The Ink Kitchen

KC’s post from Thursday reminded me of this print that we ran years ago.  Our appliqué effect was created with a 90/10 base/black for drop shadow and a puff underlay.  I guess great minds really do think alike.  

The new Ink Kitchen column was introduced in the latest issue of Wearbles.  Additionally, some thoughts on water-base ink from my buddy Dan at Forward Printing as well as my words on the printed tank worn by the cover model which was produced at Motion Textile.  Wearables is doing great things, glad to be a part of it.  …

People often ask me what my favorite print is. That’s a doozy of a question but the one that brought me the most satisfaction was this one. It was designed so that the type was a continuous ribbon. The trick was to get the high part of the ribbon a little lighter, and the shadows…

Every now and then during the course of a crazy day when questions are flying about garment styles and available colors and you find yourself thumbing back and forth through catalogs throwing little pieces of sticky notes between the pages to save the sections you’ll need to go back and reference… you discover that someone has…

Soft plastisol inks can be a viable alternative to water base inks (and even discharge inks depending on the design, graphic and garment) with respect to visual and tactile characteristics.  Soft plastisol inks are also easier to print, especially when printing high resolution halftones through high mesh counts.  The key to soft plastisol ink is…

This print was rejected a few years back due to the visible gaps between the black and white lines which allowed the red substrate to show through.  In an effort to more reliably hold fine detail throughout a print run we were experimenting with applying strokes of various weight to elements within highly detailed line art…

Debería empezar diciendo que no considero Motion Textile una compañía de impresión de descarga, pero somos muy buenos en esto. Aclaro, hay impresores que trabajan con base de agua/descarga y lo hacen de forma brillante, eficiente y rentable. Creo que la única manera de llegar ahí es porque lo eliges o te obligan a imprimir…

Andy Anderson is one of the best printers this industry has ever seen.  I love that his approach to printing is art/craft first and science second.  Andy’s latest article in Impressions is well worth the read.

Screenprinting shops are notoriously filthy and disorganized.  Most screen-printers seem not to mind (including most managers and owners).  Why is this?  It’s unprofessional, it’s gross, it’s unsafe, it creates an underlying tension that stresses everyone out (whether they know it or not).  I wonder if one were to quantify all the lost productivity caused by filthy and…

I should start by saying that I do not consider Motion Textile to be a discharge printer, but we’re pretty damn good at discharge printing.  To clarify, I’m saying that there are printers whom primarily print waterbase/discharge and do so very proficiently, efficiently, and profitably.  I think the only way to get to that place is…