Garment & Print Care
How to wash, dry and store custom apparel so the print outlasts the garment. Most decoration that fails was not made badly — it was washed badly.
Care by decoration method
| Method | Washing | Drying | Ironing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Embroidery | Cold, inside out, gentle cycle | Line dry or low tumble | Iron around the stitching, never over it |
| Screen printing | Cold, inside out | Line dry | Inside out, low heat |
| DTF | Cold, inside out, no bleach | Line dry, avoid high heat | Never directly on the print |
| DTG | Cold, inside out | Line dry | Inside out, low heat |
| Sublimation | Normal wash — the dye is in the fibre | Any | Safe, the print has no surface layer |
| Vinyl | Cold, inside out | Line dry, no tumble | Never over the vinyl |
The four rules that cover almost everything
Wash cold. Heat is what breaks down print adhesion and fades dye. Thirty degrees or below will not shorten the life of any decoration we produce.
Turn it inside out. This is the single most effective thing you can do: it stops the printed face abrading against the drum and against other garments for the whole cycle.
Skip the tumble dryer. Line drying costs nothing and removes the main cause of cracked vinyl and lifted transfers. If you must tumble, use the lowest heat.
No bleach, no fabric softener. Bleach attacks the print. Softener leaves a coating that makes cotton less absorbent and, over time, dulls printed colour.
First wash
Leave new decorated garments 24 hours before the first wash. Adhesives and inks continue curing after they leave the press, and a wash inside that window is the most common cause of an early failure.
Cotton will shrink slightly on the first wash — usually 3 to 5 per cent — which is normal and accounted for in our patterns. Washing cold minimises it.
Frequently asked questions
- How long should a print last?
- Properly cared for, longer than the garment. Prints usually fail because of heat — hot washes and tumble drying — rather than age.
- Can I iron over a print?
- No, on any method except sublimation. Turn the garment inside out and iron the reverse, or press around the design.
- What about industrial laundering for uniforms?
- Tell us at quote stage. Industrial wash cycles are far harsher than domestic ones, and we will specify decoration that survives them — usually embroidery rather than print.
- Why does my sublimated shirt need no special care?
- Because the dye is bonded into the fibre rather than sitting on top of it. There is no surface layer to crack, peel or lift, so it washes like an undecorated garment.
- Will the colour fade?
- Slowly, as with any garment. Washing cold and drying out of direct sun makes the largest difference.
Ordering for a workplace?
Tell us how the garments will be laundered and we will specify decoration that survives it.
Get a quote