Screen printing isn’t just one thing. There are different ink types, different curing methods, and different ways to handle artwork — and the right choice depends on what you’re printing, what you’re printing it on, and how you want it to feel when someone puts the shirt on.

Most customers don’t need to know the technical details. But when someone asks “can you make this feel softer?” or “why does this print feel different from that one?” — the answer is usually about which technique we used. Here’s a plain-English breakdown of what we work with every day at the shop.

How screen printing works at a basic level

At its core, screen printing uses a mesh screen and stencil to push ink onto the shirt in the exact areas where the design should appear. Each ink color usually needs its own screen, which is why simple one- or two-color designs are easier to price and faster to produce than complicated full-color artwork.

That process is also what makes screen printing such a strong choice for custom T-shirts, work shirts, event shirts, and branded apparel. When the artwork, ink, garment, and curing are handled correctly, the print holds up through regular washing and wear. For Austin screen printing orders with real deadlines, those production choices matter as much as the design itself.

Plastisol Ink — The Workhorse

Plastisol is what most people picture when they think of screen printing. It sits on top of the fabric and cures with heat. The result is a bold, opaque, durable print with strong color — even on dark shirts.

We use plastisol for the majority of our orders because it’s versatile and reliable. It works well on cotton, blends, and polyester. The colors stay true wash after wash, and the print handles heavy wear without cracking or fading. If you’ve ever worn a concert tee or a branded work shirt that still looks good after years of washing, that’s almost certainly plastisol.

The tradeoff is feel. Because the ink sits on top of the fabric rather than soaking into it, you can feel the print with your fingers — there’s a slight raised texture. For most people that’s fine, and our hybrid printing approach keeps it softer than what a lot of shops produce. But if “no hand feel at all” is the goal, that’s where the next two methods come in.

Water-Based Ink — The Soft One

Water-based ink soaks into the fibers of the fabric instead of sitting on top. The result is a print you can barely feel — the design becomes part of the shirt rather than a layer on it. The look is softer and more vintage, almost like the design was dyed into the garment.

We reach for water-based ink when a customer wants that broken-in, retail-quality feel — the kind of shirt you’d pick up at a boutique where the print doesn’t feel like a print at all. It works beautifully on lighter-colored, 100% cotton shirts.

The honest limitations: water-based ink doesn’t work as well on dark garments (since it’s not opaque enough to cover dark fabric), it takes longer to cure, and it’s less forgiving during production. It costs a bit more and requires more attention at the press. But for the right project, the feel is worth it.

Discharge Ink — The One That Removes Color

Discharge is the technique that surprises people the most. Instead of adding ink on top of the fabric, discharge actually removes the dye from the shirt and replaces it with the ink color. The result is an incredibly soft print with zero hand feel — the design literally lives inside the fabric.

We use discharge on dark-colored, 100% cotton shirts when a customer wants a soft, vintage look without the heavy ink layer that plastisol would require on a dark garment. It’s what gives high-end band merch and premium retail tees that “how did they print this?” quality.

The limitations are real, though. Discharge only works on 100% cotton (not blends or polyester), and the final color can vary slightly depending on the garment dye — so exact Pantone matching is harder. It also has a distinct smell during curing that requires good ventilation. We’ll always talk through these tradeoffs before recommending it.

Halftones — When You Need Gradients or Detail

Halftoning isn’t a different ink type — it’s a technique we use with any of the above inks to create the illusion of shading, gradients, and tonal variation using tiny dots of ink. Think of it like a newspaper photo: up close it’s dots, from a normal distance it looks like a smooth image.

We use halftones when a design has shading, fades, or photographic elements that can’t be achieved with flat blocks of color. It lets us print detailed, realistic-looking artwork while still keeping the color count manageable — which keeps your cost down compared to a full-color digital print.

Halftones require precise screen-making and careful ink management at the press. The dots need to be clean and consistent across the whole run, which is why this technique separates experienced printers from beginners. It’s one of the things we take particular pride in at the shop.

So Which One Should You Choose?

