Screen Printing Video Update: What’s New?

Posted on January 16, 2011 by Catspit Productions

A lot has happened in the end of 2010 and the beginning of 2011 for Catspit Productions. There are some major changes coming for the business and another major move. The warehouse where we used to be located is no longer accessible to us and I am having to find a new solution for my shop location. Because of the economy and recent developments in my personal life, I will be moving to a house with a 2 car garage. Yes, I will be rebuilding my shop in the garage. As I move toward selling more equipment and supplies, I am feeling that a work from home situation is better for me right now. The home shop will be used mostly for videos, training and finally print jobs. I will have all of the necessary elements of a professional shop in place so that I may continue to make educational screen printing videos for YouTube. It will definitely be a great way to show the Catspit audience how to set up at home in a professional manner but in no way am I returning to a “Garage Boy” style of working.

Therefore, the screen printing videos made for YouTube will be a little scarce for the time being. I will continue to upload videos but they will be less often for the moment. Instead of 1 video each week or every 2 weeks, I may wait until the last video uploaded has at least 1000 views before I load the next. The reason I am stretching out the videos I have is in order to keep the YouTube channel active and dynamic. That way I won’t lose any steam on YouTube while I get my shop back in place and start making new videos. This is a minor set back for me as it is a big job and I apologize for the inconvenience. I think the shop and the videos will be a lot stronger after the move. But know that I will get back on track and once again make new screenprinting videos for YouTube. 

In the meantime we have a few Arizona videos to upload. One is a really beautiful tour of the Phoenix Botanical Gardens and there are 2 new wild west gunfight videos. Then I will upload the videos I made at the SGIA show in Vegas. I have a couple from Saati and perhaps one form M&R. After that I hope to upload a great screen printing video covering a 3 color on a white under base. I will be slipping in some new computer generated heat transfer videos and perhaps some stray, leftover screen printing videos too. I have one or two that I will post here and there.

The blog, website and other elements of the online Catspit project will continue to function as usual. Anyway, this is a tentative schedule and it may change at any moment to fit the needs of the YouTube channel and remaining videos in stock. I am hoping to have this all resolved by the end of March or the beginning of April, 2011. I will keep you posted. Wish me luck and please stay tuned…

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

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How To Screenprint A Two Color Tee Shirt

Posted on January 13, 2011 by Catspit Productions

This is another one of my first videos that were made some time ago. When I started the YouTube channel I never knew I would end up running a screen printing blog and website. And in this video we can see that I am still a little nervous making videos. There is no introduction either because at this time I was trying to pack as much information into one 10 minute video as possible. I thought an intro was a waste of time. Later I came to realize shorter videos get more views and an intro clip plugging the website would be good. And it is.


In the video called, “How To Screen Print: 2 Color Print Demo With Flash”, I start out very awkwardly and ease into the video. Also at this point in video making I was doing things that were easy to do. If I had something set up I could demonstrate without printing actual product, I would  do it. Therefore I made a few videos like this one where I mostly demonstrated everything rather than showing live action screenprinting.  Soon I started to change that and found making more complex videos to be enjoyable. I still try to  keep the cost of video to a bare minimum. But sometimes I have to spend some money to make a video. So far it hasn’t been too bad.

Screen printing tee shirts can be very profitable and fun. I really do enjoy teaching it and making the videos for YouTube. And going back through my videos to take a look at where I started is always interesting and entertaining. You can see a big difference in the way I am in front of the camera then and now. Sometimes it makes me laugh very hard. Other times I cringe and ask, why did I do that? Thank goodness for the YouTube annotations because they allow me to add things I forgot to say or correct things I said by mistake. Anyway, it’s nice to have you along as we move forward with new videos and take a look back at some old ones too.

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

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Fabric Glossary For Screen Printers

Posted on January 10, 2011 by Catspit Productions

I finally put together a cool new fabric glossary with some definitions of common trade terminology. I thought this might help out people starting to screen print when they get into the different kinds of garments to print. It often helps to know a little of the wordage you might hear when speaking with sales reps for garment distributors. It’s a brief list as the fabric industry is loaded with trade specific wording.

I chose some of the most common phrases and words that I have heard over the years and compiled them into a short list of terms and definitions. You can find the Glossary Of Fabric & Garment Terms here. You can also find the screen Printing Glossary right above the fabric glossary in the navigation bar. It has been moved to this location for better visibility and easier access to all. I think it makes a lot more sense there especially now that I have added the fabric glossary.

