Learning Screen Printing

last weekend was quite exhausting but enjoyable, as we had a long weekend in celebration of Bonifacio Day. i took advantage of the holiday to do some crafting and learn how to screen print.

i joined Hey Kessy's Merry Mail Swap and i'm excited to make my swap partner Christmasy things! no photos yet so as not to spoil the fun!

oiling the screen

then that afternoon i headed off to Megamall for a short course on screen printing. it was very exciting because we will be doing photographic screen printing.

applying some photo emulsion chemicals

though during the process, i got a little bit turned off because of the amount of chemicals to be used.

fun with squeegee!

i was hoping for simpler methods with at least non-toxic materials to use. nonetheless i proceeded with the class, and eventually enjoyed making my own shirt. here's the finished product:

Early Christmas Treat

the Christmas presents i got for myself finally arrived today. i feel so giddy as i saw the package on my work desk this morning. these were ordered through Avalon.ph. where they have one-of-a-kind book selections, not to mention more affordable Moleskines. great service too! they were kind enough to double-check my mailing address, turns out i forgot to include the floor of my office building (not that we have too many floors).

now on to the goods, i got a large Moleskine sketchbook and The Heart of Faerie Oracle by Brian and Wendy Froud. i think it was about time for me to get a Moleskine sketchbook. i do have a lot of notebooks and sketchbooks, i have tried using Moleskine planners and cahiers but i just had to try Moleskine to see why so many are using it as a sketchbook (they're darn expensive!).

and as i wanted someting exotic, i got myself The Heart of Faerie Oracle. it has a book and tarot-ish cards to "read", with AMAZING artwork. back when i was still a book buyer i encountered Brian Froud in book catalogues. of course i can only marvel at miniature versions of his art. now i can enjoy his art one at a time, in every piece of oracle card. and who knows, i might dabble in the art of the oracle someday.

The Queen of the Golden Bough leads the pack