T-shirts are the most popular promotional product. According to the 2022 State of the Industry report, the ubiquitous garment accounted for 15.7% of distributor revenue. With so much competition, it’s important to experiment with trending techniques to give decorations an edge and make your clients’ tees stand out from the crowd. Try these four ideas to put a new spin on an old classic.

1

Try Reverse Tie-Dye or Bleached Tees.

Tie-dye has been on-trend for the last few years, thanks in part to the popularity of DIY on social media. Though spiral patterns are always a classic, it’s worth considering other options to wow your buyers who are looking for something off the beaten path.

Reverse tie-dying, for example, where you bleach a black or other dark-colored T-shirt first then tie-dye it as you typically would with bright colors, creates a stunning effect and could be the perfect backdrop for a stark, white logo.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by UPCYCLE TIE DYE ♻️ (@upcycletiedye)

Simply bleaching a tee without adding colors back in also creates a visually pleasing palette for further decoration.

Dyenomite Apparel (asi/51185) offers a T-shirt (200BW-A) with a bleached tie-dye effect.

2

Give Texture to T-Shirts With a Flock Print.

Flock printing gives logos a soft, almost velvety feel and can add perceived value. Flock is a short-cut textile fiber that’s applied onto an adhesive on a fabric to create a print. Screen-printing veteran Charlie Taublieb shared step-by-step instructions on how screen printers can work with the material.

Companies like Stahls’ (asi/88984) also offer heat transfer vinyl with a soft-flock, suede-like feel.

3

Go Retro With a Wavy, Puff Design.

Stahls’ offers puff heat transfer vinyl that starts out flat and smooth for easy cutting, but expands for a puff effect during heat application.

3-D puff is great way to add dimension to an otherwise flat print, but pairing puff with wavy, bubble letters creates a psychedelic ’60s look that can’t be beat. Retro looks are on-trend, so why not evoke that vibe with your T-shirt designs? Wavy, puff lettering would work best with thick, bold text designs that are one-color, to keep things readable and uncluttered.

4

Fake Your Way to Appliqué.

Faux appliqué screen prints give designs a vintage stitched and layered look without the weight of extra fabric. (Courtesy of MADE Lab)

Special-effects inks can also be used to simulate other decoration techniques. Brian Lessard and MADE Lab recently released a tutorial on how to create a faux appliqué design using six screens for higher-end garments. The screen-printing training group also has a tutorial on creating a faux-stitched screen print for T-shirts on its blog. Screen-printed “appliqué” has the vintage, collegiate feel of a favorite college sweatshirt but without any weight or stiffness, making it a fun choice for a T-shirt design.

Product Hub
Find the latest in quality products, must-know trends and fresh ideas for upcoming end-buyer campaigns.