Our Print Styles
Here at Real Thread, we’ve got two primary print styles, SuperSoft and Bold.
SuperSoft vs. Bold
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SuperSoft
A water-based ink that literally dyes the fabric of your t-shirt. Depending on the shirt fabric, SuperSoft could result in a more vintage looking print, but always one that's extraordinarily soft.
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Bold
Our Bold ink is a high-opacity water-based ink that creates a slightly thicker print than SuperSoft. While it has a bit of a feel to it, the results are an exceptionally vibrant print across all fabric colors and blends.
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Why Water-Based?
Industry-standard plastisol inks are made with polyvinyl chloride (aka PVC)—which was dubbed the “Poison plastic” by Greenpeace. It goes without saying that plastisol is terrible for the planet. It’s also itchy, uncomfortable, and prone to cracking & peeling after just a few washes—but that’s another story.
Our water-based ink is completely free of PVC resin and is water-soluble—making it easier to clean, safer to print with, and better for the environment. As an added benefit, water-based ink also soaks directly into your garment (rather than sitting on top of it), which means that it gets more comfortable with every wash.
Comparing Each Print Style
Soft and Unnoticeable
Since the ink actually re-dyes the fabric rather than sitting on top of it, you won’t feel the print on the shirt at all after a single wash.
Partial to Full Vibrance
The vibrance is slightly reduced by the ink settling into the shirt's fibers, picking up fabric textures.
Pantone Approximations
Colors will be close to the selected Pantone color but not exact due to the natural blending of ink and fabric.
No Underbase
The lack of the "underbase" in the printing process means designs retain greater detail and definition.
SuperSoft
SuperSoft is the right choice for you when you want a lightweight print that is incredibly soft and pliable. The print will last long and won’t flake or crack over time. The clarity of details in the print will be phenomenal, though colors won’t be quite as intense as Bold printing.
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Surf Club Tee
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Bozal Tee
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Super Supporter
SuperSoft | Bold | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
100% Cotton | Good | Good | ||||
50/50 Blend | Great | Good | ||||
Tri-blend | Good | Good | ||||
100% Polyester | Good | Good | ||||
Feel | Minimal feel | Slight feel after wash | ||||
Color Vibrance | Generally Bold – Fabric Color Dependent | Always Bright & Bold | ||||
Detailed Designed/Line Art | Good | Good |
Printing FAQs
We sure can! Know, though, that with water-based and discharge ink, not all fabrics print the same. 100% cotton will give a different result than a 50/50 blend or a tri-blend.
You got it! We can match any Solid Uncoated Pantone color. It's tough to match perfectly since we are printing on fabric, but we'll get it as close as possible. If Pantone matches are your biggest print concern, we recommend you print your design with our Bold ink, which has the most true-to-color-match print result.
Yes, we can — but these prints can be tricky, and in some instances, we don't recommend over-the-seam prints. We recommend talking with one of our printing pros before locking in on an over-the-seam print style.
In some cases, yes — but we recommend talking with a team member about the desired result you're going for. Sometimes, we advise against over-the-zipper printing and have a few other tried-and-true solutions which yield better results.
Yes! That's what we're known for here at Real Thread. No plastisol here!
Yes! We offer various specialty printing services and styles — from metallic and neon inks to custom tags and beyond.
Every shirt starts in its natural color cotton and then is dyed into your shirt color. Garment dyes used when dying Kelly Green, Royal Blue, and Red shirts are often stubborn to discharge printing.
We recommend using our Bold ink when printing on these colors. Manufacturers continue striving to make their dyes more discharge-friendly, so this could become less challenging.
Specialty Print Styles
We've got some out-of-the-box options for you if you're looking to expand your print horizons.
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Tonal Printing
Tonal printing is a subtle print style that is ideal for creating a more vintage look and feel to your shirts.
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Glow-in-the-Dark Printing
Whether you’re organizing a nighttime event, want to stand out at a party, or want to add a unique twist to your brand’s merch, our glow-in-the-dark printing service is the perfect solution.
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Over-the-Seam Printing
Over-the-seam screen printing allows designs to be printed across the seam or zipper on garments without distorting the design or disrupting the zipper's functionality.
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Metallic Printing
Metallic ink screen printing is used in the custom apparel industry to create shiny, metallic effects on garments of all kinds.
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Puff Printing
Puff print is a specialized screen printing technique that creates a raised, three-dimensional effect on printed designs. Unlike traditional flat prints, puff print adds texture and depth.
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