Really Cool Tshirts

For years I have been collecting Tshirts. My interest is in designs that are unusual but not silly. I'm always searching for unique Tshirts that make artistic statements. My early work with designing Tshirts was mostly copying rock band logos and doing basic silk screen printing. Later, I started creating my own designs and using an iron-on method. The results were somewhat lacking in quality to say the least. Both methods were very limiting in the amount of detail and color I could use.

In the past few years the technology of printing processes has made it possible for companies to offer a type of Tshirt printing that is an alternative to the traditional screen printing method. There are pros and cons to this method. The biggest drawback to this process is the quality is not quite as good as screen printing. The image fades quicker and colors may not look as vibrant even before washing. In my opinion the positive aspect of this process far outweighs the negative. With this printing process, it is now possible for you to create a multi-color design and have only one Tshirt printed if you want. This is just impossible with commercial screen printing. Not to mention, I think Tshirts look better after losing that "just printed" look. I purchased a screen printed shirt several years ago and it was printed so well that no matter how many times I wash it the design does not fade at all. Some people consider that a good thing. I would actually prefer the design to age a bit to give it some character.

The two leading companies that currently offer this direct printing method are Cafepress & Zazzle. There is alot of debate as to which one provides a better product. Actually my guess is that they are continuing to improve their methods so that the product is changing. Whether it is the inks, Tshirt quality or the printing process itself. My suggestion would be to compare for yourself. What I like in a Tshirt may not be what you think is acceptable. The main thing is that you can create your own designs and have them printed on Tshirts for your own use or to sell to the public. Both Zazzle & Cafepress now offer printing on dark Tshirts which until recently, was unavailable. I haven't ordered one of these from Cafepress but I did design one and purchased it from Zazzle and the results were disappointing. 

The very latest company on the Tshirt printing scene is Printfection. They offer many of the same things that Zazzle & Cafepress do as well as printing on dark shirts. I have ordered my first shirt from Printfection and the quality is very good. Time will tell how well the design holds up. As I said, Printfection is fairly new so their traffic is not as heavy as Zazzle and Cafepress. The up side of being a new company is that they don't have thousands of people selling there yet, so there's a better chance for your designs to be seen if someone does visit there.

If you decide to make a business out of selling Tshirts, you probably won't get rich selling them through any of these companies but it's a great way to take a design that you've done and get it printed on a Tshirt, coffee mug, baseball cap etc..

Below are links to the places where I sell Tshirts and I've also added some other places that have really cool designs.