Making Shirt Happen!
Threadbare Print House is a water-based screen printing shop in Eugene, Oregon.
Threadbare Print House provides high quality screen printing with an emphasis on customer service and environmental responsibility. With a belief in giving back and strong roots in our local community, Threadbare has grown from a garage operation to a full service screen printing shop catering to the needs of creative businesses. Threadbare makes more than just T-shirts, we make relationships that last a lifetime.
We specialize in offering the best that the blank T-shirt industry has to offer in both fit and sustainability.
Request a Quote for any of our Screen Printing Services
We have a minimum order of 24 garments per design. However during peak busy seasons the minimum can be 48.
Screen Printing FAQ’s
How It Works: A Screen Printing Order In 6 Easy Steps
Questions Regarding Our Screen Printing Policies & Procedures
Requirements for Print Ready Artwork
If you are providing your own artwork, please consider these specs. If you have any questions, you can email artwork@threadbarepress.com.
- Vector artwork is our preference (either .ai or .eps). Without it, there may be a $30 design fee.
- If you are providing raster images (.psd .jpg. tif,. etc), please make sure that your images are 300dpi. If your file is more than one color, please keep colors on separate layers. Design your artwork at the actual print size.
- Minimum line width 1pt. (at size)
- Minimum point size for readable type is 12pt.
- We can accommodate standard size prints (13″x15″), over size prints (15″x20″) and all-over printing (38″x40″)
- If providing a vector image, text should be converted to outline mode and imbedded images should be included in the file.
- If your artwork does not meet the specs, we offer graphic design work for $60/hour.
- Pantone Uncoated color numbers are encouraged.
- We will not reproduce your artwork without your consent. We also cannot print anyone else’s intellectual, copyrighted, or trademarked property without consent.
Minimum Requirements of your Screen Printining Order
Our minimum is 24 garments per design. We can accommodate up to two different styles (mens/womens, or tshirts/hoodies) of garments at this quantity. There is an additional $15 fee for ink color changes. Generally we provide the garments, but if you provide your own please speak with us beforehand. And please provide extras for testing/misprints.
Screen Printing Payments
Turnaround time begins after payment in full. We accept cash, checks, and credit cards. Credit cards can be paid through you invoice.
Screen Printing Cancellations
Once artwork is approved, we do not accept cancellations. Prior to artwork approval, orders are subject to a 20% cancellation fee.
Screen Printing Turnaround Time
Turnaround time starts when mockups are approved and the order is paid in full. We aim to turn jobs around in 10-14 business days. There is a $50 rush fee for rush orders. For rush orders, we require an allowance for misprints so please order extra. Turnaround time does not include shipping time.
We cannot be responsible for out of stock items from the manufacturer. If a suitable replacement cannot be found, we will credit your account. We do not offer refunds.
Screen Printing T-Shirts
We believe we offer you the best quality screen print available on the market. That being said, the T-shirt matters. We offer many different brands of shirts at a range of costs, including: Next Level, Gildan, Bella Canvas, ASColour, American Apparel, Royal Apparel, etc. If you would like us to direct you to the industry’s best, we can.
The type of fabric you choose for your garment is not only important for the feel and look, it can make a big difference to the way it prints too. Combed cotton fabrics are designed specifically to screen print better than basic carded or uncombed cotton. Combed cotton has more of the fiber removed in the knitting process, which means printing inks sit much more cleanly on the face of the shirt after printing.
We are not responsible for the garment fit if the order has been placed, approved, printed, and received.
Screen Printing Supply Chain
Stock levels vary frequently and we cannot guarantee style and size stock until the time we go to place the order. When we are ordering, if there are stock issues our policy is to replace the item with another item that most closely matches it. Only in extreme cases can we go back to the customer to discuss replacement options.
Washing Instruction for Screen Printed Garments
These are T-shirts with a kickass print on them, no special instructions are needed besides what is listed from the manufacturer.
