If you want your t-shirt designs to be unique, to stand out from the crowd, try using some of the special printing effects described in this article. Specialty printing offers some genuine advantages. In addition to simply looking amazing, special effects give your designs a point of difference from others, and while they cost more than standard screen printing, distinctive products often command higher retail prices.
download ink
Discharge ink removes the existing dye from a T-shirt, leaving behind the natural color of the fiber (usually some shade of beige). The colors can then be replaced in the fibers by adding inks to the discharge base.
advantages: Using discharge ink on a t-shirt results in a solid color print and a very smooth hand (ie, a smooth “feel” on the printed t-shirt). Discharge ink is especially valuable if you’re printing bright colors on black t-shirts. The alternate technique for printing colors on a dark tint base requires a “first coat” layer of white ink to ensure sufficient opacity of the color, resulting in a thick, heavy finish.
Disadvantages: Because it is impossible to know in advance how each shirt will react to ink discharge, color matching cannot be guaranteed and there may be some color variation between prints throughout a run.
photochromic ink
Photochromic, or UV-reactive, inks are nearly transparent when viewed indoors, but change to vivid colors in bright sunlight.
advantages: Cool effects can be created with a print that effectively shows two different designs: one indoors and one outdoors.
Disadvantages: Only a limited range of colors is available.
glow in the dark ink
Glow-in-the-dark inks do exactly what the name suggests: they glow in the dark! In the light, these inks will appear semi-transparent.
advantages: People can find you in the dark. (Just kidding. Cool though.)
Disadvantages: The inks work best if printed on a white or pale colored background, so a light colored base coat is required on darker shirts.
foil printing
Foil printing is a two-step process that leaves a shiny metallic “print” on the t-shirt. First, the garment is screen printed with a special adhesive instead of ink and cured (dried) in the normal way. A sheet of aluminum foil is then heat pressed over the image created by the adhesive. When the press is removed, the foil adheres to the areas printed with adhesive and the excess is removed.
advantages: Foil printing gives the best shiny metallic print effect. Expensive!
Disadvantages: Because it’s a two-stage process, foil printing may not work as well for fine, detailed designs, and it’s more vulnerable to forceful washing than most other decorating styles.
metallic inks
Metallic inks result in a shimmery, shiny effect, similar to metallic car paint. Metallic screen printing is cheaper than foil printing, but it doesn’t have the same shiny effect.
glitter print
Like metallic inks and foil printing, glitter inks can make your design bright and eye-catching. They are available in a variety of colors.
puff pastry inks
Puff inks are created by mixing a specially formulated base with the ink. The base and ink mixture expands (“swells”) as the print cures through the heat tunnel, leaving a 3D texture. Puff inks are also available in a wide range of colors.
herd
Flock printing is achieved by adding a special base to the ink, which gives the ink a velvety, furry texture as it cures through the heat tunnel.
All of these specialized printing techniques can be used to give your designs that “extra” something, to make them special, unique.
“Creativity is contagious pass it on.” -Albert Einstein