Put one design on a lot of shirts and the screen press wins. Put full color, fine detail or a different name on each piece and DTF wins. Plenty of Detroit events want one of each.
Screen printing
- Where it shines: a one- to three-color logo on hundreds of tees, like a sponsor mark through an auto show weekend at Huntington Place.
- What guests see: a printer pulling ink through a screen and curing it right there. It's the part people stop to film.
- The catch: screens get made in Fullerton before the freight ships, so a new design halfway through a show isn't on the table.
DTF transfers
- Where it shines: photo-real art, gradients, small type, and personal touches like a name, a model year or a plant number.
- What guests see: a transfer printed ahead of time, laid on the garment and heat-pressed while they wait.
- The catch: it's pressed, not pulled, so there's less to watch, and the print sits thinner than screen ink.
How it usually splits in Detroit
A supplier expo booth with one logo is a screen job. A Corktown product reveal where every guest wants a name on the sleeve is DTF. A riverfront festival or an arena night in the District often runs both, with the event design on the press and a DTF table for names. Caps go to the hat bar or to embroidery. Look at the live DTF and live screen printing stations, or send your art and we'll pick with you.