How Peach Marketplace Tees Are Made

Ever wonder how your favorite custom t-shirt was made? While there are a few different ways to make a custom shirt, from heat transfers to digital printing, screen printing is one of the most popular methods. If your shirt has vibrant colors and the design feels extra soft, chances are it was screen printed!

So, what exactly is screen printing and how does it work? Let’s take a look. 

Screen Printing

Screen printing is a popular method used to create custom clothing, artwork, canvasses, posters, and more. It’s also referred to as silk-screen printing or serigraphy. This method presses thick inks through a mesh screen onto the top of a t-shirt, rather than soaking into it, to create the printed design. 

The thick ink offers a brighter pop of color, and the process leaves the design feeling soft, giving the shirt a fantastic look and feel. However, everything is done manually, so it takes some skill to perform. At Peach Marketplace, we have the skill, experience, and specialized equipment necessary to create high-quality screen-printed designs. 

So, how do we do it?

How Does Screen Printing Work?

There are many steps necessary to complete the screen printing process. Each one takes time and effort, which means that screen printing isn’t as quick and easy as other methods used to create custom t-shirts. Let’s take a look at each step. 

Artwork/Design

First, we have to come up with an amazing design. This may seem like the easy part, but the higher the quality of the artwork, the higher the quality of the printed design, so it’s crucial that artists take their time to get the design just right.

Also, colors need to be completely separated, since each screen can only handle one color. For multi colored designs we will use multiple screens during the printing process. 

Screen

Once you have your design, you need to transfer it to the screen. The screen is a high-quality mesh screen with tiny holes that allow the ink to pass through to the shirt. 

To get the design onto the shirt, the mesh screen is coated with emulsion in a dark room. Then the acetate sheet with the design is placed onto the screen and exposed to bright light. This light hardens the emulsion, but any parts with the design stay soft and liquid. This portion is rinsed off and leaves the mesh open for the ink to pass through when pressed. 

The screen is then placed onto the printing press. If the design uses more than one color, a separate screen will be made for each color, and each screen will be aligned by hand during the printing process. 

Color

One of the main reasons that people love screen printing is because of the bright, vibrant colors. To get these colors, special inks are mixed together to create the exact colors required for the design. At Peach Marketplace, we use the highest quality inks, which really help make the design stand out. 

Press

The screen printing press is the tool used to transfer the design to the t-shirt. This press has a bass that holds the printing platens and has color arms. The color arms hold the screens that have been created for the design, and the t-shirt is stretched over a flat device.

Lasers align the shirt to make sure the design will be in the desired position. Then, the screens are lowered onto the shirt. Once in place, the ink is poured over it. With a rubber squeegee, the ink is quickly moved from one end of the screen to the other to push it through to the shirt creating the design.

If the design has more than one color, the entire pressing process is repeated for each color. Now, the t-shirt has a custom design!

Dry

Once the ink is applied, the shirt is moved to the dryer. This is a conveyor belt-style device that runs the shirt under the exact temperature needed to instantly dry the ink in one pass. The design is now permanently set onto the t-shirt. Each shirt is inspected to ensure that the design is perfect. 

Screen-Printed Shirt

The final product is a custom, screen-printed t-shirt. Even though you can feel the ink raised, it is actually soaked into the fabric of the shirt and a part of it as a result of the screen printing process. Not only does this create a design that looks and feels amazing, but it also holds up better than other custom t-shirt methods. Unlike heat transfers that will crack and fade over time, screen printed designs hold true. 

Peach Marketplace Screen-Printed Shirts

Peach Marketplace is a t-shirt screen printing company based out of Georgia. We use the highest quality inks and supplies to create long-lasting, vibrant custom t-shirt designs. We specialize in creating new and unique shirts for every holiday season. If you’re looking for a soft and comfy new shirt, check out our website to see our full catalog!