Screen Printing: A Buyer's Guide to Getting It Right
By The Velocity Wear Team
Screen printing gets nearly ten thousand searches a month in the UK. It's the method behind most band shirts, club kit and brand tees you own. It's durable, vivid and cheap per shirt at volume. It also has a few rules that affect how you should design.
How it works
Each colour in your design gets its own fine mesh screen. Ink is pushed through the open areas of the screen onto the garment with a squeegee. Colours are printed one after another, lined up precisely, then cured with heat so they bond to the fabric.
Why it's so popular
- Bright, opaque colour, even on dark garments.
- Excellent durability through many washes.
- Very cost-effective per shirt for larger runs.
- Special inks: puff, metallic, glow, discharge and more.
The colour rule
Every ink colour needs a separate screen and setup. A one-colour design is simple. A seven-colour design takes more setup, more time and costs more. That's why good screen print designs often use a limited palette. It also tends to look bolder.
Ink types
- Plastisol: the traditional choice. Vivid, durable, sits slightly on top of the fabric.
- Water-based: softer, soaks into the fabric for a barely-there feel. Popular with premium brands on light garments.
- Discharge: removes the garment's dye and replaces it with colour, giving a very soft print on dark cotton.
Ask which ink will be used and what it'll feel like. It's worth seeing a sample if handfeel matters to your brand.
Preparing artwork
- 1Send vector artwork if possible: AI, EPS, SVG or PDF.
- 2Use solid colours, and tell the printer the Pantone references if matching matters.
- 3Avoid soft gradients unless the printer confirms they can use halftones.
- 4Convert text to outlines so fonts don't change.
- 5Keep very thin lines above a sensible thickness so they don't break up.
Screen printing vs DTF
Screen printing is usually the better value for a simple design at 50 or more pieces. DTF is better for full colour, photographs and short runs with varied designs. See our DTF explainer for the other side.
Durability and care
A well-cured screen print can outlast the shirt. Wash inside out, avoid very hot washes and tumble dry on low. Don't iron directly over the print.
Special effects worth knowing
- Puff ink rises when cured for a raised, textured look.
- Metallic inks add shine for small accents.
- Glow-in-the-dark inks are fun for festival and kids' designs.
- Distressed artwork gives a vintage look without any extra ink.
Special inks usually cost a little more and work best on bold, simple parts of a design. Use them as accents, not everywhere.
Screen printing on hoodies and dark garments
On dark garments, light colours often need a white underbase layer so they stay bright. That adds a screen and a pass. Fleece hoodies take screen print well, but thick seams and pockets affect where prints can go.
Reorders
Keep your artwork and colour references on file. Repeat runs are simpler when the specification is already agreed.
Ask for a sample
For brand launches, a physical sample shows exactly how ink colour and handfeel will look.
Pricing and minimums
Our minimum is 20 per design with sizes mixed, and per-piece prices drop at 50, 100, 250, 500 and 1,000. Our tees start from $13 each at 20 with one standard screen print. Try the calculator or browse custom t-shirts.
