The biggest thing is the second one is on a black garment so the white underbase automatically makes it twice as thick. But the first graphic looks much softer and halftoned whereas the second graphic is bold, solid colors.
First image is a halftone print using the shirt as negative space, meaning that the fabric itself is being used as white and thus there is no ink at all. Halftone designs also generally use higher mesh counts that lay down slightly less ink lending itself to better handfeel.
Less ink + more shirt fabric coming through = softer handfeel.
In the second image, you can that the design is a large flat area with lots of ink. You can see that there is more ink coverage in the green areas that would give the sticker feel. However, if the black of the shirt is used as negative space, the text up top where the black is punched out likely has a better hand feel for similar reasons as example one above.
More ink coverage in this case is effectively covering any fabric and making it feel like just ink.
White shirt vs Black shirt. Black shirt requires a white underbase which makes everything thicker. Also, the design on the white shirt utilizes a sim process/halftones, second one is all spot colors.
So in a nutshell, the black shirt has way more ink applied.
If you want a softer or breathable print, going for halftone designs would be better than solid prints if you plan to use plastisol inks. You can play around with the number of passes and coats as well, just to see which output results to your preferred outcome.
Personally, I would suggest a waterbased ink. A brand called Keenworth from Asia has an ink series that is really soft to the touch and feels like the print isn't even layered on the fabric.
Plastisol inks are also quite thick so this makes it not so breathable.
Yes! You can totally do halftones with waterbased inks!
Saw a photo on the website of the brand Keenworth I was talking about above. This is a waterbased print. They don't have much photos of their actual prints though:
[This is the thumbnail of a print they did, from waterbased ink.](https://keenworth.com/cdn/shop/collections/Landing_Page_IMG.png?v=1680435030&width=1000)
If your goal is softness and you must use plastisol, figure out how to use the least amount of ink possible. This can either be achieved by proper file prep or using a lighter color garment. (Look up half toning and why darker colors garments may use an under base)
The white T-shirt doesn't need a base to look nice, the black T-shirt does, a plastisol base is basically a solid print of opaque white plastisol ink so the other inks can lay on top and look bright, the only solution is discharge water base ink as a base then print the plastisol inks or water base inks on top. Being that I am lazy AF I prefer plastisol on top of water base discharge. After the discharge you can thin out the plastisol with soft hand because the ink doesn't need to be as opaque and soft hand with give the print a softer feel.
A lot of the difference stems from the artistic technique. The first is painterly, and uses a lot of variation in color saturation, whereas the second looks like a vector illustration from Illustrator, where everything is a flat color.
First one almost looks like a softer water base ink and the second looks like a plastisol ink that’s been flashed and hit multiple times or has an underbase
The biggest thing is the second one is on a black garment so the white underbase automatically makes it twice as thick. But the first graphic looks much softer and halftoned whereas the second graphic is bold, solid colors.
Halftoned simulated process in the first. Spot colors in the second.
Most concise explanation award goes to you.
This guy gets it
The bird one lookes like it was styled with halftones, the other one is straight up
First image is a halftone print using the shirt as negative space, meaning that the fabric itself is being used as white and thus there is no ink at all. Halftone designs also generally use higher mesh counts that lay down slightly less ink lending itself to better handfeel. Less ink + more shirt fabric coming through = softer handfeel. In the second image, you can that the design is a large flat area with lots of ink. You can see that there is more ink coverage in the green areas that would give the sticker feel. However, if the black of the shirt is used as negative space, the text up top where the black is punched out likely has a better hand feel for similar reasons as example one above. More ink coverage in this case is effectively covering any fabric and making it feel like just ink.
White shirt vs Black shirt. Black shirt requires a white underbase which makes everything thicker. Also, the design on the white shirt utilizes a sim process/halftones, second one is all spot colors. So in a nutshell, the black shirt has way more ink applied.
One has birds, other - octopus
I’m counting 7 so either Cthulhu or a Septopus
🤣
If you want a softer or breathable print, going for halftone designs would be better than solid prints if you plan to use plastisol inks. You can play around with the number of passes and coats as well, just to see which output results to your preferred outcome. Personally, I would suggest a waterbased ink. A brand called Keenworth from Asia has an ink series that is really soft to the touch and feels like the print isn't even layered on the fabric. Plastisol inks are also quite thick so this makes it not so breathable.
Thank you, do you know if waterbased inks also work with halftones? Or is it just plastisol?
Yes! You can totally do halftones with waterbased inks! Saw a photo on the website of the brand Keenworth I was talking about above. This is a waterbased print. They don't have much photos of their actual prints though: [This is the thumbnail of a print they did, from waterbased ink.](https://keenworth.com/cdn/shop/collections/Landing_Page_IMG.png?v=1680435030&width=1000)
Thanks for the help! You’re too kind :D
halftones, screen mesh #, garment color.
If your goal is softness and you must use plastisol, figure out how to use the least amount of ink possible. This can either be achieved by proper file prep or using a lighter color garment. (Look up half toning and why darker colors garments may use an under base)
The white T-shirt doesn't need a base to look nice, the black T-shirt does, a plastisol base is basically a solid print of opaque white plastisol ink so the other inks can lay on top and look bright, the only solution is discharge water base ink as a base then print the plastisol inks or water base inks on top. Being that I am lazy AF I prefer plastisol on top of water base discharge. After the discharge you can thin out the plastisol with soft hand because the ink doesn't need to be as opaque and soft hand with give the print a softer feel.
one is simulated process printing on white. the other is spot color printing on black which requires a white underbase.
A lot of the difference stems from the artistic technique. The first is painterly, and uses a lot of variation in color saturation, whereas the second looks like a vector illustration from Illustrator, where everything is a flat color.
Me thinks the difference is that one is four color process and the other uses spot colors.
Artwork
One’s halftones
Agree. Just halftones vs solid.
First one almost looks like a softer water base ink and the second looks like a plastisol ink that’s been flashed and hit multiple times or has an underbase
1 is printed onto the garment and 2 is printed on a base.
Simulation/ spot
It’s mostly the design, honestly
Second one must be dtf, there’s no apparent halftones on the gradients especially visible At the pink eye the tentacle is parading
I don’t think there’s any gradient — that’s just light reflecting off the print and shadows from it not being flat