Screen Printing

Screen printing is the method behind most of the branded apparel you own. Ink is pushed through a fine mesh screen onto the garment, one screen per color. It is slow to set up and fast to run, which is exactly why it wins on volume.

Minimum 50 units · 10-15 business days production · Up to 20 colors

Why choose screen printing

The best economics at volume

Once the screens are burned, each additional garment costs very little to print. At 50 units and above screen printing is almost always the cheapest option per unit, and the gap widens as quantities grow. For teams, events, retail runs and wholesale programs, nothing else competes.

The most accurate color matching

Inks are custom-mixed to a Pantone reference, which makes screen printing the right choice when a brand color has to be exact. No other method mixes to spec.

Color that stays put

The ink sits as a dense layer on the fabric surface, producing opaque, saturated color that survives repeated washing without fading. On dark garments this opacity is a real advantage.

Specialty inks nothing else can do

  • Metallic and glitter - gold, silver and copper finishes with genuine shimmer
  • Puff - ink that expands under heat into a raised, tactile 3D texture
  • Discharge - removes the garment dye and replaces it with pigment, leaving an ultra-soft print you can barely feel
  • Glow in the dark - photoluminescent ink that charges in light
  • Plasticharge - a thick, bold ink deposit for athletic numbering and heavy logos
  • Simulated process - halftone separations layered to reproduce photographic images and complex gradients

Works on nearly everything

Cotton, polyester, blends and brushed fleece all take screen printing well, so one method can cover your tees, hoodies, crewnecks and totes in a single order.

Limitations to plan for

  • Setup cost scales with color count. Every color requires its own screen and its own setup fee. If your design has many colors and your quantity is modest, simplify the artwork or use DTF instead.
  • 50 units is a hard floor. Below that the setup cannot be justified.
  • Gradients become halftone dots. Smooth fades are simulated with dot patterns, visible up close.
  • Fine detail has a limit. Hairline strokes and very small text can fill in or break up, particularly on heavyweight or textured fabrics.
  • Dark garments need an underbase. A white layer is printed first so the colors read true. It counts as an additional color and slightly firms up the hand of the print.
  • Color varies by fabric. The same ink reads slightly differently across different garment colors.
  • Metallic and fluorescent inks are their own thing. They have different optical properties and will not match a flat Pantone swatch.
  • Changes after production starts are not possible. Screens are burned per design, so revisions mean starting over.

Artwork requirements

Vector art is strongly preferred - AI, EPS or PDF with fonts converted to outlines. Each color should sit on its own layer so separations are clean. High-resolution PNG at 300 dpi or more at final print size is workable, but vector gives better results.

Simple, solid colors reproduce best. Gradients and intricate detail are possible through simulated process, but they add colors and cost.

Convert fonts to outlines before sending. In Illustrator that's Type → Create Outlines; in CorelDRAW, Arrange → Convert to Curves; in Inkscape, Path → Object to Path. If you skip this, the font may be missing on our end and the layout can shift.

Specify Pantone (PMS) references for any color you need matched. We do not work from RGB.

Not sure your files are ready? Send them and we'll review them before quoting, at no charge.

Ready to print?

Email your artwork, quantity, garment choice and print placement to info@organicblank.com and we'll quote it. Not sure this is the right method? Compare it against embroidery and DTF, or see all our printing services.