The Ink Kitchen

We’re doing a little spring cleaning at Motion Textile.  The following photos represent several years of accumulated mis-prints.  Ugly…

At Motion Textile we are revamping our print staging protocol and I figured it would be fitting to share as we go though this process. Step 1 Completed: New Job Carts We ordered 30 of these beautiful carts from GSF to replace the flat shelf utility carts we have been using for years.  While the utility carts are ideal…

Sanmar asked us to do some print testing on the new tri-blend tee from District Made®, the Mens Perfect Tri™ Crew Tee DM130.  First we tested each color in the style for both dye migration and discharge reactivity (images and results below).  Once testing was complete we proceeded to develop a vintage styled surf print to compliment the ridiculously…

Today we have a guest post, including a sobering video, from our buddy Paul Riva (Apparel Graphics in Oakdale, CA) regarding shop safety: It pays to play safe. Today I was informed of an incident in the shop. Nobody died, limbs are intact and there were no trips to the ER… this time.  As the video…

ISS Long Beach 2016 was a total blast and of course the Know-It-All’s were there, creating and capturing the action.  Here are some of the sights and sounds from the show.  Enjoy!

Do you utilize actions and scripts in your art department?  If so, have you really automated your process to the fullest extent?  Over the years we have implemented many scripts and actions throughout our workflow but we certainly have not taken a broad approach and completely redesigned our process.  Why not?  Time!  Yes, it would take time, patience, and…

We were asked by SanMar to create and print a design with their new Port & Company® – Essential Pigment-Dyed Tee – PC099.  Distressed graphics printed with discharge ink would always be my first choice when working with pigment-dyed tees as the soft hand and subtle “grunge” is a natural fit for the washed and faded look inherent to the garment.  The…

The “CA Faux Appliqué” design which we printed live at ISS Long Beach garnered tremendous attention.  The Hirsch booth was swamped with folks wanting samples and of course wanting to know “how’s it printed?”.  Questions ranged from “do you do the stitching before the print?” or “that’s not really ink, is it?” to “what’s your EOM on the…

Our friends at Sanmar have already proven their commitment to decorators with their Decorator Relations Team.  Now they’re taking a huge step forward with Sanmar U, a site dedicated to education on both products and decoration.  The Ink Kitchen will be working closely with Sanmar U, lending expert advice, blog posts, and product testing.

A few years old, but this post from MNN is still worth a read.