Custom Printing Glossary
Plain-English definitions for every printing term you'll see when ordering custom apparel. From DTG to discharge ink, here's what it all actually means.
Printing Methods
Screen Printing
Pushing ink through a stenciled mesh screen onto fabric — the classic high-volume t-shirt method.
DTG Printing
Direct-to-Garment — an inkjet printer that sprays ink directly onto the shirt fibers.
DTF Printing
Direct-to-Film — design printed on PET film, then heat-pressed onto fabric.
Embroidery
Stitching a design into the fabric with thread on a computerized embroidery machine.
Sublimation
Heat-pressing dye into polyester so the design becomes part of the fabric itself.
Heat Transfer
Pressing a pre-made design onto fabric with heat — covers vinyl, plastisol transfers, and DTF.
Inks & Colors
Plastisol Ink
A thick, opaque ink that cures with heat and sits on top of the fabric. The default for screen printing.
Waterbased Ink
Ink that soaks into the fabric for a soft, breathable print — popular on premium tees.
Discharge Printing
A waterbased technique that removes the dye from the shirt and redeposits a new color in its place.
Underbase
A white layer printed under colored inks on dark garments so the colors show up.
CMYK
Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Key (Black) — the four-color process used for full-color reproduction.
Pantone (PMS)
A standardized color matching system. Specify a Pantone number to get the exact same color every time.
Spot Color
A pre-mixed solid ink color, used instead of building the color from CMYK halftones.
4-Color Process
Reproducing full-color art using only CMYK halftone dots — the cheapest way to print photographic designs.
Halftone
Tiny dots that simulate gradients and shading. The trick that lets two colors of ink look like a smooth fade.
Design & Artwork
Vector File
A logo file made of mathematical paths, not pixels — scales to any size without losing quality.
Raster File
A file made of pixels — JPG, PNG, GIF. Quality degrades when scaled up.
DPI
Dots Per Inch — the resolution of a raster image. 300 DPI at print size is the rule.
Bleed
Extending the design slightly past the cut line so there are no white edges after trimming.
Digitizing
Converting a logo into a stitch file the embroidery machine can read.
Garments & Fabrics
Ringspun Cotton
Cotton yarn made by twisting fibers — softer and stronger than open-end cotton.
Combed Cotton
Cotton that has been combed to remove short fibers and impurities — softer and more durable.
Triblend
A fabric made of cotton, polyester, and rayon — drapey, vintage-looking, very soft.
GSM
Grams per Square Meter — fabric weight. Higher GSM = thicker, more durable shirt.
Production & Pricing
MOQ
Minimum Order Quantity — the smallest order a printer will accept for a given method.
Setup Fee
A one-time charge that covers the labor of preparing the press, screens, or digitization for a job.
Screen Fee
A per-color screen-printing setup charge — pays for burning the screen for one ink color.
Turnaround Time
How long from order confirmation until the printed goods are ready or shipped.
Rush Order
A faster-than-normal turnaround, usually with an upcharge.
Bulk Discount
Lower per-piece pricing kicks in at higher quantities — usually at 24, 48, 100, 250, and 500 piece breaks.
Sample Run
Producing one or two pieces before the full order to confirm the design and quality.
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