Full color T-shirt printing in Chicago has come along way. In the past each color in a design required its on screen/plate. The cost for each screen can run from $15-40 per screen. Complex designs were difficult to capture details.
For example, design files that had a gradient or fade of color from darker to lighter was not doable at many / most t-shirt plants. Most plants would not even accept jobs more than 3 colors and those colors often needed to be clearly separated from each other. Today's technology now allows for a much broader range design and detail. The current full color printing is called direct to garment(DTG). Think of it as a large color laser printer for t-shirts / fabrics. Several years ago, DTG was typically limited to printing on white or light color fabrics. Black fabrics were difficult to get true color and detail separation. The reality is both screen printing an DTG printing both have their advantages and disadvantages. Defining the specs for a job is step 1.....then determining the best way to produce the job based on the specs is step 2. Typical specs need are quantity, # of positions(front, back, sleeve etc), the # of colors and details of designs being printed(1 color white vs 2 colors, 3 colors, 4 colors, full color /4 color process etc), what color shirt are you printing on(white/light, grey, black etc), how soon do you need the shirts(tomorrow, 1 week including freight transit time etc). These mentioned specs are the most common details to navigate(although there are more that may contribute to evaluating which method is best for the job). The person needing the shirts printed is not typically experience in assessing all these spec details. Chicago Stream Media has over 20 years of dealing with client requests and leverages its experience to match the job specs with the best production method and or production facility. Just because a plant can print direct to garment doesn't mean its the best method for the client's job. A one color white design printing on a black shirt at a qty of 300 may be better and less expensive if it were screen printed. The whites would likely be more vibrant and once the the screens were made and production was running it could produce more shirts per hour than DTG printing(if you have the time). If that same job was for 12 shirts and you needed them in 3 days DTG may be a better solution. Some production plants don't want small, fast jobs. At Chicago Stream Media it is our job to match the specs and needs of the job to the right equipment and the right production plant to meet the needs of the client's situation.