Friday, February 6, 2009

It's not just Screen Printing anymore

The world of screen printing has evolved to a level that teeters on CRAZY! Some of the techniques available to me now are so much more than just placing a shirt on a board, laying a screen over it and rolling ink to display an image.


We now have automated printing presses. Some brands allow you to print up to 18 different colors at a speed of 1400 pieces per hour...WOW...eat your heart our Mr. Sulu! Combine the new technology with a creative designer and you have, in some cases, works of art...or lets say they can print works of art.
Discharge printing is a process that actually removes the garment dye which brings out the original color of the fabric. Pigments can be used introduced to the process to bring out the most vibrate colors in any ones design.
Soft Hand printing uses either plastisol or water based inks to deliver a very light and "soft" fell to the printed image
High Resolution Halftone prints at 85 LPI (Lines Per Inch) which produces high resolution images and gives them photo realistic designs
High Density gives any garment a 3 dimensional effect. They use special ink formulations and combine that with a thick stencil for a heavy ink deposit with very precise edges and visible ridges to give the design a profound and pronounced effect.
The craziness doesn't stop with just the four listed above! You still have, full color, puff, faux leather, antiqued metal, specialty print placements, gradients, crystalina, flock transfer...take a deep breath...water based, over sized, high gloss, distressed, foil transfer and faux transfer...SHEEEWWW!!
Like I said the world of printing has changed dramatically since I started in the business over 8 years ago. And all for the better I might add. With the ever evolving and ever changing world of printing I am able to bring a design to a whole way of existing.

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