If you have any suggestions for additions to either glossary, please feel free to contact me through the website or leave a comment right here.

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

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HD Screen Printing Video Uploaded To YouTube!

Posted on January 6, 2011 by Catspit Productions

I finally figured out how to edit, format, and process my HD videos into a full aspect ratio for YouTube with a high definition classification. I wanted to increase the quality of my screen printing videos with the new HD Sony Handycam and it seems to have come together. I found the HD camera difficult to get used to and working with the video format was a very big challenge. After many problems and many tests, I ultimately discovered a way for me to make these videos correctly for YouTube without making a ton of extra computer work for myself.

The new video is called, “Screen Printing Techno Music Video”. This is a fun entertainment video that features the screenprinting equipment in the shop. I most often work with Windows Movie Maker because it is very easy and fast to work with. It’s true it is limited in many ways but it is actually very powerful because you can accomplish so much in short a time. As I move to make my videos more complicated and involved, I was afraid Sony Vegas was going to make things take longer and perhaps make them more difficult to do. And for me, that is exactly what it was doing and I still can’t find any transitions in it.

Sony Vegas was giving me problems right off the bat by not being able to work with the camera’s HD file. Oh yea, it will play and edit and such but when I render it, all I get is a black video. What the? Then when I converted the files to Windows format first, Sony Vegas would not seem to get the format correct no matter what setting and aspect ratio I chose. The tests would upload to YouTube as HD but they would not fill the entire YouTube video player. Arrrgghhh!!! Then I stumbled on something that I think  works out for me being as though I prefer Windows Movie Maker anyway.

Since I am making “how to” videos about screen printing, I don’t really need fancy effects and bells or whistles in my videos. I just need good quality camera work with solid screen printing content. More cuts, pans, close ups and scene changes. And of course, great topics. But what I discovered is that if I edit the video in Movie Maker with a 16:9 aspect ratio and output as DVD widescreen quality, then process the video in Sony Vegas as 1280 X 720 HD format, it works perfectly. It fills the entire YouTube player and has an HD label with the ability to play in the 720p format.

This way I can make more complicated videos with tons of cuts, pans, close ups and scene changes without increasing my editing work in Vegas and still be in the true HD format. For a while there I though that the new HD camera combined with Sony Vegas were going to make my video editing a nightmare and double or triple my time doing it. I’ll definitely be spending more time making my videos but that time will be in front of the camera now. I won’t rip you off with a bunch of fancy and unnecessary effects. I’m more interested in making wholesome screen printing videos that are educational and fun to watch.

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

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Screen Printing Tee Shirts: The Process Explained

Posted on January 4, 2011 by Catspit Productions

It’s been a while now since I did my first screen printing video about the process for tee shirts. It is always amusing to me to go back and take a look at myself when I first started posting screenprinting videos to YouTube. When I first began, I was a bit reserved and self conscious of myself when I made the videos. I believe that is apparent at different points of the video called, “How To Screen Print: The Process Explained”. But despite my inadequacies in presentation and video making, the video ended up becoming somewhat popular on my YouTube channel. I was thrilled to see that the video could do so well and that people were responding to my presentation with a lot of positive comments.


Many people say that my explanation is simple, detailed and yet easy to understand. I find that to be the greatest compliment. When viewers appreciate not only the information I am sharing but the style of my video making, I am very happy. I really enjoy hearing that I am a good teacher or that I demonstrate and explain the process in a way which many can comprehend. That is probably part of the reason I have relaxed when I make videos today. Not to mention that after you watch yourself on video enough it tends to give you an ability to laugh at yourself and be comfortable with not being perfect.

These days when I make a screen printing video tutorial, I have a lot of fun. I don’t worry about looking stupid or silly because I know I will at some point no matter what I do. That is unavoidable. I am human and I make mistakes. Knowing this and having a sense of humor when it comes to watching myself on video helps me out tremendously. I think creating a YouTube channel and posting videos of yourself giving presentations would be a great psychiatric tool to overcoming stage fright and other public speaking fears. I think if I had to give a public demonstration today, I would be completely fine with it. Hey, that’s live; no one can pause it and freeze my face with a extraordinarily weird expression. That has to give me an edge!

Thanks a lot for checking out my videos on YouTube. Learn how to screen print with Catspit Productions, LLC.

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Catspit Productions Screen Printing Newsletter #2

Posted on January 2, 2011 by Catspit Productions

Hello everyone and welcome to the second Catspit Productions Screen Printing Newsletter #2.

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.

