmakers Facebook page (click Photos, Albums and then See All). Each album features a different set of printmaking techniques that will help you to choose the process that best suits your image.
Printmaking Materials & Suppliers
Click here to download the latest info sheet on EVERYTHING, UStP-style. Lists pretty much everything you may have forgotten to jot down in class, ever, including materials info and local suppliers. Update coming soon.
Presenting Prints (UStP-style)
Click here to download the latest info sheet on how UStPers present prints for exhibition, markets and sale. Includes useful links to suppliers. Update coming soon.
Print Studio Etiquette (UStP-style)
Click here to download the latest info sheet on studio/classroom etiquette, UStP-style, based on the Stepney studio. Update coming soon.
Cleaning Up (UStP-style)
Click here to download the latest info sheet on how to clean up after printing, UStP-style, based on the Stepney studio. Update coming soon.
Coming Soon…
Exhibiting unframed prints with magnets.
Cutting your own mounts with the Logan Team System.
