Get the best in apparel on these types of fabrics.
Not all custom printing is created equal and it’s important to understand the different types of printing there are so that you can properly choose the method that will work best for your needs.At One Hour Tees, we offer 5 different styles of T-Shirt printing at our Chicago location that varies depending on what you’re looking for. Regardless of which one you choose, you can count on high quality, professional finished products that are ideal for events, group outings, teams and just for fun!
Material: Polyester
Printing Style: Dye Sublimation
Polyester is a synthetic fiber that is a common fabric for T-Shirts. Polyester is the material you will need to make a custom print through dye sublimation. Polyester has a lot of great qualities. It is easy to wash, dries fast, and does not require ironing. This fabric is strong and keeps its shape well over time. For this reason, polyester is a great choice for athletic clothing.
Material: Cotton
Printing Style: Screen Print
There are so many fabrics to choose from for making a custom T-shirt. However, out of all the fabric options out there, cotton is still by far a favorite. Cotton is such a great fabric to work with because it is a strong material that still feels soft to the touch. Cotton is also one of the more affordable materials available.
The only real negative to this versatile fabric is that it does wrinkle easily. Wrinkling of the fabric may prove difficult during the custom printing process. Within the category of cotton, there are various subcategories to choose from as well. Each of these has its own set of characteristics.
Material: Cotton
Printing Style: Screen Print
Time to Ship: 7-10 days
100% cotton t-shirt fabric
Cotton t-shirts have a lot going for them. They’re usually the most economic option and on top of that they show colors off really, really well. Your colors aren’t going to pop on any other fabric the way they will on an 100% cotton t-shirt.
Cotton t-shirts, however, are the least soft of the options, but still there’s no need for your 100% cotton shirt to be uncomfortable. At Real Thread, we don’t sell shirts that we don’t think you’ll like. But that being said, there’s always going to be a difference in comfort between 100% cotton and a tri-blend t-shirt.
There are so many fabrics to choose from for making a custom T-shirt. However, out of all the fabric options out there, cotton is still by far a favorite. Cotton is such a great fabric to work with because it is a strong material that still feels soft to the touch. Cotton is also one of the more affordable materials available.
The only real negative to this versatile fabric is that it does wrinkle easily. Wrinkling of the fabric may prove difficult during the custom printing process. Within the category of cotton, there are various subcategories to choose from as well. Each of these has its own set of characteristics.
Performance (100% Polyester)
1-2 day shipping
Moisture wicking blah bla blah
Cotton/Polyester Blend
3-5 day shipping
Soft feel of cotton with the weight nd durability of polyester.
100% Cotton
7-14 day shipping
Moisture wicking blah bla blah
Light Printing
Sublimation printing is one of the newest printing technologies that we utilize. Direct to Garment Printing is exactly what it sounds like, it’s a way for us to print your designs, logos, and images directly on to a custom t-shirt in the same way that you would print out something on your home paper printer. By utilizing a specialized ink printer, we can feed your t-shirtsthrough the machine and print directly on to the shirt, which allows us to create custom t-shirts with a smooth image that won’t peel or crack over time. Light DTG is a great option for light colored garments that do not require white ink. Colors such as white, grey, light blue or light pink are great for Light DTG printing and very inexpensive with no minimum order. For smaller t-shirt runs as well as t-shirts that may have more complicated designs with multiple colors, Light DTG printing is recommended.
Dark Printing
Dark DTG printing is similar to Light DTG printing, execept that it uses white ink. It is also 3–4 times more expensive.The only way to achieve true ink colors is to print on a white shirt or lay down white under your image. This is where dark DTG printing comes in handy. If you need to print on a black shirt, you need dark DTG printing.
Embroidery
Embroidery is something we recommend for items such as hats, polos, dress shirts, and jackets. This gives an everlasting professional look to your design or logo. Your design is stitched onto the fabric with needle and thread of various colours.