Mylar!?!?!

Let me start this off with how worried I was when I realized that I had decided to sign up for Advanced Printmaking… (Insert terrified girl screech). It had sounded like a great idea, and I had really enjoyed my Lithography class last winter. However, I still was nervous. On the first day, I realized quickly that I’m one of the youngest in my class. Looking around the room, it was very intimidating collection of printers. We read the syllabus, and I was soft spoken when I was my turn to speak. And to make matters worse, for some reason I was called on twice to read…and I could feel my voice shaking as I listed the required materials. The word Mylar felt foreign to me as I skimmed the list, even though I know very well what it is!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mylar: Used for registration for multi-layer prints and for centering images, great for a more professional print look. 

I would greatly advise all printers to have AT LEAST one go-to sheet of drafting Mylar. It can  be purchased at most art supply stores, and comes in  a few different varieties. Personally, I used the single sided frosted. As the name suggests, one side is frosted and the other is smooth. My reason is very simple as to why I choose this type. The frosted side holds my pencil marks better than the smooth side. A double smooth would smear the pencil marks that are measured out to center your image, and a double frosted would make it hard to see your registration when you flip over your Mylar to print. 

So what is Registration? I've been throwing around a word that might not be familiar to non-printers. Registration is the method of correlating overlapping colors on one single image. There are many different styles and types of registration, many of which employ the alignment of specific marks.

"First Color Run"

When printing an image that has more than one color, depending on the method of printing, it is necessary to print the image one separate time for each separate color. Each one is called a "color run," and they can be pulled from the same surface, inked differently, or from a completely different surface. So that the final image is consistent, and so each of the colors lines up correctly, a system of registration is necessary. Different printing devices have different methods of creating separate color runs.

 "Second Color Run"

And from there it's simple! Just keep layering your colors until you're finished, and there you have it. A beautifully registered, multi-layer print is easier than you thought. That is...if you have Mylar. Oh! The joys of Mylar :)