Everyone has, at some point, had a creative idea to put on a t-shirt. Whether for a specific event, such as a college friends get-together or a loved one’s birthday, just to have a different piece or to make your company’s employees uniform , several reasons lead someone to want to make personalized t-shirts.
But making this type of product demands a series of decisions and choices, from the material to the customization process. In today’s article, we’re going to tell you everything you need to know about personalized t-shirts. Check out!
What are custom t-shirts?
Custom t-shirts are nothing more than garments with a different print, made to order. They can be simply decorative, for personal use or even for distribution and advertising.
It is very common for companies to use this type of product as personalized gifts, distributing it to the public as a way of promoting their brand. Another very common use for this type of shirt is in uniforms, as standardization is a very important aspect of this type of clothing.
How are they customized?
Custom t-shirts can be made from a very wide range of techniques, materials and inputs. Below we list the main methods of customizing t-shirts.
Silk Screen
Silk Screen, or serigraphy, is a very traditional technique, created over 200 years ago in China. It consists of separating the colors of the art to be engraved on the shirt, so that each color is specified on a different screen. These screens, or matrices, as they are also known, go through a preparation process before being used. We use the technology of screen printing in Dallas for printing customized shirts.
The revelation is made by passing a handle with paint over the screens, each screen corresponding to a different color. Thus, the greater the number of colors, the greater the number of screens (and, consequently, the cost).
Silk Screen printing offers numerous advantages, ranging from low cost for large print runs to the quality of the final result. It is important to emphasize that this type of process is more suitable for images that do not have many colors, since this can result in a high cost.
T-shirt customization by Silk Screen is very interesting if the service is for large quantities. This is because the cost price of the screens is the same, regardless of whether 1,000 or 10 T-shirts are customized. Therefore, the application of this technique is indicated mainly for print runs of more than 100 units.
silk digital
Silk Digital, also known as DTG printing, is a printing technique that does not require the creation of matrices for each color. This is because DTG printers work on an inkjet basis, so that the fabrics to be printed can pass through the mechanism of the machinery.
This means that Silk Digital allows the application of a very wide range of colors, compared to Silk Screen, which results in less production time and increased productivity. In addition, the print quality tends to be superior, since the digital process does not depend on the physical matrices of traditional serigraphy.
A great advantage of Silk Digital is the possibility of producing smaller quantities of T-shirts, since the manufacturing cost of the screens does not exist in this case. The process is carried out completely through computer software, so that the art is treated digitally and the printer does all the rest of the work automatically. In practice, it works like a regular print.
Sublimation
The sublimation process is a technique for recording images on polyester fabrics. Used for a long time, it is quick, practical and offers a very long-lasting result.
The first step in customizing a sublimation T-shirt is to print the image in special ink (known as sublimation) on paper, called a transfer. It is developed with the application of a resin, thus facilitating the transfer of ink from the image to the fabric of the shirt.
As the paper is responsible for applying the image to the T-shirt, it is essential that its printing is done in a mirrored manner, so that the sublimated result is in the correct reading direction.
Sublimation takes place through equipment known as a thermal press, which allows the creation of a controlled microenvironment, with the correct levels of heat and pressure. Under these conditions, the ink transforms into steam, immediately bonding to the polyester fabric of the T-shirt, which results in the exact setting of the contours and colors of the image.
To avoid any type of failure, it is essential that the equipment used is properly calibrated, since the creation of ideal conditions for sublimation is the main conditioning factor for the quality of the result. It is possible to perform sublimation printing on dark or light fabrics, as well as other materials.
The quality of sublimation printing is perhaps its greatest asset. It is very resistant to scratches and dents, making it possible to wash the pieces without the risk of further damage. With the use of the technique, the intensity and vividness of the colors is guaranteed. In addition to T-shirts, the process can also be done on a variety of other materials.
Transfer
Transfer is another t-shirt customization technique that is widely used today. It is important not to confuse the Transfer technique with the transfer paper used in the sublimation process.
The Transfer process consists, in short, of two distinct stages. The printing of the paper and the transfer of the image on the paper to the fabric. With the art printed on transfer paper, a thermal press is used to fix the image on the fabric.
