If you are investing and can’t
decide which method you should invest into buying in, for your tee shirt
business, allow this post as your referral about the advantages and disadvantages
of tee shirt printing methods.
These compilations of list was
based only on my own research and understanding, please make it right if there
are indispensable information that should be integrated.
Screen Printing - the process of applying color to fabric in
definite patterns or designs, and was done by using squeegee, silkscreen,
stencil or designed pattern and water based or Plastisol inks.
Advantages: professional,
cost effective, high quality, durability.
Disadvantages: separate
screen for each color is required, messy, need to print many shirts at once
with the same design if possible.
Heat Press Transfers – the process of using transparent inks done
by an inkjet or laser printers onto a heat press paper (IronAll & SoftStretch
- appears to be much better when it comes to fading.) and by using heat press
machines/iron it will adhere the ink and paper onto the cloth. Plastisol transfers
(indirect screen printing) have a very soft feel and are just as durable as
direct screen printed designs.
Advantages: can print
multi-colors and complex designs with ease, does not require different colors
to be applied separately, great for small orders, and easily customize
different shirts.
Disadvantages: heavy feel
of transfer, the cloth is the brightest part of the design: works well on white
shirts, but sometimes doesn't work on dark shirts; some will cracks and fades
away easily.
Vinyl Cutters – a machine used to cut out designs on special solid
color sheets of vinyl. Use heat to adhere vinyl to paper.
Advantages: high quality,
durability, easily customizes different shirts, great for small orders, works well
when you utilize the shirt color as one of the design colors. The more
"open" the design (i.e shirt colors showing through) the better vinyl
works since it won't feel as heavy and stiff.
Disadvantages: have to
separate and cut out each color independently.
Direct to Garment - a process of printing on textiles and garments
using specialized or modified inkjet technology. Print inks directly onto
cloth.
Advantages: reduces
steps, patterns doesn't have heavy feel like screen printing, great for small
orders, easily customize different shirts.
Disadvantages: the cloth
is the brightest part of the design: works well on white shirts but is more
difficult to master and more expensive to get dark prints to come out correctly.
Dye Sublimation – a computer printer which employs a printing
process that uses heat to transfer dye onto medium materials such as a plastic
card, paper, or fabric; mugs, mouse pads, tile, puzzles, coasters, key chains,
etc.. The sublimation name is applied because the dye transitions between the
solid and gas states without going through a liquid stage. Many consumer and
professional dye-sublimation printers are designed and used for producing
photographic prints.
Advantages: Images are
permanent and do not peel or fade, dye does not build up on the fabric, colors
can be extraordinarily brilliant due to the bonding of the dye to the
transparent fibers of the synthetic fabric, truly continuous tones can be
achieved that are equivalent to photographs, without the use special techniques
such as half-screen printing and the image can be printed all over the entire
item, with no difficulty in printing all the way to the edges.
Disadvantages: The
printer speed is slow, any creases in the apparel during printing leave blank
spots behind and used to print on polyester or other synthetic fabrics only (it
cannot print on 100% cotton t-shirts).
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