My first review...what a bomb!

I've been working on spreading the word of my clothing line through t-shirt bloggers and come to find out there are plenty of them out there. I came across RudeRetro and asked for a review, sent out the shirt and sent a brief email with a description of the the clothing line and that was it. Man did he rip me a new one.

I could definitely be disappointed in the review but I'm not. This blogger really posed some great questions about how I am marketing this clothing line that really made me think. Have I truly been doing all that I can to make this clothing line reach out to the masses? Do people get it? What is Grey Matter?

Grey Matter is capturing different city landmarks and the culture of the surrounding area in a photographic point of view. Using your brain to connect with the photograph and the really think about what you see and don't see this metropolis that is Los Angeles.

The term "boosterism" comes to mind when thinking of Grey Matter. A term used widely to describe the late photographer Julius Shulman. Shulman's photographs of Southern California architecture and living defined an era. Taking that idea, that premise, of what this city is today is the backbone of Grey Matter.

I guess I needed to get that out there and it's been 3 yrs since I started this whole clothing line business with few success and lots of failures. But through theses experiences I am learning to pave my path and become a better business man and artists. Sometimes you need to be knocked down off your high horse and come back to reality and work those kinks out.

Here's the link to the to the RudeRetro review of DVClothing.
http://blog.ruderetro.com/2010/03/13/review-dvclothing/

Goals for March...

Well I've been hard at work with the accomplishing my goals from February and I think I've met some of them.

as of end of Feb...

• Using the box and printing has been working really great and I've started printing canvas tote bags.
• This month looks like RDL vs. DVC collab is on schedule
• Have not purchased canvas to start work on new paintings, funds are low
• Next photo project will most likely be all film and the book I have chosen is Survivor by Chuck Palahniuk. My model will be a friend of mine that has done some work for a mutual friend of our and I think he will work out fine. 
• Lastly, looking for locations for my next show has not been fruitful but I will keep pressing for it.

Last month I had a few set backs. Picked up a freelance job but the client ended up flaking on me. Called a couple plenty of times and also left emails but to no avail. I should probably post up the work since it's not going anywhere. Tell me what you think.

Goals for March are set and here they are.

• Finish up RDL vs. DVC collab.
• Try and purchase canvas for painting series, be modest if funds are low.
• Plan out photoshoot with model and find locations, maybe even mockups of how it should look to me.*
• Start printing t-shirts! Totebags were successful and yielded results not it's time to step it up. 
• Work on new freelance job with Locsta, rapper out of North LBC.

Theses two months have been great and I can't wait to see what's in store. STAY DIRTY!

*Film work will be done in medium format, this will be my first working in this format.

Silkscreen Testing...Experiment #2

If you read last weeks entry you know I had allot of problems. With a fix of those problems and a few adjustments I had some success. Here are my results.

Following the instructions given for the emulsion I have, Ulano 925WR, I went ahead and coated the screen inside and outside the well. Let it dry and exposed for 7.5 minutes. Like magic my image appeared in the screen. Success with some notes.

• Exposure time should go a little longer, 10 mins.
• Used both a 300 mesh and 200 mesh screens. 300's are cherry.
• Also, always remember to mix your chemicals. Emulsion tends to seperate when not used. You can see that by how the screen looks streaked in color when dry.

Here is a pic of my first attempt at printing:

I was worried about the durability of the screen for multiple prints and runs. But so far it seems to be holding up. Printing on fabric is a lil different then paper. More ink is needed to seep into the fabric and equal amount of pressure will give you a solid print everytime. So here is my final result.

More to come!

Silkscreen Testing...Experiment #1

My first attempt at exposing my emulsion coated screens with a new design was a failure. The only success that came from it up to this point was the box to hold screens and the tweaks to the garage to completely make it into a dark room. With this first attempt there have come some hiccups.