Honestly, you don’t need to choose — that’s our job. When you send us your artwork and tell us what you’re going for, we recommend the technique that fits. Here’s the general guide we work from:

• Bold, durable, works on any color shirt: Plastisol
• Super soft feel, lighter shirts: Water-based
• Soft feel on dark shirts, vintage look: Discharge
• Detailed artwork, gradients, photo-like designs: Halftones (with any ink type)

Most orders use plastisol because it’s the best all-around option. But knowing the alternatives exist means you can make a more informed choice — and if you ask us “can you make this softer?” now you know why we might suggest discharge or water-based instead.

Got a project where the feel or look of the print matters as much as the design? Get a quote and tell us what you’re going for — we’ll recommend the right technique.

There are a lot of companies that print custom t-shirts. Online services, local shops, fulfillment centers, print-on-demand platforms — the options are endless, and most of them will happily take your money. So how do you figure out which one is actually good?

After running a custom t-shirt shop in Austin since 2013, we’ve seen what makes customers come back — and we’ve heard plenty of stories about what made them leave somewhere else. Here’s what we think actually matters when you’re choosing who prints your shirts.

They care about the shirt, not just the print

A lot of companies focus entirely on getting ink on fabric and calling it done. But the shirt itself matters just as much as what’s printed on it. If the blank is stiff, boxy, or cheap-feeling, nobody wears it — and your print ends up in a drawer regardless of how good it looks.

A good custom t-shirt company will talk to you about the garment, not just the design. They’ll ask what the shirts are for, who’s wearing them, and how they’ll be used — then recommend a blank that fits the situation. We stock economy, standard, and premium options specifically because one size doesn’t fit all projects. A company event calls for something different than a construction crew, and both are different from retail merch.

They show you a proof before they print

This sounds basic, but not every company does it — especially the big online ones. Some just take your file and run it. If the placement is off, the color is wrong, or there’s a typo, you find out when you open the box.

We send a digital proof on every single order and nothing gets printed until you approve it. That’s a checkpoint that protects both of us. It takes a few minutes and it’s saved countless orders from going sideways.

Their pricing is honest

Watch out for companies that quote a low per-shirt price and then add fees for setup, screens, artwork, color changes, and rush processing. By the time you get the final invoice, the price per shirt is double what you expected.

We don’t charge setup fees on most orders. Our pricing is straightforward: the cost of the blank shirt plus the printing cost, based on quantity and number of colors. If something will cost extra — like an underbase on a dark shirt or a jumbo print — we tell you upfront before we start. No surprises at pickup.

You can talk to the person printing your shirts

When you order from a large online company, your point of contact is a support form. When something goes wrong or you need to change something mid-order, you’re waiting on an email thread with someone who’s never seen your artwork and doesn’t know your deadline.

With a local shop, you pick up the phone or walk in. The person you talk to is the person who knows your order. For anything on a deadline — which is most custom shirt orders — that direct line matters more than any other factor.

The print lasts

A cheap print looks fine on day one. The difference shows up after a few washes — cracking, peeling, fading. Proper curing is what separates a print that holds up for years from one that falls apart in months, and it’s the step most people can’t see.

Every order we run gets cured at the right temperature for the right amount of time. That’s not glamorous and nobody puts it on their website banner, but it’s the reason our customers come back wearing shirts we printed three years ago that still look sharp.

They’ll tell you when they’re not the right fit

This is the one that most companies won’t do. If someone comes to us needing 6 shirts with a full-color photo print, screen printing isn’t the best method for that — and we’ll say so. We’d rather point you toward the right solution than take an order that won’t turn out the way you hoped.

A company that takes every order regardless of fit is optimizing for their revenue, not your result. A company that occasionally says “this isn’t the best fit for what you need” is the one you can trust when they say “this will turn out great.”

The bottom line

The best custom t-shirt company isn’t always the cheapest, and it’s not always the one with the fanciest website. It’s the one that cares about the garment as much as the print, gives you a proof before they run, prices honestly, and actually answers the phone when you call. That’s the standard we hold ourselves to at Oh Boy! Print Shop, and it’s what we’d tell you to look for anywhere.

If you’ve got a project in mind, get a quote and see what working with a shop that gives a damn feels like.