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Most merchandise is easy to produce. What’s difficult is creating something people actually want to keep. In today’s market, businesses, events, and organizations have access to a wide range of suppliers that can deliver similar products with comparable timelines and quality. Because of this, the product itself is no longer difficult to replicate, and that has changed how people evaluate what they receive or choose to purchase. When options are widely available, the item alon

Promotional products are often overlooked. In many print shops, the focus stays on core services: screen printing, embroidery, and direct-to-film production. These are expected offerings, and for many businesses, they make up the majority of the revenue. But branding does not stop at apparel, neither in quality production. In everyday settings, logos appear on drinkware, office items, packaging and other materials people interact with regularly. These placements are intention

There is a common practice in many print shops that does not raise immediate concerns. Screens get coated, then set aside to dry under whatever light is available. Fluorescent tubes, LED shop lights, or general overhead lighting. It feels efficient and harmless, especially when nothing appears to go wrong right away. Emulsion is designed to react to UV light. While shop lighting may not seem strong enough to cause exposure, it still contains enough UV content to slowly affect

Your screen room environment plays a direct role in how your screens turn out, and humidity is a big part of that whether you're paying attention to it or not. It's not always something you see, but it's always there, affecting how your room behaves from day to day. When it's controlled, you start to get inconsistencies. Those inconsistencies show up in your screens. Before you try to fix anything, you have to understand what's actually going on. That starts with measuring. A

“Plastisol ink is to be sheared, not pushed.” Growing up, my grandmother used to cut our hair. Being from the South, she never said, “Get me the scissors.” She’d say, “Get me the shears.” Shears were for cutting hair. Shearing meant cutting. Funny thing — the curtains in the living room were called sheers, too. Different words. Same sound. A whole different job. Oh well. Shear = cutting. Shears for cutting hair. Shears for shearing wool. And in screen printing, plastisol ink

Buying transfers and owning a DTF machine are very different decisions. One adds output. The other changes how a shop operates. Before investing in a machine, it is worth understanding what DTF ownership actually involves.

In screen printing, most conversations focus on equipment, inks, or production techniques. But one of the biggest factors affecting print quality is often overlooked before printing even begins: the shirt itself. Every garment you print on is a substrate. And just like any other substrate, its quality directly influences how the final product looks, feels, and performs over time. When printers start viewing garments through that lens, it changes how decisions get made long be

Shops outgrow their screen printing shop equipment faster than they realize. One month everything feels manageable and the next month the press is backing up, the dryer is slowing production, and your team is working twice as hard to hit the same numbers. I see this often. Output rises, consistency drops, and the equipment and layout start working against each other instead of supporting the work you want to produce. Sometimes it is the equipment. Sometimes it is the layout.

Squeegees shape every print, yet they are often the last tool shops pay attention to. Learn how simple squeegee maintenance habits can improve clarity, speed, and consistency across your entire print room.

I made a quick one-day trip to Printing United Expo 2025 in Orlando, and while you can’t see it all, the experience delivered plenty of insight, connection, and inspiration.