When in class at LBCC I was using Speedball emulsion. With this emulsion I was able to expose a screen to light for 16 mins then rinse and let dry. When it was successful you could see through the washed away unexposed areas. With this emulsion little bit trickier. Of course I assumed (if you assume your an "ass") that the same light exposure time I used at school was the same for my experiment. WRONG!

The emulsion I am using is Ulano 925WR. I took a look at the tech sheet I noticed that there are 3 different methods of coating a screen, I use the "Method 1." Apply one coat of emulsion on the printing side, then dry the screen thoroughly. I did not apply emulsion on the squeegee side as the tech sheet specified.

My exposure time was way off. I'm am using one 250 watt bulb, but my exposure time was too much. One screen at 24 mins and the second at 20 mins. I was only supposed to expose it for 7.5 mins. My exposure distance was less than 20 inches. Will definitely keep distance in mind for the next test.

This is just the first of many tests that I will be doing and updating my blog about until I create my first print. Lots of different factors come into play but I am almost on my way. STAY DIRTY!

February goals...

Looking at last months entry of goals for January I have to say I'm pretty surprised at all that I have accomplished. Lets break down last month:

as for January...
• Finished building the box I needed to prep my screens to dry and get ready for exposure. Will start testing the box and hopefully print during this month of February.
• Sent files to Kwasi B. for RDL vs. DVC shirt collaboration and now just waiting to get my files to start on my end. Can't wait, Kwasi loved what I sent him.

Finished and added a couple of new goals from last month so here a peek at what I'm looking to do this month.

February 2010
• Buy some canvas and start working on new paintings. Total of 9 new paintings by me using acrylic and watercolors. Size of the paintings will be large format 26 x 30 possibly.
• Start taking notes for next photo project. The theme of this photo project will be from a book and adapting it to photo. Using digital and film to take the photos. I have a book picked and a model.
• Looking for locations to have another exhibit. The cities I have been looking at so far are Long Beach, Pomona, Whittier and Downtown L.A.. More details coming soon.
  

There are few more kinks that need to be worked but they will get done and I'm not worried. It's a process and sometimes you have to know when to roll with the punches and you might just come out unscathed.

The final product and my 50th post.

This Sunday Robert G. and I finished the box that we set out to build back two weeks ago. Purchased two more stud pillars and three more half stud pillars. Reason for doing so was to really give the box some more support. All in all the box came out great. I am able to hold 10 19x22 inch screens and have some room to hold my paints, emulsion, scooper and many other things. Overall this box has cost me $50+ to build and it was done pretty quickly.

Starting this week I will be testing the box itself for any light leaks. Also I will give the door of the box a rubber sealing so that no light can leak from the front. As of now I have plans to test and make this box cherry. By the end of the month I should be printing shirts, totebags and more.

Lastly this is my 50th blog entry and it's been great. I've only been on since June of 2008 and it feels like yesterday I was talking about how my business and I are just starting out to now being able to print my own stuff and really take charge of what we are producing. I look forward to this next month and showing you what we can accomplish.

Making a silkscreen rack.

So this past sunday me and boy Robert G. began building a silkscreen rack so that I can coat the screen with emulsion and let them dry horizontally and in a dark area so they are not exposed to any kind of light. So when they are dry and ready to expose. Also is great storage for them.

Materials need to build a 4 foot high box with wheels (all purchased at Home Depot):


wood studs 4
half stud 8
3 1/2 inch wheels
a latch
silicone
2 8 foot plywood (as cheap as posssible)
6 - 10 nail bridge (picture below list)
lots of small nails (if you have a nail gun even better)
wood glue

"nail bridge"
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u269/dvclothing/IMG_0059.jpg
how they work...
http://i170.photobucket.com/albums/u269/dvclothing/IMG_0061.jpg

On the fly with just talks we were able to sketch out what we wanted did some measurements came
up with this pretty good box. Unique to for us to work with. Storing screens and let them get ready for burning my silkscreens and getting ready to print.

Next week should be the finished product and we'll begin to silkscreening next month some stuff and we'll surprise you with what we are going to start with. STAY DIRTY!