Direct to Garment Printing

Direct to garment printing, also known as digital printing, is the process of printing full-coloured designs onto garments.

What is Direct to Garment Printing?

Direct to garment printing is not dissimilar to PC inkjet printing; a similar printer is used, and the process is the same, only garments are being used instead of paper.

Firstly, you create a design on a PC and make sure it’s transferred to a high-quality format through a program such as Adobe Photoshop.
Once your design is ready, you need to choose the garments that will be used in the printing process. These garments will be pre-treated which helps the inks adhere to the materials and the pre-treatment coat must be evenly distributed.
For the pre-treatment to be effective, the garment(s) will be left to dry for the treatment to set into the fabric.
Your designs are then uploaded to compatible software with our machinery.
The garment is then laid completely flat without any creases to ensure no errors during the printing process.
Now, it’s time to send the garment through the printer. The finished result will be exactly how it appears on the PC.
Upon completion, the garment is set aside for 2-3 minutes at 170^oC, allowing the inks to cure into the fabrics.

When to Use Direct to Garment Printing

Direct to Garment printing is a popular method of clothing printing when a complicated design needs to be printed. Additionally, all colours of garments (whites and blacks) can be used with the direct to garment printing process without affecting the quality of the design.

Unlike some other clothing printing methods, direct to garment printing prints in the fabrics instead of on the top, meaning that the result is soft to touch.

Direct to garment printing continues to be an effective method of clothing printing and is best used:

For short runs; there is no set-up fee or minimum order quality, making it the ideal method to print between 1 and 50 garments.
When you have dark coloured garments as some clothing printing methods have limitations with dark colours.
If you have an intricate design that needs to be printed; direct to garment printing can include all details and colours within the design without any impact on the resolution of the result.
If you have a garment that consists of a variety of materials; direct to garment printing is versatile, meaning that it’s compatible with many garments (best with at least 80% cotton).
In cases where you need a fast turnaround on your order; direct to garment printing can be completed on the same day the order is placed.

When Not to Use Direct to Garment Printing

Direct to garment printing shouldn’t be used if:

You desire bright and vibrant colours; colour codes are used during the printing process which means the colours on your printed design may vary from your original image.
You don’t want a clear cut-off line around your design; in some cases, because the shirt is pre-treated, there can be obvious staining around the design.
You have a large number of orders; although direct to garment printing can be used, it isn’t viable as it can become very costly with large volumes of garments.
You want sports shirts as the composition of these is usually polyester; direct to garment printing isn’t effective with polyester materials.
The placement of the design needs to be precise; direct to garment printing has limited placement options for your design.

Direct to garment printing is the ideal printing method for many cases. However, if you’ve got a large order, vivid colours or have other requirements that direct to garment printing isn’t suitable for, then we have other print methods available for all printing needs. Contact The Funky Peach on 01202 722333 and receive your direct to garment order as fast as today!