# Sleeve folds/creases



## Daki (Dec 10, 2007)

Hello, I wanted to get the opinion of people on here who have done oversize tshirt prints or dye sublimation, however you decide to call it... I wanted to see if these sleeve creases/folds are common.. I have a clothing line and the sleeves are a big part of the shirt design and I cant do anything with them with creases this big.. especially when for the first order of 30 shirts, 8 had folds like these... so let me hear your opinion if this is very common of what you think..

thanks


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## ZO6 KLR (Jan 8, 2013)

Four ways you can go about it.

(1) Experiment with different shirt manufacturers to see which will lie the flattest. Generally, these will be boxlike and less flattering than a standard cut tee.

(2) Fade the design to the edges of the shirt while not hitting the edge.

(3) When designing the artwork, incorporate the design "flaws" in with your design, such as distress marks, lightning, cracks, tribal, etc.

(4) Cut and sew.


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## Max Dos (Aug 28, 2010)

Seems to me that your most noticeable white spots are not caused by the seams, but from accidental folding while positioning the print. The seams on the sleeves and shoulder look OK.

You just have to be extra careful not to fold any edge of the shirt when laying the plotter print. ¿Does your press have a sliding tray?

A slim cardboard cut out in the shape of the shirt may help. I don't do pre-made shirts, so I'm not sure. Members like SK Dave and D Evo, might chime in with much more authority than myself.

Good luck!


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## D.Evo. (Mar 31, 2006)

+1 to what Mark said.

To add to it - colour voids and print imperfections under arms and within seams are common. 
Some people take more care to minimise them than others. Some of the creases and folded over sleeves you are showing as example could be avoided (1,3) and some of them could be minimised (2,4,5) by more careful positioning of the blank shirt.


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## Daki (Dec 10, 2007)

Yea Dave is who I went with on these.. And that is exactly what it is, folds made on sleeves.. The seams are perfect, no mistakes at all.. I asked Dave if on future shirts they could try to see if the shirt is laid out flat but I guess he can't do that.. When I asked if that's normal for the folds that big to be on sleeves his exact words were "Yes all normal. 99% of the time"

Just seeing if that's how everyone's sublimation is or if I should try my options.. Have a request for 100 shirts for a store of 3 different designs so I don't know how many id need to order to get 100 good looking ones.


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## Fulldye1 (Dec 7, 2011)

That is very common in all over print. But never the less this is a common issue on all over print. To avoid this you would need to go with Cut & Sew Full Dye Sublimation. The job on hand was not the problem, who ever did it worked with what they had and looks common for an all over print. Over all its a good shirt. Attached is a sample of a full dye sub shirt with no voids. Cut & Sew


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## JaeAmera (Dec 25, 2006)

Hmmm...under arm areas and some seam areas are common. The main sleeve areas are not. 

1. You need to prep the shirt better.
2. Align your transfer without dragging on the shirt during placement.
or 
3. You simply need to use another shirt. Remember, these shirts are not made with tight measurement tolerances and a small amounts of extra fabric (too big or too small) in the sewing process can be an 'Achilles Gremlin' when trying to get a shirt to lay flat. Just put it to the side and pick up another. If it fights you during pre-prep, its probably going to void when pressed.

Voids of color with full-coverage imaging are normal (many times desired, at least by many of our clients) but extreme voids in the main areas (sleeves , chest, back) are not normal and many times will not be accepted.

Jae


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## Riderz Ready (Sep 18, 2008)

Jae hit it on the head. Not only does the brand of shirt matter but each individual shirt matters.

The results you show are pretty poor but then again it depends on what expectations the vendor set with you, especially on a solid print such as yours. If the vendor claimed their process/shirt insures very little voids ask for your money back. If the vendor explained that with a solid print and their shirts that you would get significant voids then your expectations should be such.

In short, regardless what vendors claim, you can not get a professional print on premade shirts when you have a solid design such as yours.


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## Daki (Dec 10, 2007)

Thanks everyone for the opinions.. helps alot.. 22 out of 30 shirts had no problems as big as these 8 did, so I just think that if the sleeves are checked to make sure they're not folded before putting the print on it could be avoided..


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## sid (Oct 6, 2007)

We would never ship a shirt to a wholesale customer like those in your sample shots. Take the time to adjust each shirt before you press. Check the way the shirt lays and make adjustments and even a little ironing to get the shirt to lay as flat as possible. You can find shirts out there that will lay flatter than others and are more suitable for "all over designs".


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## Uncle Remus (Jan 13, 2013)

That appears to be poor quality control if this was outsourced, if this was done in-house then poor prep work prior to pressing.

As others have said voids are almost impossible to avoid unless doing cut-n-sew, but these are some big voids & not in the normal places voids are normally found.


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