# Wet on Wet Coloring Blending Question



## Joe.Moser (Apr 8, 2021)

Unfortunately, I only have a 4 color press and always run into an issue as I try to limit the amount of screens/colors I use per design. Especially when printing on dark garments when I need a white base. When I am doing spot color process, I normally mix the non-primary colors before printing but I want to print wet on wet and have the colors blend on the shirt. Does this work for not processed inks? I normally use either FN-ink or wilflex (all plastisol). 

Take this design for example:.. Red and Yellow make up the nickelodeon slime logo, the skin tone, and the yellow on the ball. If i overlap the yellow and the red (wet on wet), will I get the desired orange?... Or do I need to have an orange spot color and mix the two colors BEFORE printing?.. If I have to go this route, I will also have to make another channel for the tan skin tone which would put me at 5 screens.


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## NoXid (Apr 4, 2011)

No, that won't make orange. You could produce the appearance of orange by interleaving yellow and red dots, but not by overprinting the colors.

Another option is to use opaque inks that don't require an underbase on dark garments, if that would gain you a screen for use with another color.


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## Joe.Moser (Apr 8, 2021)

NoXid said:


> No, that won't make orange. You could produce the appearance of orange by interleaving yellow and red dots, but not by overprinting the colors.
> 
> Another option is to use opaque inks that don't require an underbase on dark garments, if that would gain you a screen for use with another color.


So if I were to add halftone dots by bitmapping or ripping, it would blend the yellow and the red on the shirt? 

Any suggestions for opaque inks that don’t require an under base?


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## NoXid (Apr 4, 2011)

It wouldn't physically blend the inks, it would visually blend them. Same way a black and white halftone looks some shade of gray. The smaller the dots or the farther away the viewer, the more it would look like orange rather than a collection of yellow and red dots. Probably not up to snuff for corporate IP, as they likely specify a specific Pantone #. But I do this sort of thing now and then for my own art to minimize the number of screens.


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