There are certain scenarios where you may have to pay a setup fee, even if you already ordered products from InkHead in the past:

• Ordering a different item. The decoration process varies by product, and so ordering a different item than generally incurs a setup charge.
• Changing your logo in any way. If you change the size, colors, and in some cases, the location of your artwork, you will be subject to a new setup charge.
• Ordering a product from a different manufacturer. Some of our supply partners also handle item decoration, so you will be subject to a new setup charge when ordering an item from a manufacturer other than the one you used initially. 
• Using a different imprint method than the original order. Different imprint methods entail different setup processes and setup charges.
• Reordering outside of the 1 year time frame. After a year has passed, our manufacturing partners may re-use the equipment for other projects—meaning that they would have to complete the setup process again whenever you reordered. 

It’s paramount that you inform us of your plans to reorder whenever possible; if we know that you will order the same products every year, we can request that the decorator hold your screen or artwork on file. 

Order promotional products regularly? Contact your account manager, who can work with our product suppliers and decoration partners to find you the best deal possible on recurring orders.

Halftone images rely on a simple optical illusion: when viewed from a certain distance, the tiny halftone dots comprising the print are smoothed into tones and gradients by the human eye. The most notable example of halftone printing is probably newspapers, which generally employ halftone printing techniques when printing photographs.

If you are interested in learning more about halftone imprinting, be sure to take a look at the Wikipedia article.

Advisory on Halftone Imprints

Halftone printing, although very useful and versatile, does have a few drawbacks. Most notably:

• The use of halftone photographs on most of our items is typically discouraged. When using photographs (even black and white or sepia toned photos) printing using a full color item is highly encouraged to allow for printing of all the fine gradients and shading in the photograph.
• Photographic detail is not generally possible with a halftone imprint on most promotional products. Instead, we recommend that you posterize your image, reducing it to black and white only with no shading or gradients (gray tones).
• When using photographs, try to use an image with high contrast. Images with low contrast do not convert to halftone imprints very well and may cause additional detail loss.

If you have additional questions or require assistance in converting an image for use with a halftone imprint, please contact our art department at 800-554-0127.

Contents

• Overview
• Benefits of Screen-Printing
• The Screen-Printing Process
• Costs of Screen-Printing
• When to Use Screen-Printing
• When Not to Use Screen-Printing
• What You Need to Know About Screen-Printing

Overview

Screen-printing is the most common form of apparel decoration, mainly due to its versatility and cost-effectiveness for large orders.
Screen-printing is useful for casual events, tradeshow giveaways and other situations where perceived value plays less of a factor. Logos can be large and fairly detailed, but you will want to avoid using artwork with several colors, due to the setup and run charges associated with screen-printing.

Because of the upfront configuration required, the cost of screen-printing is driven by the number of colors (and thus screens and runs through the printer) in your imprint. Dark-colored fabrics may require a flash layer before the actual imprint can be applied. Screens are generally reused within a year, so you will be subject to additional setup and run charges if you reorder after a year has transpired.

Whether you are ordering t-shirts for a tradeshow giveaway or looking for help with a new design for your booster club’s apparel, InkHead Promotional Products is here to help you make the best decision possible.

If you have additional questions or want more information about this or any other decoration process, feel free to call 800-554-0127 between 9 AM and 8 PM ET to speak with a promotions expert.

Benefits of Screen-Printing

Screen-printing has many advantages over other decoration methods, such as:

• Cost-Effectiveness: If you need to print a large number of shirts, screen-printing cannot be beat in terms of cost-per-unit.
• Capturing Fine Detail: While embroidery can handle some details, screen-printing can handle more intricate designs.
• Versatility: Embroidery is mostly limited to shirts and hats; screen-printing can be done on nearly any surface.
• Handling Large Designs: Imprint size is irrelevant with screen-printing, meaning that large designs can be done for the same price as smaller ones.
• Durability: While not as durable as embroidery, imprints made via screen-printing will last much longer than heat transfer.

The Screen-Printing Process

Screen-printing is a printing technique that uses a woven mesh to support an ink-blocking stencil. The attached stencil forms open areas of mesh that transfer ink or other printable materials which can be pressed through the mesh as a sharp-edged image onto a substrate. A roller or squeegee is moved across the screen stencil, forcing or pumping ink past the threads of the woven mesh in the open areas. Once the imprint has been finished, the garment is generally dried through a heat press.

Screen printing is also a stencil method of print making in which a design is imposed on a screen of silk or other fine mesh, with blank areas coated with an impermeable substance, and ink is forced through the mesh onto the printing surface. It is also known as silkscreen, seriography, and serigraph.

Screen-printing is perhaps the most versatile of the imprint methods in that it can be applied to a wide variety of fabrics and products.

Costs of Screen-Printing

With screen-printing, there is a setup and run charge associated with each color and location in your imprint. This is because each color requires the creation of an additional screen as well as an additional run through the screen-printer.

Run charges are generally based on three things: the number of shirts you are decorating, the number of colors in the artwork being printed and the number of locations to be imprinted. While there is some leeway here, you should expect to pay higher run charges if you are ordering a large number of shirts using a multi-colored imprint or want to decorate multiple areas of the garment.

Flash layers will also contribute to cost. Dark-colored shirts may require that the decorator create a white under-layer (known as a flash layer) before they can screen the colors in your imprint. In such situations, you would be charged for an additional color. Your Promotions Specialist will be able to provide further details in these cases.

