OK i just joined this forum because im doing what some of you have. Design my own shirts and sell them. My question is that i want to do high end shirts so whats the best way to print designs would it be silk screen or is there a better way and can i do it at home. I want to be mkaing shirts in the same category as say ed hardy or any other high end company so whats the difference between a 20 dollar shirt and a 75 to 100 dollars shirt and how do i justify the priceÉ thank you all.
that all depends on your budget. many of those high end shirts are just screen printed and no different than what you could do yourself or get from a local screen printer. if you have a tight budget you can buy your own equipment or hook up with someone local to print them. If you have a higher budget you could buy a dtg printer, get a simple embroidery machine, a heat press, then have many options to embellish your own shirts. when it comes to many of those higher priced brands, its really just like a marketing technique where some people perceive that high price means better quality. I guess also you must consider they have high overhead with all their endorsements, advertisments, etc... Ed Hardy uses many different processes just depending on which shirt you specifically are talking about. so some shirts cost more to make, but not as much as they sell for. some processes they use are are really expensive at lower volume, but with the right screen printer you can still have printed shirts that look just as good and as high of quality. I suggest teaming up with a creative local screen printer and you can make almost anything happen that you are seeing out there.
__________________ Email: lewis@thinktankind.com Phone: usa (1)260.748.1062 / china (86)187.2128.7305
Im thinking about using a wacom tablet to draw designs and then can i use a printer to print onto a shirt and hows the quality of that i want the best i can get. Also how do i go about putting stones on shirts and all that shiny stuff? thanks a lot.
As Lewis stated, it really comes down, to how much money you want to spend and how creative your local printer is. Much of what companies such as Affliction, Ed Hardy can be duplicated fairly closely depending on what resources you have.
Rhinestones and similar rhinestuds, if hot fix are usually pressed on with a heat press. Foil can be applied using various technique, from vinyl foil products to using adhesive and then applying foil over top.
There is so many ways of getting similar looks and the soft hand feel, you could spend weeks reading different parts of this forum.
yea you can use a wacom tablet to create your designs. then take them to a local screen printer with an example shirt that you like the printing on. if you are talking about printing on the shirts with an inkjet style printing method, thats called dtg (direct to garment). to put rhinestones on shirts one method would be using a heat press. it's an easy process to do. this site has a lot of info about all printing methods so do some searching and you will be amazed what you can find out.
__________________ Email: lewis@thinktankind.com Phone: usa (1)260.748.1062 / china (86)187.2128.7305
I have to agree on the budget has a lot to do with making a high end garment. There are some other things that make a high end garment. Custom labels, garment washes, applique/threading. Some companies will use an american apparel shirt & put them through a few enzyme washes to make is super soft. Using multimedia processes give a normal garment that boutique quality look. You find a lot of companies using rhinestones or nailheads to give their garment some bling. Adding some grinding gives a worn in vintage look. It really depends on your demographic. Hip hop companies will do a lot of foil and applique to take their garment up a notch. Its all about finding the right place to sell your garment at higher prices.
I live in Vancouver so i mean its not uncommon where people spend tons of money on clothing i know my designs now i just want to know methods of getting them onto the shirt but at the same time i want the bets i can give ot the customer. hows the quality of print when using those 15,000 printers, better than silk screen and how intricit can designs get with that type of printer? any othe rhelpful suggestions welcome too, thanks again everyone.
I live in Vancouver so i mean its not uncommon where people spend tons of money on clothing i know my designs now i just want to know methods of getting them onto the shirt but at the same time i want the bets i can give ot the customer. hows the quality of print when using those 15,000 printers, better than silk screen and how intricit can designs get with that type of printer? any othe rhelpful suggestions welcome too, thanks again everyone.
are you referring to direct to garment printers? If so, then you can get pretty detailed. It is great for photographic images as will as very thin lines. Choosing the right color garment definitely makes a big difference with DTG printing. I have seen a lot of cool designs get muted or washed out if the color of the garment is too dark. I know they make machines that print on dark garments, but I have never seen in person.
I have seen both types of machines. Depending on your designs, the sky really is the limit. I have done some designs on coloured shirts that the printer told me no way will it look good using his Brother GT541 which doesn t print white ink. Surprised us both and came out looking kind of cool actually.
I have seen both types of machines. Depending on your designs, the sky really is the limit. I have done some designs on coloured shirts that the printer told me no way will it look good using his Brother GT541 which doesn t print white ink. Surprised us both and came out looking kind of cool actually.
thats good to know. The design we had that had white in them turned out to have the color of the shirt to come through which didnt look right. Know that upfront would help with the design process to work with the color of the tee instead of finding it messed up after.
also from your experience what would you prefer outsourcing the printing of the shirts or buying the equipment to do it yourself if your budget would allow? and are any of you doing this as a full time job? thanks.
I suggest letting the professionals take care of your printing needs. There are so many variable in buying your own equipment. You have to learn how to use it properly, learn how to mix the inks, using the dryer at the right temperature. You will spend all your time learning how to use it that it will affect your goals of coming out with your own line. Most likely you will need to start printing for others to supplement the costs of having your own equipment. IF you use a local printer, then you can focus on the true appeal of your product and put your money into marketing & sales.
the only concern i have with outsourcing is that like the saying goes if you want to get something done right do it yourself. I don't want someone screwing up designs and all that but i guess i can get samples made.
I understand where you are coming from. Unfortunately screen printing isn't an exact science & with human interaction, there is always a chance of mistakes. I had 42 K tees printed last year from many printers all over the country & if you have all your ducks in a row before you submit your work order, then the printer is reliable to produce. It would take one messed up batch on your part if you have your own equipment that could set you back financially. The majority of clothing companies outsource their product. If you do your homework, you to can make sure your garment is printed with quality. Ask the printer if you can do quality control & approve the first sample of each run at the shop. The major companies do many sample runs to make sure it is right. But the sampling process can get very expensive.
Hgih end clothing questions, thanks. 
