The New Innovative Personalized Shirts
Tuesday, November 10th, 2009With the advent of Direct-to-Garment (DTG) printing it is easier than ever to add a personalized touch to your wardrobe. Historically the options for personalization were very limited. The options included silk screening or heat-applied transfers. With silk screening there are set-up fees relating to making the screen creating a minimum order situation where it is not feasible to print a one-of-a-kind shirt when you need it. The only real option up to now for that personalized shirt was the heat transfer. Finding a place to have that done professionally was a challenge and doing it yourself left you with a shirt that looked O.K. for the first wear but after laundering the shirt it was relegated to the yard work wardrobe, not for public display. With DTG printing there are no screens to burn and no iron on transfer to worry about peeling or cracking. So you get a personalized shirt that is durable and has no set-up costs.
How does DTG printing work?
A DTG printer looks similar to an inkjet printer, with a flatbed designed specifically for making shirts. The shirt is manually placed on the printer which offers the flexibility of printing anywhere desirable on the shirt. That’s right, you can print on the back, front, sleeves, side because you can print in any location and any angle. The only places excluded from printing are areas by zippers and large seems. DTG makes it possible to make the personalized shirt you’ve always dreamed of.
The standard printing size for DTG printers runs around 12 X’ and varies some from one manufacturer to another. There are also oversized printers on the market but are generally found in specialty markets where the need is greatest.
Is DTG printing green?
The inks used in DTG printing are water based and very eco-friendly. With out screens to print and clean there are no harsh chemicals being used and disposed so, yes, DTG printing is very green.
If you want to go even greener you can personalize an Organic T-Shirt or use a shirt made from bamboo. A number of garment manufacturers have green lines. Contact your DTG printer for styles and models that are available.
Where do I find a DTG printer?
It can be difficult to find a DTG printer by looking through the yellow pages, so it’s best to use the Internet in your search. You can do a search through Google by searching personalized shirts or personalized shirts no minimum. As you look at the specific websites, be sure the site does DTG printing and not silk screening. From the search, you can evaluate the DTG printers by contacting the company or looking on their website.
If you are curious about the process or the printers there are a number of videos featuring DTG printers on youtube.com.
Brian Rau is a veteran in the personalized shirts Industry. Check out his online store and build your very own personalized t shirt today.