textile printing

So, I've been doing a fair amount of research to identify digital textile companies in this hemisphere and, thus far, have come up with a list of six. [I know, I know - there are more! Give me time.] Silly me, I began calling between Christmas and New Year's Day and, well, I got lots and lots of voice mail. Which was ok. It provided me more time to do look into silk screen printing.

Most screen printers print what? T-shirts. Yep. Most were on vacation, too, but I spoke to a few and I have to give them credit. They were willing to entertain the idea of printing on yardage, though we had to think of it as printing on t-shirts. "Lessee, that would be 5 imprints across and 10 up, so that works out to....".

Granted, the chances I'll have a t-shirt printer produce silk screened fabric for me is very, very slim. All right, it ain't gonna happen. But I needed to see who could do what and at what cost. I have a contact who owns a small screen printing company and they print on yardage and have done so for years. The problem is I won't be able to get over to their shop to check the place out, show the owner my art work and get a clear idea of the cost until mid to late January. So, I'm antsy, what can I say? Also, I didn't think it wise to sit around and wait until said meeting/visitation came to pass without exploring other options and other suppliers.

Thus far, I am leaning heavily toward digital printing. The color range, the fabric widths, the fabric choices, the turn around time - and the cost per yard - are all very appealing. I received an informational packet from one company complete with a printed sample on oatmeal linen, fabric swatches, cost per yard and general company information. It got me very excited!

I am getting closer to my goal of seeing my designs on fabric. From there I will have items such as handbags sewn up as samples and go about selling them to local boutiques, as well as online. I think I'll hold a trunk show at some point - though I'm not sure where yet. I'll also use fabric swatches as part of my design portfolio when approaching textile manufacturers and home furnishings companies.

So, it's all good. And it's all part of making this year, this brand new year, as good as I possibly can.