T-shirt printing methods and their benefits

You may know three methods that help you transfer your design to t-shirt fabric. 

  1. Sublimation printing.
  2. Screen printing.
  3. DTF printing.

You may find some other obsolete methods for t-shirt printing, but people do not use them nowadays.

Please note I am talking about small business owners. Big businesses use automatic machines to print large volumes.

You and I are small business owners who help our customers to create their brand identity. And their order value is not big enough to set up automatic machines.

We will discuss these printing methods, their benefits, and cost comparisons.

Sublimation printing

It is a method of transferring a design from heat transfer paper to t-shirt fabric. The whole process depends on temperature, pressure, and good transfer paper. You can read about the S-Race heat transfer paper. It is the best transfer paper available in the market. And you can buy it from here.

You need the following items for the method;

  1. Heat press machine.
  2. Quality sublimation ink.
  3. Heat transfer paper.
  4. A high-quality printer.

You can read how you can set up your sublimation printing business here.

The process of t-shirt sublimation printing is easy. And you can follow these steps;

  1. Print your design on heat transfer paper - mirror image.
  2. Heat your press machine to a specific temperature.
  3. Preheat your t-shirt for 3 seconds.
  4. Keep your design on the t-shirt. And close the machine lead for 30 seconds.

Anyone can follow these steps, and it does not require any training.

Benefits of sublimation printing

  1. You can follow easy steps for it. You do not need any special training.
  2. You can set up your business at a lower cost. 
  3. The printing holds for a longer time. It does not wear out.
  4. You can print any design.

Drawbacks of sublimation printing

  1. You can only print on the Micro PP fabric.
  2. You need to take care of temperature and pressure. 

Screen printing

It is a process of pasting colors on the t-shirt fabric. In a nutshell, you create a screen and then paste color on the t-shirt through that screen.

You need the following items for the method;

  1. A screen created for your design.
  2. Color paste and tools.
  3. And stand set up where you can put your t-shirt.

The process of t-shirt printing involves the following steps;

  1. You take the design and create the screen for it. It takes time to create a design screen.
  2. You process the t-shirt to remove any wrinkles.
  3. You put the t-shirt on the stand and keep the screen on it.
  4. You take the appropriate color and paste it using tools.

Benefits of screen printing

  1. You can print on any fabric.
  2. Best for a mono-color design like; White on Black fabric. 
  3. You can print a detailed custom design using it.

Drawbacks of screen printing

  1. The print does not longer last. 
  2. You need to create a screen for each color detail. 
  3. You can print up to three colors efficiently. 
  4. The screen-making process involves typical steps. And you need an experience of it.

DTF printing

It is a new printing method. DTF stands for Direct to film. And it does not require any other things than the sublimation method. It means you can use your existing setup to start it.

You need the following items for DTF printing;

  1. A coated film where print transfers the design.
  2. A heat press machine.

DTF printer cost is high. And I recommend you find an existing operator who gives you printed files. If your business is in the rural part, you can contact us, and we will send you design-printed files.

The process of DTF printing involves the following steps;

  1. Get your design printed on the file. 
  2. Heat your press machine to a specific temperature.
  3. Preheat your t-shirt for 3 seconds.
  4. Keep your design on the t-shirt. And close the machine lead for 10 seconds.
  5. Let the t-shirt cool down. Otherwise, you may peel off the film. 
  6. You can heat the t-shirt for 3 seconds after peeling off the film. It increases the design colors.

Benefits of DTF printing

  1. You can use your existing setup.
  2. You do not need any training for it.
  3. You can print on any t-shirt fabric. And you can print in any dark color.
  4. It overcomes all the drawbacks of sublimation printing.

Drawbacks of DTF printing

  1. The cost is high.
  2. You need to install the DTF printer or buy the printed films.