SHARPRINT BLOG

Polyester is one of the most challenging fabrics to screen print on. It’s even advisable to stay away from poly-cotton blends in a lot of cases. Being in the decorated apparel business, we are often asked whether or not we can print on different types of fabric. In almost all cases, the answer is yes. However, not all fabrics get along with ink so, it's important to consider all elements of your production run.

Digital garment printing can be a solution for small quantities, hasty needs, and it can also be a source of exclusive products that are not easily replicated. By promoting these strengths of the medium, its likely your clients will be unaware of the numerous steps and time it takes to complete these production tasks. We recorded the processes to share the exacting and labor intensive process that goes into these fast turnarounds on high quality custom garments.

Every so often, screen printers are faced with certain obstacles they need to overcome in order to provide their customers with the best possible looking custom apparel. One of these challenges is known as pallet marks. The pallet is what the garment is placed on during the actual printing stage. Just as the term implies, a pallet mark is when the outline of the pallet leaves a mark on the t-shirt that is being printed on.

Water-based inks are defined as those that utilize water as the main solvent. That does not mean, however that water is the only solvent. It is significant to note that many water base inks contain “co-solvents” which may even be petroleum based solvents. The reason these co-solvents are used varies, but one of the key reasons is to decrease the time and heat necessary to cure the ink film on the fabric.

Water-based ink is the ink of choice for the printing of yard goods; either in piece form or on the roll.

When estimating the number of screens needed to produce a custom screen printed order, designers and brokers alike are often unsure whether or not their design will need a preliminary white under base for the best print. The print colors in the design plays a part, but generally it’s the shirt color that determines whether or not an under base is needed.

Promotional clothing is a popular branding tool that can be used successfully with any business. Done correctly, this type of clothing will drastically change the way others see your business.

Commonly worn by tennis and golf players, the polo shirt can be portrayed synonymous with that of a sporty chic look. So when considering the purchase of embroidered polo shirts for an organization, think about who will be wearing the shirt, what environment it will be worn in, and the brand-identity you’re trying to establish.  

Custom apparel is used in numerous industries for various applications including uniforms for baseball teams, retail apparel for restaurant promotion, giveaways for product launches and this barely scratches the surface. The fabric or garment type selected to embellish as custom apparel often depends on the function of the apparel piece.

Few aspects of my job as a Sharprint Sales Insider are as disheartening as having to utter any statement that contains the words "we can't." It goes against the entire credo of this super-positive team of go-getters. However, when it comes to digital printing on fabric, one limitation lingers every day -- the garment options for digital printing.

Unless you have been on a screen printing shop tour or had the opportunity to print t-shirts firsthand, you may not know just how an idea actually becomes a screen printed t-shirt. In fact, even if you have been on a shop tour, without experiencing the process from start to finish with the same design, the steps may be a little unclear. In this blog, we’ll go over each step in detail and wrap it all up with a short video so you can see the process in action.

Digital printing t-shirts, a new type of t-shirt printing that offers an alternative to the traditional screen printing method, is a surefire way to create custom designed t-shirts that represent your business in the best way possible. Even better, digital printing t-shirts will ensure that your custom designed t-shirts are produced efficiently both in terms of time and money. For more in-depth info on all factors related to digital printing, visit our page dedicated to DTG printing.