The process is very reminiscent of sublimation, which we explained earlier, isn’t it? But try not to get confused. In Transfer, the image is detached from the paper, settling on the fabric of the T-shirt. This means that the result is a T-shirt with the personalization “pasted” over the fabric.
Already in sublimation, the evaporation of the ink occurs, which merges with the fabric. In other words, the Transfer process has lower quality (and cost) than the sublimation process. It is mainly indicated for simpler promotional t-shirts.
You know that political campaign t-shirt you won last election year that starts to peel after a few washes? It was probably personalized using the Transfer technique.
The confusion between the techniques exists because the term “transfer” is used in many processes, describing the transfer of the image from paper to fabric. And, although many steps are similar to each other, the result is quite characteristic.
Transfer is widely applied to personalized t-shirts for promotional purposes. Despite the inferior quality, the technique demands a very low cost, which means that it still has its application possibilities.
Embroidery
When we talk about customizing t-shirts and other types of material in quality fabric, it is impossible not to mention the embroidery technique. Nowadays there are very high precision and productivity machines, capable of guaranteeing image perfection.
With the design idea elaborated, the company responsible for the embroidery produces a Matrix Program, elaborated from this design. Using a digital stitch simulator, the cost of customization is calculated, which will logically vary with the size and complexity of the final artwork.
Aligning the correct file type for your embroidery machine is critical. The digital matrix is copied by the machine via USB, automating the entire process. Customization via embroidery is very interesting for fine and aesthetic details. Polo shirts and caps are great applications for computerized embroidery.
plotter
Plotter, also known as Cutting Plotter or even Power Film V3, is a much more used customization process than you can imagine. It is made from a kind of vinyl, cut and transferred to the t-shirt using a heat press.
There are several more basic color options, ensuring a rubbery effect, very characteristic of this type of material. Soccer team shirts apply this technique very frequently, as in the numbers and names of the players, on the back, and in sponsorships in other parts of the piece.
With a very specific application, it is necessary to understand well the effects of using plotter printing. Areas that are too large, such as the front or back of the shirt, can be uncomfortable and uncomfortable in everyday use. In addition, the availability of colors is not as wide as in other options.
dark film
Dark Film is a very simple printing process, which uses the application of the image on the fabric through a paper of the same name, prepared with layers of resin. Printing is done on laser printers.
After preparing the paper, the art is aligned with the fabric and, as with most transfer processes, a thermal press is used, heated to 200º C.
Image quality on fabric will vary depending on the quality and resolution of the printed artwork. Therefore, 300 dpi resolution prints are recommended. The durability of printing via Dark Film is variable. While some transfer paper manufacturers guarantee up to 60 washes of the piece, it is recommended not to wash it in the machine and, if you do, turn the piece inside out.
The Dark Film application is not widely used by companies that focus on productivity. This is because each T-shirt takes, on average, 15 minutes to be ready, which is unfeasible for large quantities. In this way, it is more interesting to use sublimation or serigraphy processes , for example.
What is the importance of personalized t-shirts in business?
Currently, the market highly values strategies for bringing companies and their public closer together. Among the various actions that can be adopted is the distribution of personalized gifts to customers and partner suppliers.
In this way, products such as custom t-shirts are considered great choices for virtually any type of audience. It works as a general gift, since everyone likes to win this type of product, extremely useful.
Nowadays customers and partners are the great promoters of a brand. Direct marketing has been losing strength for some years now, and it is necessary to invest in more engaging and subjective options.
Most people are suspicious of advertising done directly by the company, in a more classic format. This is because this type of strategy makes the intention to sell clear, without an exchange. But when this type of strategy is adopted subjectively, the perception changes.
Imagine a customer of yours wearing a T-shirt with your company logo on it. At first, other people who come into contact with him will not associate this with a direct sales intent strategy.
When we have our brand associated with a customer, this type of action is seen as a recommendation of your brand by that person. Since she is, directly or indirectly, consuming your product, it implies that she validates its quality.
Customer loyalty
The best consequence of applying a good marketing strategy is the creation of a loyal audience. These people work as publicity vectors for your business, just for the satisfaction of good service or a job well done.
Within a context of heightened competition, resorting to tactics such as the distribution of personalized gifts is a great strategy to be remembered by customers. Also, everyone likes to get some treats. This increases the chances of winning over new customers and, above all, current ones becoming loyal consumers of your brand.
