Tee Shirt Printing

T-shirt screen printing is a process that uses mesh screens to create design stencils and ink is forced through the openings to create the design on the printing surface. The first step in the process is to design the artwork that will be printed. Once the artwork is approved, the next step is to print the art on clear sheets. Each color has a different sheet and screen. For example, if you had a 5 color t-shirt, there would be 5 screens.

Once the artwork has been printed, the next step is to coat the silk screen with a photo-sensitive emulsion and place the clear sheet and the screen on a vacuum light table where the design is burned into the screen. Once that process is repeated for all the layers of artwork, the screens are washed out with a pressure washer and dried. After all the screens are dried, they are placed on a rotating press machine that allows up to 6 screens/colors to be printed on a shirt. Then, the printer aligns the design and places ink on the screen.

Next, the printer uses a squeegee to disperse the ink through the openings in the screen. Once one layer is on the printed surface, the printer uses a flash heater to dry each layer of ink. Then, when all layers are on the printed surface, it needs to be heated to 300 degrees and then the product is finished. Finally the screens are washed clean, ready to repeat the process.

For more information, please visit http://www.teeshirtsrus.net/.

Abby Morrill is the Chief Designer for Tee Shirts R Us.

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