Test Prints
Misprints
We have extremely talented print makers here and we aim to never make mistakes. But as humans operating a hand pulled art form, occasionally it happens. If this happens to your order, we will credit the difference of the lost items to your next order. We cannot do an additional print run for the lost shirts so we suggest ordering extra in each size.
If you are supplying goods for printing, we request that you include 5% extra in each size. Also, if you are supplying your own goods and we misprint one, we cannot be responsible for replacing it.
We try our best to catch any manufacturer defects on T-shirts before printing. After printing, we cannot return the item and we can’t be responsible for any manufacturer defects. This is somewhat rare but part of the T-shirt business and we can’t replace these items.
Water Based Screen Printing
We print exclusively with water based inks. These inks are superior in their ability to create soft, ever-lasting prints. A minimal amount of fading is expected after the first wash. After that, your print will outlast the life of your garment. We also offer garment-dye printing (also known as discharge inks). These inks use a form of bleach to dye the fibers of your shirt with your design. Both water based inks and garment dye inks absorb into the fibers of the shirts so print color can be somewhat unpredictable depending on the shirt color and brand and we cannot guarantee exact Pantone matches.
Since water based and discharge inks actually dye fabric and are not plastic inks sitting on top of the shirt, we will not be responsible for fading or weathering of goods. A small amount of wash down is expected after the first wash. We pride ourselves in being exceptional water based printers and try to ensure the highest quality in each print.
Screen Printing for the Holidays
The holidays are a busy time. And weather can cause shipping delays. Many of our customers want their merch on the shelves for the shopping season and we will do our best to accommodate that. Starting in November, the turnaround time is three weeks. Please get orders in early so holiday shoppers can purchase your beautiful swag!
Requirements for Print Ready Artwork
If you are providing your own artwork, please consider these specs. If you have any questions, you can email artwork@threadbarepress.com.
- Vector artwork is our preference (either .ai or .eps). Without it, there may be a $30 design fee.
- If you are providing raster images (.psd .jpg. tif,. etc), please make sure that your images are 300dpi. If your file is more than one color, please keep colors on separate layers. Design your artwork at the actual print size.
- Minimum line width 1pt. (at size)
- Minimum point size for readable type is 12pt.
- We can accommodate standard size prints (13″x15″), over size prints (15″x20″) and all-over printing (38″x40″)
- If providing a vector image, text should be converted to outline mode and imbedded images should be included in the file.
- If your artwork does not meet the specs, we offer graphic design work for $60/hour.
- Pantone Uncoated color numbers are encouraged.
- We will not reproduce your artwork without your consent. We also cannot print anyone else’s intellectual, copyrighted, or trademarked property without consent.
Minimum Requirements of your Screen Printining Order
Our minimum is 24 garments per design. There is an additional $10 fee for ink color changes. We can accommodate up to two different styles (mens/womens, or tshirts/hoodies) of garments at this quantity. Generally we provide the garments, but if you provide your own please speak with us beforehand. And please provide extras for testing/misprints.
Screen Printing Payments
Turnaround time begins after payment in full. We accept cash, checks, and credit cards. Credit cards can be paid through you invoice.
Screen Printing Cancellations
Once artwork is approved, we do not accept cancellations. Prior to artwork approval, orders are subject to a 20% cancellation fee.
Screen Printing Turnaround Time
Turnaround time starts when mockups are approved and the order is paid in full. We aim to turn jobs around in 10-14 business days. There is a $50 rush fee for rush orders. For rush orders, we require an allowance for misprints so please order extra. Turnaround time does not include shipping time.
We cannot be responsible for out of stock items from the manufacturer. If a suitable replacement cannot be found, we will credit your account. We do not offer refunds.
Screen Printing T-Shirts
We believe we offer you the best quality screen print available on the market. That being said, the T-shirt matters. We offer many different brands of shirts at a range of costs, including: Next Level, Gildan, Bella Canvas, ASColour, American Apparel, Royal Apparel, etc. If you would like us to direct you to the industry’s best, we can.
