Threadbird Printing

Premium Standard ( Back to Top )

At Threadbird, there's nothing "standard" about our standard printing process. You should not have to pay extra to get a great quality print. We use a special hybrid style of printing in which we use a discharge underbase with our special soft inks on top. This allows us to create a strong print with bright colors while keeping the printing really soft (even on dark colored shirts). And it only gets softer after you wash the shirts!. We have won multiple awards for our quality with this style of printing and it's something we offer at no additional charge to you. (Note: Discharge only works on 100% cotton shirts)

Plastisol Printing ( Back to Top )

This is the traditional style of printing. Inks are thicker than our standard printing, and the ink sits on top of the shirt. These inks can be printed on any garment or fabric and work best in small print areas.
Plastisol inks will be used on all 50/50 tees in place of our Standard inks.

Discharge ( Back to Top )

Discharge printing is the process of bleaching the dye out of the shirt leaving its natural color showing through (usually a tan color). We can also PMS match discharge ink, however results vary depending on shirt color & brand. The only major downside is that with discharge printing you must wash the shirts before they take their "no feel" state. We have been working with discharge inks for over 10 years now.

• No ink feel
• Works only on 100% cotton shirts
• Works on colored shirts but some colors don't work as well as other like Royal Blues, Purples, and Teal.
• Best option when printing over seams
• Can not guarantee PMS color matching

Waterbase ( Back to Top )

Waterbase printing is very similar to discharge printing but for white and light colored shirts. The inks are dyed into the fabric. When used on dark color fabrics it gives a strong faded/vintage look. Keep in mind that when using light ink colors on dark shirts the ink colors will be tinted by the shirt color. For example white inks on a black shirt will cause the inks to be a light grey. Waterbase inks must be washed before they take their "no feel" state.

• No ink feel
• Works best on white and light color shirts
• Work on all fabrics of shirts
• Great for vintage look
• Eco-Friendly inks
• Can not Guarantee color matching

Jumbo/Oversized Printing ( Back to Top )

At Threadbird we like printing big. We can print as large as 23.5 inches tall by 17.25 inches wide. When printing at this size you do run a risk of printing over seams, onto the collar or even off the edge of the shirt. Whenever this happens printing will not be perfect and we can not be responsible for how it comes out.
Here are our max print sizes for different size shirts to use a guide. Keep in mind, because this is screen printing, you only get 1 set of screens per order so the print size will be the same on all shirt sizes.

Full Color Process ( Back to Top )

This is the process that you will want to use when you have a full color design or a photograph. We can do both full color process and simulated process.
Every design is different so its best that you show your sales rep the artwork and they can tell you the best way to print it. Due to the difficulty involved there is a 1 time setup fee to get your artwork ready for printing.

Foil ( Back to Top )

Foil is a great option to really make your shirts pop! Sheets of foil are heat pressed on top of plastisol inks. We can also mix foil with standard printing but waterbase inks must be used for the other colors being used. Keep in mind that foil does not last as long as normal printing and can start to peel after only a few washes if shirts are not taken care of. To extend the life of the foil please wash these garments inside out in cold water then hang dry. We print a similar color of ink under the foil to help make the shirts last longer when they do start to peel.

Metallic Inks ( Back to Top )

Make your inks shimmer by adding some Metallic into them. This only works with plastisol inks and can be mixed with any color you like.

Over-Zipper Printing ( Back to Top )

Threadbird can easily print over the zipper of hoodies and make them look great with our special zipper pallets. This works best when printing on 100% cotton hoodies and we recommend the American Apparel 5497. We can still print on hoodies that are not 100% Cotton but you will lose quality as we can not use discharge on them. Keep in mind that because we are printing over an uneven surface, printing will never be perfect.