T-Shirt Printing – Don’t try this at home!

If you're reading this then that means you're probably looking for the cheapest way to get printed t-shirts. If you're on a low budget but still need decent quality custom t-shirt printing, you might be able to get away with doing it yourself at home. There are a few sites on the internet when you can buy iron-on t-shirt printing transfers which you can print on your home printer. You can even find pre-printed t-shirt transfers on eBay. According to my customers, results can vary from barely acceptable to disastrous!

I often hear customers say that they've tried to print their own t-shirts for a stag or hen night, workwear, or just a one-off, but 'it didn't work'. They had followed the instructions perfectly but in the end the transfers either didn't stick to the garment at all, or they began peeling off soon after wearing it. Others reported that the print didn't survive the washing machine, and they were left with a ruined garment because of the residue the transfers leave behind.

I've conducted some research into this myself, and I've found that these 'home t-shirt printing transfers' are really aimed at hobbyists. Perhaps hobbyists are the type of people who don't complain when a product they purchase isn't of great quality? There are so many variables which can make the printing go wrong. Firstly, if the garment isn't designed specifically to be printed on, you might struggle to get the transfers to adhere properly. If your iron won't reach the required temperature or if you're not applying the right amount of pressure, you'll find it difficult to get decent results. You need to apply an equal amount of pressure and heat across the entire transfer, and this is near impossible to achieve with a domestic iron. It's a fiddly, difficult job that rarely ends up how you wanted it.

At the end of the day, there's really no substitute for professional quality garment printing, using proper equipment, materials and garments designed specifically to do the job. All it takes is a quick email or a phonecall to Printigo and you can get your t-shirts printed by experts in 1-3 days. Plus you might find it's actually CHEAPER than doing it yourself!


About the Author:

Author: David Black

One Response

  1. stag kiev on March 22, 2012:
    I really like this informational article. You manage to make it interesting and clear while making your point. I agree with you. If only more writers could write like you.