Don’t Mess Around, Choose the Right Ink!

“Your Brand deserves the best, so in my mind, a t-shirt is just a t-shirt without our Vintage Ink.” ~ Bill Svoboda, Founder

At Foxtrot Custom, formerly Coed Monkey, we know that when you are looking to order Custom Printed T-Shirts, the #1 thing you are thinking about is how you want your shirts to be AMAZING… so everyone that gets one of your t-shirt 100% LOVES it… and if you are ordering for a business, so your customers, fellow employees or even Boss, also LOVES them.  Your brand matters, and we want to put your brand first as we help you look amazing in custom printed t-shirts. 

We love representing your brand on custom t-shirts, we also LOVE “all-things soft”… Soft shirts, soft inks, soft drinks, soft tissues… you get the picture.

We know you also LOVE “soft,” so we’re constantly working on getting our inks as soft as possible while still achieving the look that represents your brand the best.

Without over-simplifying things, ask yourself one question… Is this order about having a cool shirt, or about delivering a specific message?

We offer two ink printing processes: Standard Ink and Vintage Ink. There are awesome benefits to both options, and there is no difference in price, so it really becomes a matter of preference for the look you are wanting to achieve.

Vintage and Standard Ink Comparison

This isn’t true for 100% of the projects, but generally speaking if you just want a cool shirt and aren’t worried about specific branding colors (Pantone PMS colors), our Vintage Ink is the right way to go. There are many benefits to Vintage Ink, but also a few things to keep in mind as well before committing all the way to that process.

The Foxtrot Custom Vintage Ink:

Vintage Ink print examples

Vintage Ink feels much lighter on the shirts compared to Standard Ink since it is a thinner coat of ink that is applied with less pressure, and the ink color and shirt color interact to create a unique look from garment to garment.

However, there are a couple of things to consider if you are looking to do Vintage Ink.

As mentioned above, the shirt color and ink color do interact, so your ink colors are not going to end up looking the same as when they started. Make sure your shirt and ink color combinations will “mix” well together… for instance, as shown above Vintage White Ink on a dark Heather Black t-shirt will always “pop,” whereas the a Vintage White Ink on a red t-shirt will typically pick up more of the hue of the shirt beneath.  

The same is true about printing a Vintage Orange (or other color) on a darker garment- since the garment’s hue will come through the lighter coat of ink.  If you aren’t sure how your color combo (shirt and ink) will work, please reach out to us and ask for a second opinion! 

View our 2 Inks in Action (Vintage vs. Standard):

Don’t Mess Around, Choose the Right Custom T-Shirt Ink for your Tees! – Foxtrot Custom

Our Standard Ink:

Standard Ink print examples

On the other hand, if you have specific branding that you want to get across, bright colors to achieve, or just want your graphic to jump off the shirt, then Standard Ink is the way to go. Standard Ink typically takes multiple passes of ink on the shirts in order to achieve bright colors, so it will feel a bit thicker on the shirt than Vintage Ink. We are always working to keep the ink as soft and light as possible without sacrificing the bold color, but even with that in mind there are a couple of things to keep in mind with Standard Ink.

Since the layer(s) of ink are going to be thicker than Vintage Ink would be, we recommend avoiding large fields of ink to be printed on the shirts to avoid the ink weighing the softer garments down, or feeling stiff to the touch.

Utilizing negative space in your design (like the North design above to the left, or in the neon orange rays above on the right) help break up the amount of ink that would be laid on the shirts is a great way to avoid that issue! Again, if you’re unsure of what would be best for your design and shirt, reach out to us directly and we’ll make sure your branded apparel turns out amazing.

Ultimately, each project is completely unique and the right option for your order really depends a lot on the intended use for your shirts. Please reach out to us with a Contact Message, start a live chat, or call in to our main line at (877) 874-4781 to speak with one of our Foxtrot Custom Reps to help answer any questions you have and make the best recommendation for your order.