What are screen charges?

Screens are tools we use in the production of your imprinted shirts.

Screen charges are a one-time fee and will remain on file indefinitely. Upon reordering, you only need pay the price of the imprinted garment…no more set-up fees.

Each color on each side of the shirt in your design needs its own screen. If your garments have a small (pocket sized) image on one side and a large image on the other, we can often gang both images into one screen to help save you money. Any changes made to an image (resizing; adding, removing, or changing text; etc.) requires new screens.

Can I have my screens?

No. Screens and film positives remain the property of Black Sheep Design Company.

How much do you charge to do artwork?

Artwork can be estimated before beginning an order. The cost for custom art is $40 per hour. Many simple designs require little or no art charges.

If I supply artwork, what format do you need it in?

If you provide your own artwork please remember that although your design looks finished, unless it is provided in the proper format, artwork charges may still apply. We can work from old t-shirts, napkins, photographs, or business cards, but these will always require some sort of art charge.

· Hand Drawn

Artwork supplied hand-drawn should be solid black on a white background (“camera ready”). Unless arrangements are made to “clean-up” your art, it will appear on the shirts exactly as it appears on paper.

· Vector Based Images

HOORAY! CorelDraw (.cdr) or Adobe Illustrator (.ai or .eps) work the best for spot-color printing. Please convert all text to curves or supply font files with the graphic file.

· Bitmap-Type (Raster) Images

(.jpg, .bmp, .tif, psd [Photoshop]) are useable, but may require artwork charges for color separation. A resolution of 300 dpi at actual print size will provide the best results.

· Word Processor Files

BOO! Word, Works, Word Perfect, etc. These programs are a real pain unless your image contains only text. Often, even this is a problem, due to formatting issues (margins, fonts, and alignment change when file is opened on a different system).

Can I put a photo on a shirt?

Yes. If you only need a few shirts, our heat transfer method is the most economical.This process is similar to store bought “T-shirt maker” kits that allow you to make an iron-on from an ink jet printer. Our process looks and wears better than such methods, but still lacks the clean look, feel, and durability that direct screen printing has. For smaller quantities (less than 72 pieces) it is usually better and more cost effective to use our new “Digital to Garment” (DTG) process instead of screen-printing.  Please inquire for more information.

For larger quantities, four-color process or “fake” four-color process separations can provide a photographic image on shirts. This process blends 4 to 6 colors to achieve a full-color design. Due to the expense of the set-up of these jobs, it is not recommended for less than 72 shirts. Expect to spend $75 to $150 for high end color separations.

Are all shirt sizes the same price?

Adult sizes (S-XL) are the same price. Larger sizes (XXL and bigger) have an up-charge which depends on the brand & style. Usually about $1.50 more for XXL and $2.25 for XXXL.

Youth sizes are about $ .10 cheaper for T-shirts and about $1.00 cheaper for sweats.

How much does embroidery cost?

For a small pocket sized logo, embroidery costs from $3.00 to $5.00 more per piece than screen printing. The more complex and large an image is, the more it costs to stitch. The same factors affect the cost of the digitizing (one-time set-up). Simple text or logos may cost $10-$20 to digitize, while a detailed full-back design may cost $200. Once we see your design (or create it) we can quote you the digitizing and stitching costs.

How long will it take to get my shirts?

If you can plan on two weeks for screen printing and three weeks for embroidery, you will never be disappointed. Often your shirts will be done quicker, but we will guarantee them within these specified time frames.

Can I get them faster than that?

Maybe. We can sometimes rush an order through. If we are not too busy, we won’t even have to charge extra. For rush-orders during peak times, expect to incur a 25% rush charge.

Can I mix shirt styles and colors?

Yes – mix them up as much as you like, keeping in mind a few things. If you get both light and dark colored shirts, it may be necessary to change ink colors, adding $6.00 per screen. Also, it’s more likely that availability could be an issue the more styles and colors you request.

Can you match an exact ink color?

Ink colors can be matched to a “reasonable” degree. We cannot guarantee exact sample color replications or pantone colors, but we will do our best to come close.

Can I order just one shirt?

Yes!  The DTG process described above is usually the best way to do this.