sablon

Sablon, commonly referred to as screen printing, is a printing technique that transfers ink through a mesh screen onto a substrate, while areas blocked by a stencil remain ink-free. The method originated in Asia and Europe and became widely adopted in the 20th century under the term silkscreen; in Indonesian usage, sablon is the standard name for this process. It is used on textiles, paper, plastic, metal, and other materials, and supports bold, opaque colors on dark and light backgrounds.

The process begins with a design, which is used to create a stencil on a screen frame. The screen is coated with an emulsion (a light-sensitive layer) and then exposed to light through the design; unexposed areas are washed away to form the stencil. The prepared screen is mounted on a press, substrate is positioned, and ink is applied on top of the screen. A squeegee is used to pull the ink across the screen, forcing it through open mesh areas onto the substrate. For multi-color prints, separate screens and color layers are registered carefully. After printing, the ink is cured or dried to fix the bond.

Materials and equipment include screens (often polyester or nylon mesh), frames, printing emulsion, squeegees, inks (plastisol, water-based, or discharge inks), and curing equipment such as flash dryers or heat presses. Sablon is valued for its versatility, durability, and cost-effectiveness in medium to large print runs, with strong ink opacity on various substrates and good color saturation. Limitations include relatively high setup time and cost, and diminishing efficiency for very small runs or highly detailed processes.

See also: serigraphy, screen printing, stencil.