Chattanooga, TN

T-Shirt Printing Chattanooga, TN

T-Shirt Printing Chattanooga, TN. Are you preparing for a special event? Well, getting custom printed t-shirts is a great idea either way! T-shirt printing can be a powerful and versatile tool. Are you tasked with bringing a work or sports team together in Chattanooga, TN? Are you hoping to mark a special life event with a lasting memento? Do you want to raise money or awareness for a cause or market a business? ALl these very different goals can be accomplished with the right t-shirt printing services. When you do need t-shirt printing services, it’s important to find a screen printing company that is skilled at printing, can help you with your design, and can have your order ready when you need it. When you order shirts from STL Shirt. Co, you get all those things and more.

Shirt.Co is one of the top t-shirt printing companies for individuals, families, and organizations in the Chattanooga, TN area. For almost 50 years, members of the Chattanooga, TN community and beyond have counted on us for all of their screen printing and embroidery needs. We are commited to making the t-shirt printing process an enjoyable one for each and every customer we serve. We are sure you be wondering about what we can do for you, our methods, or how to place your order. Ask us questions or start your order by calling us at 636-926-2777 or sending us a message at 636-299-0162 today.

How it Works

Custom t-shirt printing orders may come with an air of mystery. You give your order to your favorite screen printer and receive a package filled with custom-designed, nicely folded t-shirts a few days later. We wouldn’t blame you if you described it as magic. To the unfamiliar, t-shirt printing is a mysterious endeavor. Many of our t-shirt printing customers come to us for special occasions and events, so we understand the excitement that surrounds these shirts. Have you ever wondered about the journey that plain cotton tee has gone through to become the beauty you see hanging in your closet or reflected in the mirror today?

The T-Shirt Printing Process

STEP ONE – Place your order.

You’ve determined you want some t-shirt printing done for your upcoming event, school group in Chattanooga, TN, sports team, or some other use. You place the order and that is where the t-shirt printing journey begins. When you place your shirt order, you will have to determine the:

• Brand, cut, style, material, and color of the shirts
• Ink type and color(s)
• What design will be printed

Don’t sweat it if you are intimidated by the thought of creating a design and making all these choices! Shirt.Co will offer counsel and help during every step of the t-shirt printing process. Our expert screen printing artists and designers are at your disposal. Need help designing a logo that perfectly captures your vision? You can rely on our professional design team. We can also help you select the right shirt and ink colors.

STEP TWO – We make the screen

After you determine your design, we get to work on preparing the screen that will be used to print the design on your shirts. The design is first printed on a transparent sheet of film. Based on your unique parameters, our t-shirt printing team will select the best mesh screen for your order. The screen is coated with a substance called emulsion, which is sensitive to light. That film we printed your design on is placed on the screen and we expose the screen to light. The design on the film blocks the light from reaching the coated screen in the shape of your design, and the rest of the emulsion hardens in the light. This is how we create the stencil.

If you want a design using multiple colors, we go through the same process for for each color in the design.

STEP THREE – We print.

Then, it is time to add the ink. Screen printing such as t-shirt printing typically uses a special ink called plastisol. Have you ever noticed how, on a printed shirt, you can feel the texture of the design, but it is still soft and flexible? What you are feeling is the plastisol ink. Plastisol is ideal for screen printing because it withstands washes, moves with the fabric material of your shirt, and shows up vibrantly on a shirt of any color.

Next, we mount the prepared screens to a printing press, and each shirt is placed on a plate below. We are very careful to make sure everything is registered and lined up precisely so that your design is oriented correctly on your t-shirt. We apply ink on top of the screen and use a squeegee across the entire screen to apply and press the ink onto the shirt. This process is repeated for every single t-shirt in your order. For designs with more than one color, we repeat it for each color on every shirt. There is an art to applying the ink precisely to where it stays vibrant and retains the sharp lines from your original design. Lucky for you, our t-shirt printing team has mad skills.

STEP FOUR – The ink cures.

The ink is now on your shirts! But they aren’t ready to go yet. After the ink is applied, the ink has to cure. In other words, we have to turn the ink from a liquid into a solid so it stays on your t-shirts. In order to make this happen we have to apply heat to the ink. It takes research and trial and error to perfect the curing process. It is possible to damage the shirt or the print if you use the wrong temperature or cure it for the wrong length of time. We know what we’re doing, though, so you know your prints will turn out great.

STEP FIVE – You get your shirts!

Once the ink is cured, your t-shirts are officially printed! Next, we fold the shirts up neatly and pass the finished product off to you. We will package them up and have your shirts or other printed items ready in only a handful of days. If you need it, ask us about shipping your order to you. And if you are in a jam and need your t-shirts printed even faster, we even offer rush printing services.