PSA: Screen printing vs heat press vinyl for small batch shirts

I ran a little experiment for my kid's soccer team shirts last month, 12 shirts total. Did 6 with screen printing at a local shop and 6 with HTV from my home setup. The screen prints cost me $8 each but they still look perfect after 4 washes. The HTV ones started peeling around the edges after wash number 3, even with proper pressing time. Has anyone else found screen printing holds up way longer for stuff that gets washed a lot?

2 comments

2 Comments

barnes.morgan19d ago

I mean, I sort of had the opposite experience with HTV. Did 20 shirts for a neighborhood block party last summer and they're still holding up fine after like 15 washes. @blair_davis50's buddy might have gotten lucky with the screen prints though. The trick with HTV is you gotta really burn it in, not just press it for the recommended time. I use a heat press at 315 for 15 seconds and they don't budge. Screen printing can crack too if the shop doesn't cure it right.

blair_davis5019d ago

My buddy printed shirts for his band. Screen prints still going strong after a year.