ImagesMagUK_December_2021

IS DECORATOR PROFILE www.images-magazine.com 34 images DECEMBER 2021 The entrance to Rockaway Park Si uses Permaset water-based inks to print on garments and paper First and foremost now are sustainability and environmental impact He has found that the SuperCover range is best used with 62T screens or less. “This means when printing on darker garments, I have to either get creative with half-toning or consider an FD [first down] base.” Drying in is an issue that concerns many printers who are considering a similar move to water-based products. “You can’t stop to take a call. If you stop, you have to wet everything down because you have a 10-minute window before your screen starts to dry, whereas with oil-based [inks], you can stop and come back to it tomorrow if you want,” Si confirms. “If you are running an auto, you need an extra set of hands to maintain the inks. It keeps you on your toes.” Si has stopped using discharge inks now because of his concerns about the zinc-formaldehyde-sulfoxylate (ZFS) content, which is particularly relevant in his present set up as Rockaway Park uses a septic tank. Despite the challenges, Si loves using Permatone water-based ink and urges other printers to try them. “It’s more engaging, which is why I enjoy it. Overall, it’s a joy to work with and the pros of working with it are not having to be around chemicals anymore. I have come full circle: I went from water-based inks in my bedroom to plastisol and bigger numbers and now I’m back to hand- pulled and water-based again.” Fair Wear and solar power Carry on Screening stocks only ethically sourced Fair Wear-certified garments, predominantly from Continental and No Sweat, which partners workers co-operative Oporajeo in Bangladesh, plus occasionally Stanley/Stella. The ethical model brings extra costs, but Si says Carry on Screening’s customers appreciate the added value. “The sort of print jobs I might have done previously for a promotion, those people generally wouldn’t do business with me because of the price. Out of my clients, 90% of them have been on board and were happy to make the move and pay a bit more, and the rest were amicable and went to other printers we recommended.” Carry on Screening is powered by solar energy, with 34 panels fixed to its south-facing roof as part of a wider roll-out of solar energy at Rockaway Park. Generating 8.5kW per hour, the panels can provide all the power needed for 10 months of the year, with about 50% coming from solar and the other 50% coming from green supplier Ecotricity the other two months. “We can now tell clients that, when they sell the T-shirts, they can say they’re not only ethically sourced, but solar powered,” says Si. Second-hand equipment In line with the company’s ethos, all the studio equipment was bought second hand including the manual Ranar V-6600 six-colour six-station rotary printer, the Workhorse Powerhouse dryers and the Natgraph M3 exposure unit that is big enough to expose three screens at a time. After moving to Rockaway, Si did all the print jobs himself, but he has now taken on two print hands part-time, while sales, sourcing and admin continues to be handled remotely by Christie Callow who has been on board since the start. Taking people on in the studio will mean Si will have more time to do artwork and focus on smaller projects. “I have only a finite amount of printing left in me. I’m able to be a lot more creative than I used to be and do more of my own stuff like working on more design briefs for bands.” Si is also hoping to run workshops on sustainable screen printing at Rockaway Park, organised with his partner, Rona Lotan, who works in education. They live above the studio, but Si is careful not to let printing seep into his personal life. “The main thing for us is we want to keep the work/life balance right. We are not really looking to expand. My website is almost non- existent as I’ve never had the time for it and I’ve never had to look for work. I’ve always been busy enough.” www.carryonscreening.co.uk Printing on vintage-style black No Sweat T-shirts for All Ages Records London