Digital, screen and other printing techniques have been looked upon as competitors to each other for years now. However, in the quest of achieving innovation in printing, machine manufacturers and job workers have realized the great impact amalgamation of different techniques that could have on the aesthetics achieved. Adding value to textile products, printing has now found a new expression through combining many different techniques from hand-screen to technology-driven digital printing and rotary printing services, to create special printing effects with imperative characteristics. With all printing segments improving day by day and working towards controlling the bottlenecks digital, screen and other printing techniques are coming together to offer the best of both worlds reciprocating to the growing demand and prevalence in the best possible ways…
Creating special effects on fabrics at nominal prices has led to innovative combination of two distinctive printing processes. Till now digital and screen printing, owing to their distinctive application areas, tend to target different market niches. But when used together on a fabric, a digital print can be overlapped with a foil or foam print to give a distinct special effect, which is unique and certainly not achievable with either of the technologies by themselves. Digital regarded as expensive and giving highquality printing, aims mostly at boutique buyers and designers, whereas screen printing on the other hand is the pet printing process for exporters and job-workers with bulk orders. Therefore, if used together, the printing effect will be able to provide a higher aesthetic effect at a lower price.
Year on year, the industry has had deep discussions about how digital might overpower screen or screen will overpower digital printing, but we are blindly undermining the fact that printing industry works on innovation, and amalgamation of positives from two printing techniques which can provide better results. Considered as a relatively quick process, screen printing and its extensive use worldwide is based on its ability to offer very strong productivity – an upper hand on digital; but at the same time screen printing is not able to offer new designs as quick as in the case of digital printing. Therefore, the intelligent thing to do is to create a unique digitally printed background effect in less colours, which will make the printing process faster and then the digitally printed fabric can be printed with screen printing effect, be it foam, foil or metallic splatter effect.
Psychedelic prints, idyllic florals and abstract prints are types of prints that many mass retailers are showcasing as a part of their merchandise these days. Whether trousers, blouses, T-shirts, dresses or skirts, this imaging is seen on mostly all types of staples and separates. Abstracts, florals, bold patterns, colour splashes, animal prints or novelty prints are the key trends prevailing in the market to pick up from. Batik effects being superimposed by block printed motifs, and muted tie & dye background being overlaid with screen prints are some of the unique examples.
Digital printing has given creative freedom to designers, allowing limitless colour choice and continuous pattern options without repeat limitations. Screen printing effects like flock printing can be easily incorporated on top of digitally printed backgrounds providing a tactile feel to a 2-D surface. Flocking provides a completely new edge to the design abilities and applications in printing. Available in variety of applications like one colour flock, two colour flock and multi colour flock going up to 16 colours, this printing technique has become a designers’ detail staple. Innovative designs like cover-up methods, iris flock and flock on flock, which facilitate the process of bringing out shaded, ombre and multicolour effects in one application, give out various options to do one design differently.
Over the time, the vastly improved digital printing technologies have allowed designers to innovate while sprucing up their brands. From Akris to Mary Katrantzou, designers have filled their collections using digital prints and mixing them with other printing techniques to create effects of tropical jungle, submerged flowers, landscapes, spirited bows, and wrapping paper. The type of prints that have been created using the digital imaging techniques and screen printing 3-D effects include abstract, submerged, mirror, psychedelic and photographic prints. Christopher Kane, Erdem, Issa, Mary Katrantzou, Moschino, Cheap&Chic, Mulberry, Roksanda Ilincic and Temperley London reinstate water colour effects, tactile texture with prints and mimic jacquard effects in their collections.
Owing to the need and growing mix and match of print mediums, many machine manufacturers have started developing machineries which are a mix of screen and digital printing. Presently, textile printers from Kornit are being launched which are enabled with screen and digital printing together. Different printing techniques are able to give out benefits which are true to their domains, which make manufacturers of garments more inclined towards achieving mixed effects.
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“]Mahavir Kankariya, Director, Kankariya Textile Industries
Digital and rotary both have their specific applications, the business opportunities are seen to be growing in both the segments. This is the reason digital printing is able to create abstract, submerged, mirrored, psychedelic and photographic prints and at the same time screen is able to create 3-D and tactile effects on a 2-D surface giving a depth to the field.
Manish Khurana, MD, Shivam Terene
Since the last one year we are noticing a growth of mixed mediums. Mixing mediums is able to touch production limit on account of reduced printing costs. Mixing mediums is also able to provide a new edge to the already existing separate printing designs, which is not only imparting innovation but is also tapping a new market.
K. Muthusamy, Proprietor, Sindhu Tex Prints/Marvel Flock Printer
Different types of flock printing facilities like one colour, 2 colour, multi colour going up to 8 colours, flock on flock, etc. are very popular on various types of fabrics like cotton, polyester, silks, be it solid or printed, And these printed surfaces are created through any of the other print mediums, i.e. block printing, batik or digital printing. [/tab][/tabs_container]