Second: Season’s greetings and Happy Holidays to all. Whatever your geographical location, I hope the New Year brings great fortune and happiness to you and your families.

Now on to the latest and greatest news from Catspit Productions, LLC!

The Website: The Catspit Productions website is now over 80 pages and still growing! There have been many additions as well as modifications made to the website in the past 6 months. Many articles have been added and several new pages including one offering links to free graphic software. The website is always a work in progress and I try to update it on a regular basis. For a time I was considering rebuilding the website on a new platform with many new features but currently I feel that is unnecessary. In light of the world economy and conditions here at my own shop, I will be leaving the Catspit site exactly where it is, as it is for some time. You may have also noticed that we are no longer carrying an internet sponsor. It turned out to be too restricting and complicated therefore we will no longer have an internet sponsor.

http://catspitproductionsllc.com

The Catspit Blog: The blog has been moved to a new URL with its own domain. This move was made due to the discontinued service from the previous blog host. It was in fact a good move and the blog should have been on WordPress from the beginning but certain website limitations prevented that. The blog is no longer embedded on the Catspit website but there is a widget on the blog page that shows recent blog posts summaries. Make sure to subscribe to the RSS to keep up with video and article releases. Also, the blog is now accepting guest blog posts about screen printing; would you like to write a “how to” article? How about a screenprinting product review? Maybe you just want to share how you screen print at home. In any case, please feel free to contact me about doing a guest blog post on the Catspit Blog. A brief author bio and web link is included with guest blog posts.

https://howtoscreenprintshirts.com/

Discounted Print Supplies: Catspit Productions is teaming up with vendors to offer visitors a discount on screen printing supplies. If you haven’t seen it already, please visit the new Print Supplies page of the website to learn about this great offer. You can get a 5% discount on most orders and get free shipping with Saati products from Saati Express. Many of the products used in the YouTube videos are available here. You can also buy inkjet film directly from Catspit Productions.

http://catspitproductionsllc.com/screenprintingsupplies.aspx

Vector Artwork Services: We now offer vector art conversions of your hand drawn or scanned artwork. This is a cool service that converts your jpeg’s, png’s, pdf’s and tiff image files into vector art files in EPS format. To learn more about the new service please visit the Artwork Services page of the website.

http://catspitproductionsllc.com/artworkservices.aspx

Equipment Sales: Catspit Productions has now expanded its equipment sales and offers everything form floor presses to bench models for the home printer. We also sell heat presses for shirts, hats and mugs. Ranar is our favored screenprinting equipment vendor and the Equipment Sales page of the website is a great tool for research if you are looking into equipment purchases. And if you decide to buy, we hope you consider purchasing screen printing equipment from Catspit Productions.

http://catspitproductionsllc.com/equipmentsales.aspx

Bookstore: One of the most common questions received through the website is about screen printing books. It seems they are scarce and few and not so easy to locate. But the Catspit website now hosts a collection of screenprinting books available online for purchase. The links to these books are affiliate links and we appreciate your purchases through them.

http://catspitproductionsllc.com/screenprintingbooks.aspx

New HD Wide Format Videos: I was fortunate enough to be able to get a Sony Handycam HD video camera and I am currently learning how to make better videos with it. I am also attempting to learn Sony Vegas and I hope to be posting some new high quality videos in the coming year. I want the HD camera to mark a new era in video making for Catspit Productions so be prepared for some creative video work. Maybe I can make the videos as entertaining as they are informative. We shall see how that goes.

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

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.

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New Screenprinting Article: Screen Printing With A Flash Cure

Posted on December 31, 2010 by Catspit Productions

Another new screenprinting article has been added to the website. I had some great fun writing articles over the Christmas break. Sometimes the classical music and the time off from working gives me extra fuel for writing. For the month of January, I will be focusing on writing articles for the website. I feel it is important to add as much information as I can and try to fill in as many gaps as possible.

With a recent internet contest awarding complete shop packages and an explosion of beginner’s blogs, the web has become flooded with people sharing their screen printing endeavors. And there has been a lot of bloggers who have been created through the pure marketing strategy of screen printing supply vendors. This means that it will become more difficult to wade through the internet fodder to get to the good stuff as time goes on. That’s why the Catspit website has to be on top of its game, always adding new and valuable information.

The new article is called, “Screen Printing With A Flash Cure: Advice On Flashing Tee Shirts”. This article briefly discusses using a flash cure unit to flash cure tee shirts between prints and to complete a final cure. This is basically a tip list which gives some fundamental advice on working with a flash cure unit. Some of the tips may seem to be obvious but when you are a beginner, it’s nice to have things explained in simple terms with some of the little details.

