For years, printing with plastisol ink has been the industry standard. However, these screen-printed images have a heavy and uncomfortable feel. But now, recent developments in water-based ink T-shirt printing provide a superior alternative for your printing needs.
Benefits of Water-Based Ink Screen Printing
Below are some advantages of water-based ink and why you should consider water-based ink screen printing for your next apparel project.
Comfortable Fabrics
One of the main advantages of water-based ink you’ll notice is the high-quality feel of the product itself. Water-based ink screen printing provides softness and flexibility clearly distinguishable from and very unlike a plastisol print. Water-based ink soaks into the fabric as opposed to just sitting on top of it, producing a soft hand feel.
Sharp and Vibrant Images
Another advantage of water-based ink is the fact it yields a sharper print. Due to the solvent base used in water-based ink screen printing, the ink is thinner and soaks into the garment to produce more detailed and more vibrant colors. Because the ink is embedded in the fabric, printing with water-based inks creates a high quality image that lasts longer and is much more defined. This applies to dark garments as well, since you’ll be able to achieve a vibrant image you couldn’t obtain with traditional screen printers.
Eco-Friendly Ink
The advantages of water-based ink go far beyond physical qualities. Water-based ink screen printing is an eco-conscious option as well. The printing industry is notorious for using harsh chemicals, and printing with water based inks can seem like a breath of fresh air.
Water-based ink consists of naturally occurring substances, making it an eco-friendly screen printing ink. Because they’re not made of plastic, they don’t require petroleum or fossil fuels during the printing process. And, because they are water soluble, no chemicals are required for their cleanup—keeping potentially harmful substances from entering the water supply.
Cost-Effective Printing
Printing with water-based inks saves you money. Traditional screen printers charge fees for multiple colors, and printing on dark garments often requires an underbase layer to set the designs. With water-based screen printing, you get one design with multiple colors embedded directly into the shirt, saving you from paying any extra costs associated with multicolor designs.
Marathon Offers Water-Based Screen Printing
Considering the advantages of water-based ink, choosing the solvent base for your next design should be a no-brainer. At Marathon Sportswear, we deliver high-quality products with a lightning-fast turnaround. If you’re looking to design apparel for your business, school, or sports team, try out our design studio to see how your next water-based screen printing project will look.
