There are three particular methods usually employed to accomplish screen printing that produces printed garments for promotions, merchandise and fashion. The method most commonly used and best suited for a large variety of graphics is called ‘Spot Colour’, as known by any t-shirt printer. The most suitable method used for the printing of graphics that are not photographic in nature is Spot colour printing.
Ink colours used in remaking graphic images, are usually Pantone, as specified by the graphic designer. Pantone coated or uncoated colour references are chosen to specify the ink colours of the design. Used in publishing, printing and design whereby each colour is identified by a unique pantone name and number, the Pantone matching system is an international colour reference.
Branded promotional garments, or other merchandise where color identify and uniformity must stay constant, are particularly well suited for spot color printing.
Another method of screen printing used is called ‘4 Colour Process’. Printing in this style is primarily used for images and illustrations that use a wide range of colours, shades and tones. The images found in many books and magazines and printed by the 4 colour process.
The inks, though they are translucent, will merge together on the white background, which will reproduce the tones and hues of the original. This is certainly a much harder procedure to do on material than it is to do on paper. The methods are pretty similar. This particular sort of printing will, obviously, only be effective on white cloth. It won’t work on coloured garments. The print set up costs are higher than that of simple spot colour designs and as such only suitable for larger print runs of 100+.
When garment screen printers reproduce such full colour images onto coloured fabrics a method called ‘Simulated Process’ is used.|The cost for the print set up is going to be a lot higher than that of simple spot colour designs and is only good for the bigger print runs of 100+. When the garment screen printers make full coloured images and put them on coloured fabrics this is called ‘Simulated process’.|When garment screen printers reproduce such full colour images onto coloured fabrics a method called ‘Simulated Process’ is used. The print set-up costs are higher than that of simple spot colour designs and as such only suitable for larger print runs of 100+|This type of printing is only right for use in print runs of one hundred or more. This is because it simply costs more to set it up. A process called “Simulated Process” is used in cases where garment screen printers copy full colour pictures using coloured cloths.|’Simulated Process’ is a method used to reproduce full colour images onto colour fabrics. The costs associated with setting up the print are greater than those of simple spot colour designs. Therefore, they are only useful for larger print runs numbering more than 100.} Using method similar to spot colour, as used by a t-shirt printer to achieve the overall look and feel of the original image the artwork is separated into various colours and shades.
Most t-shirt printers use this method, and it is especially popular when used to copy fantasy and heavy metal album artwork onto shirts to be sold by the band. Due to the higher set up prices which includes the separating of the colour as well as an increased amount of colours used to print the pictures, this works out to be the most expensive way for a t-shirt printer.