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

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New Article: Pallet Adhesives For Screen Printing Tee shirts

Posted on December 29, 2010 by Catspit Productions

Another new screen printing article has been added to the Catspit website. I really enjoy writing the articles for the website and they often seem to come 3 at a time. I never gave much thought to what writers say about writing. That it comes in spurts or periods where the words and information flows freely from the mind through the hands onto the keyboard. Or maybe a pencil and paper are still used in some instances. But it does appear to be true. There are times when I write a lot and times when I cannot seem to write at all. Anyway…

The article is called, “Pallet Adhesives For Screen Printing: Spray Tacks, Bulk, and Papers”. This article is about pallet adhesives used to hold tee shirts fixed to the printing pallet during screenprinting. The article briefly describes the 3 basic types and their usages. This is a great introductory website article for beginners and intermediates.

Many of the articles on the website are complimentary to the YouTube videos like this one. Make sure to visit the YouTube channel and watch the spray tack video too!

Thank you very much for reading! Learn how to screen print with Catspit Productions, LLC!

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Yudu Review: What Can You Do With The Yudu?

Posted on December 27, 2010 by Catspit Productions

Yudu review! Brand new article about the Yudu: What can you do with the Yudu? This is a very brief review and summary of the Yudu and why I do not recommend it for commercial screen printing purposes. I don’t belittle Yudu users; I am just giving a professional review on the machine and its hobby or commercial use.

The article is called, “The Yudu Screen Printing Machine: What Can It Really Do?”. In the article I give the reasons why I do not recommend the Yudu to anyone who is seriously interested in starting a screen printing business form home. I think the Yudu is a good machine, it’s just that it is promoted in a way which can be confusing to start up printers. Especially those who know very little to nothing about the screenprinting process.

If you are considering purchasing the Yudu for more than hobbyist applications, then you should really read this article first. I think it will help you decide if the Yudu will be appropriate for your particular needs and goals. And as always at Catspit Productions we want to educate first, then help out in any other way we can. So this article is not a sales pitch for another print at home product. Just a humble review by a professional screen printer.

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

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Merry Christmas & Happy Screen Printing!

Posted on December 22, 2010 by Catspit Productions

Hello everyone! Just dropping in on the Catspit Blog to say Merry Christmas and provide you all with some necessary Christmas web links. As the holiday approaches we often forget to do the most important thing; make sure our kid’s letters get to Santa. If you forgot to take care of that this year then take advantage of the internet and email Santa here. Did you want to have a sing along at your Christmas party but you forgot to learn how to play an instrument? Maybe you don’t know all the words to the best Christmas songs. Have no fear, the massive internet is here! See the word and sing along to some digital holiday music here.

Alright, how about those entertainment plans for those down times between holiday food treats and family events? Once again the solution is here on the world wide web. Just play some Christmas games whenever you get bored, (or you can visit Catspit Productions online and learn how to screen print!).

A Catspit Christmas

Oh wait, you wanted to screen print something with Christmas art on it, yes? Then check this holiday art collection. Ah, now you need an XXXmas outfit for your wife to wear, no? Just make sure you stop by this website after you shop for the wife’s outfit. Hehe… now you want to be all spiritual don’t you? Then just stop by this website and get some heavenly help at Christmas prayers.

Here are some fun Christmas facts:

– During the Christmas buying season, Visa cards alone are used an average of 5,340 times every minute in the USA.      

– Christmas became a national holiday in America on June, 26, 1870.

– The twelve days of Christmas are the days between Christmas Day and Epiphany, (6th of January), and represent the length of time it took for the wise men from the East to visit the manger of Jesus after his birth.

– An average household in America will mail 28 Christmas cards each year and see 28 eight cards return in their place.

– As early as 1822, the postmaster in Washington, D.C. was worried by the amount of extra mail at Christmas time. His preferred solution to the problem was to limit by law the number of cards a person could send. Even though commercial cards were not available at that time, people were already sending many home-made cards.

– Christmas trees are edible. Many parts of pines, spruces, and firs can be eaten. The needles are a good source of vitamin C.

As you can plainly see the internet has everything you need for your 2010 Christmas holiday. And if you can’t find it, Google can! Happy Chanukah! Happy Kwanzaa! And Merry Christmas with good luck to all who screenprint at home or otherwise! Just in case I left anyone out…. Happy Holidays to all and best wishes!

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