Common Threadz

Please be environmentally responsible and humane

2008-06-27T13:52:00.000-07:00

T-SHIRT MANUFACTURERS CAN HELP FIGHT CHILD SLAVERY IN THE COTTON INDUSTRY BY BOYCOTTING UZBEKI COTTON

“Uzbek children. sometimes as young as seven, are drafted in as cheap or free labour during the cotton harvest” From White Gold - the True Cost of Cotton (A report by the Environmental Justice Foundation)

“Uzbek cotton is a state monopoly, relying on slave labour and the forced labour of hundreds of thousands of children working in appalling conditions for little, or often no pay.” Craig Murray, Former British Ambassador to Uzbekistan.

Spreadshirt Releases DTG on Color

2008-03-08T21:14:00.000-08:00

The popular POD t-shirt company Spreadshirt has recently released DTG printing for their products. They will continue to offer plot printing and flex will still be the high quality option it has always been., this in my opinion makes them the most versatile, best printing company out their for running your own shirt shop

The Myth of Digital Printing.

2008-01-23T16:40:00.000-08:00

I had a revelation the other day.

After hearing so much about the flexibility of digital printing I tried it out on the printfection.com website.

Being a long time Spreadshirt.com user and fan I had been experiencing a frustration with being unable to use flex and plot printing to deal with fine details.

I must say designing a t-shirt with a fine splatter effect and more than 3 colors was a liberating experience. But the process is not the fairy tale I'd been led to believe.

It works great on white, but printing on color has a tint problem, and using designs on dark and light apparel requires the creation and uploading of two different images.

I personally missed the ability to change the plot color of a design on the fly.

I would say despite it's promises it still falls quite short of plot printing.

Stick with spreadshirt the quality of the product and service is better.

Cheaper screen printing

2007-10-27T22:52:00.000-07:00

I recently used this company http://lowertownprinting.com/ and I had great results with them.

Almost $50 cheaper than cusotmink for an order of 12 two color print hanes beefy tees.

When to move out of print fufillment

2007-10-27T22:45:00.001-07:00

You can make a decent amount of money working with a print fulfillment partner selling t-shirts.
The commitment is low, as is the overhead, but when is it time to move to screen-printing and run your own e commerce system.

There are some decided disadvantages to working with a print fulfillment partner. Branding Leaks, keeping up with their technology changes, and working within print technology limitations are all things that can be frustrating.

The do-it-yourself approach can be important to controlling the quality at every stage of the process.

If you have a design that is selling 24 copies in a six month period of the same color combination you could probably make more money producing it yourself.

For some the transition is gradual and they will continue to drop ship some products form a fulfillment partner even when running your own cart.

Be sure to think thought to whole process its easier to calculate on paper than to run our of money later.

Great Screen Printer

2007-10-16T12:56:00.000-07:00

I've worked with Customink.com quite a few times now and have always bee very satisfied with their service and quality of the product.

Custom T-Shirts at CustomInk.com are also one of the most affordable options out there. I recommend you give them a try.

Ribbed vs. Jersey knit

2007-06-16T13:03:00.000-07:00

I'm sure you've seen t-shirt that say something like "men's jersey tee" before. No they aren't t-shirts that are made to be sports jerseys. The type of stitch used to knit the fabric that is used to make a t-shirt makes a big difference in the feel of the shirt. Being aware of what style of shirt is currently in fashion can be the difference between success and failure.

Essential difference: Rib knit is stretchy, jersey knit isn't. Ribbed knit are usually more fitted, and consequently popular for many girls styles. Jersey knit is what you find most mens styles offered in. Your standard traditional men's t-shirt is jersey knit. There has been a move towards ribbed knit in general however across many markets.

Think of ribbed knit like the weave of a cheap Chinese finger trap you win at the arcade. and think of jersey knit like your more traditional grid.

Hope this helps.

Dye Sublimination Printing

2007-05-10T13:57:00.000-07:00

Originally employed as part of photographic printing, it has only recently been turned to applications in apparel.

HOW DOES IT WORK
Inkjet -like printer sprays ink in a reverse image onto paper which is then applied to the fabric and heated. The heated ink becomes gaseous and permeates the material before solidifying.

BENEFITS
Can easily resize image and can use digital, no set-up costs.

DISADVANTAGES
Inks and equipment are expensive. Probably not the best option for the everyday hobbyist.

Screen Printing

2007-05-09T15:43:00.000-07:00

This is by far the most common technique used for printing t-shirts, and in fact a lot of other stuff too. Here is a decent tutorial worth mentioning on how to do your own screen prints for cheap.

TYPES
There are two main types of screen printing. The first one produces full color graphics using CMYK printing. The second method is more similar to stenciling, and involves discrete areas of color, which is the one commonly used for t-shirts.

HOW DOES IT WORK
A porous fabric such as silk, or more recently nylon or polyester, is stretched over a wood or metal frame, the negative space of the image is blocked out using a non permeable application of a material, usually something that can be washed out so the screen can be reused. Then when the ink is run over the screen with a squeegee it seeps through the screen and leaves a print on the shirt.

SCREEN CREATION TECHNIQUES
Methods for creating your stencil image on the screen vary from hand painted application to photo emulsion, a more modern technique that uses exposure to light to make the negative space impermeable. This can be achieved with a simple transparency photocopy of your design, a strong light, and the emulsion prepared screen.

WHAT TO GET
Lots of sites will sell you a basic starter kit with everything you need to get set up screen printing t-shirts. These range from $300- to several thousand dollars. Be sure to be clear what it comes with, and whether it's a screen printing press for t-shirts, or some other use. Be aware that you can print multicolor designs with a one color press by setting up each color separately and lining it up like a puzzle, but this is more difficult, and can be tedious.

BENEFITS
Screen Printing has great print quality, nearly unlimited detail, and is really one of the best t-shirt printing options available. If you're looking to get a bulk order of shirts made for your team, organization, band, etc. this is the way to go. It doesn't fade like digital transfer prints, and it takes a lot of abuse before it starts to crack, and heck even then it's not old, it's vintage.

DISADVANTAGES
Unfortunately it takes a considerable about of time to set up a screen and unless you plan on printing in bulk (at least 6 shirts, but usually around 20-25) screen printing can get real expensive real fast. This is where technologies like plot printing, digital overlay, and dye sublimination have an advantage, as it's easier to print small quantities. This has birthed a whole slew of print on demand fulfillment partners, which is an important thing to be aware of if your a shop owner, or even a hobbyist.

In the next few weeks we'll be covering some of the other print processes mentioned above, so stay tuned.

Welcome to Common Threadz

2007-05-09T15:15:00.000-07:00

My name is Kevin Warner, and this blog's purpose is to share information about t-shirts. How are they made? What do all those print process terms mean, what is their history and origin, how can you get started making your own, or where you can find someone to make them for you...everything you've ever wanted to know about t-shirts we're here to tell you.

Full disclosure: I do run my own sucessful t-shirt shop spokenvisuals.com and I may occasionally make reference to it, or use it or one of the designs there as part of an example or demonstration. I may also post Coupon Codes, so pay attention!

Our first series will be covering different print methods, and some of the advantages and disadvantages of each. Look for it later this week!