Finally, most screen-printers reuse screens after a certain length of time, meaning that you will be subject to additional setup charges depending on when you reorder. Provided that you reorder within the industry-standard hold time of 1 year, we will waive the setup costs of the screens.

When to Use Screen-Printing

There are some situations where screen-printing will be preferable to embroidery or any other type of decoration method. Some of these situations include:

• Casual Events: While embroidery has a higher perceived-value, screen-printed logos convey a certain relaxed attitude that may align more closely with the corporate culture at your company.
• Tradeshow Giveaways: If you’re planning to give away garments at events or tradeshows, then you should consider using screen-printed shirts as they are cheaper to produce than embroidered shirts.
• Customer Appreciation: Because screen-printing is so cost-effective, you should generally use screen-printing if planning on dispensing t-shirts for customer appreciation giveaways.
• Large-area imprints: Unlike embroidery, size has no bearing on the cost of screen-printing. If you have a large logo, you should opt for screen-printing to save on decoration costs.
• High-quantity orders: Because most of the cost is generated by the production of the screens required to imprint the garments, silk-screening is more cost-effective than embroidery for large orders.
• Finely-detailed logos: Screen-printing can offer more flexibility than embroidery when it comes to fine details in logos. Moreover, gradients and fades are much easier to achieve with screen-printing.
• Extremely small lettering: If your logo or design includes lettering under a quarter-inch tall, then you should opt for screen-printing or direct-to-garment printing.

When Not to Use Screen-Printing

While screen-printing offers a number of advantages over other imprint methods, there are some situations where it should be avoided, including the following:

• Small orders: You may find that it’s not cost-effective to screen-print a small number of shirts because of the setup and run costs associated with the printing process.
• Too many colors: While screen-printing can handle several colors, each color requires the creation of an additional screen and an additional run through the printer, which in turn can drive up the cost.
• Dark fabrics: Due to the printing process, certain colors do not show up well on dark-colored fabrics without the prior application of a flash layer, which creates additional cost.
• Ribbed fabrics: Porous and ribbed fabrics do not take screen-prints very well, so you should avoid using that decoration method if you are ordering golf or polo shirts.

What You Need to Know About Screen-Printing

Should you opt for screen-printing to decorate your apparel, make sure to bear the following things in mind:

• Order Size: Screen-printing is most cost-effective when used for larger orders. If you need to decorate just a few shirts, consider going with embroidery or heat transfer. These methods generally have lower setup costs.
• Number of Imprint Colors: Each color in your logo represents both another screen that the print house will have to make as well as another run through the screen-printer. If you have a logo with several colors, you may want to consider using a embroidery, heat transfer or direct-to-garment printing.
• Graphic Detail: While screen-printing can handle a greater level of detail than embroidery, it still has its limitations. If you have an intricate design, you may want to use heat transfer or direct-to-garment printing instead.
• Fabric Color: Dark-colored fabrics will require a flash layer, which means additional setup and run charges from our screen-printers.
• Order Frequency: Screen-printers generally recycle old screens after a year, so if you anticipate reordering the same apparel later, let us know. We can request that the screen-printer save your screen, saving you future setup costs. Please remember that this is not a guarantee, and you will always be subject to setup costs when ordering screen-printed apparel.

If you have additional questions or want more information about this or any other decoration process, feel free to call 800-554-0127 between 9 AM and 8 PM ET to speak with a promotions expert.

The reactive chemicals in puff inks cause the ink not only to “puff” but also sometimes to lighten in color, so it is a good idea to request a sample of an item that has been puff-imprinted to get an idea of the true finished ink color before ordering. Also, the “puff” may obscure small copy, so the method is advised for large text and graphics without too many fine details. Finally, the time involved in the process means that 2-day service will not be available on puff-imprinted items.

Original art is converted, or digitized, into a template that breaks it down into a required stitch count for the desired imprint area. The template is then uploaded into an industrial embroidery machine which replicates the template onto the garment precisely.

The cost of embroidery depends on the intricacy of the graphics to be reproduced, as well as the number of colors, as these factors determine the stitch count. Because of the work necessary to digitize art for embroidery and the embroidery process itself, these items take at least a couple of days to produce, which will affect rush orders. The customer is advised to consult the production schedule provided during the ordering process for embroidered items.

This imprint method is preferred on briefcases, notepads, and jotters as a full-color alternative to debossing. It is also an option in the manufacture of lapel pins.

While the four-color process is excellent for reproducing images faithfully, the colors produced by the CMYK procedure will not yield the exact shades that PMS color matching does, therefore we cannot guarantee PMS matching when using this process.

Different surface materials, or substrates, require different formulae of ink to insure proper adhesion, and climate sometimes affects the drying process. This may create delays in rush orders as it is vital that all pad-imprinted items be completely dry before they are packed and shipped.

Sublimation is the chemical process wherein a substance moves directly between a solid to a gaseous state without first becoming a liquid. In dye-sublimation colored dye is superheated and then embedded into fabric, where it bonds on the molecular level with polymers (large molecules consisting of repeating simple molecules linked together) in the fabric, so that the dye actually becomes part of the material.

This process only works on artificial fabrics composed of polymers, usually polyester, so dye-sublimation is usually reserved for polyester items like lanyards, ribbons, and mouse pad fabric, though ceramics like coffee mugs are often coated with a thin patina of polymers specifically for accepting dyes. T-shirts can be dye-sublimated, but they must be 100% polyester — the process will not work with cotton.