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canvas

Mother of Invention. Fun with nylon and sticks and stones.

I would rather be writing about the Mothers of Invention, Frank Zappa and all that, than thinking about nylon. We always avoided printing on nylon, but eventually we somewhat embraced it. Nylon shrinks when you heat it and ink doesn’t really want to adhere to it and nobody technical gives you any consistent information, other…

Curing Ink on Canvas

We received a panic inquiry from a supplier that we work closely with. They had a customer who claimed that they could not get their prints to cure on a canvas bag. We field many questions for our vendors, since printers love to blame the substrate for printing problems, so our vendors use us to…

Misprint Monday: Fun with Canvas

We print a lot of canvas bags and in particular for made in USA companies who send us the canvas to print before they are sewn. We have printed everything from 6 ounce to 22 ounce and all kinds of weaves. We recently screwed up an order and it reminded me of everything that can…

Acres of Promotional Products

The PPAI Promotional Products Expo starts tomorrow January 16th. Well it started yesterday if you are into seminars. The product area opens Tuesday January 16th at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas. I’ve been exhibiting or attending for a long time and it actually seems to have improved in that it is now…

What We Have To Work With: In, On, and Above the Shirt

I always say that we can design in, on, and above the shirt. Your design canvas is not a computer screen. It is the fabric of tote bags, shirts and other garments. We are lucky to be able to design with depth. Thinned based inks go into the fabric, regular inks stay on top, and…

Spring is Not Just Flowers: Screen and Substrate Moisture Issues

After the winter of our discontent, well at least in our Northern climes, Spring is (almost) here. Thoughts turn to verse: You can’t see Canada across lake Erie, but you know it’s there.  It’s the same with spring.  You have to have faith, especially in Cleveland.  ~Paul Fleischman People ask me what I do in…

Canvas Tote Bag Printing – Some Basics and Some Tricks

There are a wide variety of types of canvas bags out there in the world. They are all waiting to be decorated by the screenprinter. There are specifications of all the fabrics in terms of weight, weave, etc. In my many years of buying canvas totes and even working directly with companies that are manufacturing…

Mis-print Monday: Why Is the Ink Not Cured?

We got some photos today from a shirt company and they had a printer reporting that the shirts looked like crap after washing. You can see the photos at the end of this post. The ink is not cured from what I see and this is what I told them can be the causes: Undercuring can…