The type of fabric you choose for your garment is not only important for the feel and look, it can make a big difference to the way it prints too. Combed cotton fabrics are designed specifically to screen print better than basic carded or uncombed cotton. Combed cotton has more of the fiber removed in the knitting process, which means printing inks sit much more cleanly on the face of the shirt after printing.
We are not responsible for the garment fit if the order has been placed, approved, printed, and received.
Screen Printing Supply Chain
Stock levels vary frequently and we cannot guarantee style and size stock until the time we go to place the order. When we are ordering, if there are stock issues our policy is to replace the item with another item that most closely matches it. Only in extreme cases can we go back to the customer to discuss replacement options.
Washing Instruction for Screen Printed Garments
These are T-shirts with a kickass print on them, no special instructions are needed besides what is listed from the manufacturer.
Test Prints
Misprints
We have extremely talented print makers here and we aim to never make mistakes. But as humans operating a hand pulled art form, occasionally it happens. If this happens to your order, we will credit the difference of the lost items to your next order. We cannot do an additional print run for the lost shirts so we suggest ordering extra in each size.
If you are supplying goods for printing, we request that you include 5% extra in each size. Also, if you are supplying your own goods and we misprint one, we cannot be responsible for replacing it.
We try our best to catch any manufacturer defects on T-shirts before printing. After printing, we cannot return the item and we can’t be responsible for any manufacturer defects. This is somewhat rare but part of the T-shirt business and we can’t replace these items.
Water Based Screen Printing
We print exclusively with water based inks. These inks are superior in their ability to create soft, ever-lasting prints. A minimal amount of fading is expected after the first wash. After that, your print will outlast the life of your garment. We also offer garment-dye printing (also known as discharge inks). These inks use a form of bleach to dye the fibers of your shirt with your design. Both water based inks and garment dye inks absorb into the fibers of the shirts so print color can be somewhat unpredictable depending on the shirt color and brand and we cannot guarantee exact Pantone matches.
Since water based and discharge inks actually dye fabric and are not plastic inks sitting on top of the shirt, we will not be responsible for fading or weathering of goods. A small amount of wash down is expected after the first wash. We pride ourselves in being exceptional water based printers and try to ensure the highest quality in each print.
Screen Printing for the Holidays
The holidays are a busy time. And weather can cause shipping delays. Many of our customers want their merch on the shelves for the shopping season and we will do our best to accommodate that. Starting in November, the turnaround time is three weeks. Please get orders in early so holiday shoppers can purchase your beautiful swag!
Eco Friendly, Environmentally Sustainable Screen Printing Practices
Based In Eugene, Oregon
Water Based Inks: Replacing Plastisol
Plastisol inks are used in the majority of screen printing shops around the globe. These inks contain phthalates which function to transform the naturally hard plastic into a soft, malleable one. These phthalates are released into the ecosystem during the printing and curing process, resulting in cumulative harm to the environment and, potentially, even to human health.
In addition to the harmful content, plastisol also doesn’t dissolve with water. Harmful chemicals must be used to strip the plastisol from the screen, and these chemicals are often-times sent down the sink.
Considering the sources and energy used to manufacture inks, water-based ink comes out ahead of plastisol. Water-based ink on a shirt is also recyclable, making water-based inks even more eco-friendly than plastisol. In addition, water-based inks have significantly less plastic content relative to plastisol and contain zero phthalates, which reduces the overall usage and disposal of chemicals and plastic fibers. Here at Threadbare, we only purchase and use water-based inks. One brand of water-based ink, in particular, is Green Galaxy, and it’s definitely our personal favorite!
Links to the Info Used in This Section
Eco Friendly Screens
For the bulk of Threadbare’s beginnings, our screens have been coated and broken down with chemicals. While we’ve always tried our best to store and reuse burned screens to reduce our chemical usage, it hasn’t been possible to entirely step away from these chemicals until very recently. With new innovations, we’re officially able to get designs onto screens without the use of chemicals. Ryonet’s Eco Screens (see photo below) work by providing a metal base and mesh panels which are woven into a plastic locking strip. This locking strip replaces glues, ensuring that the mechanism used to hold the mesh on the frame won’t break down over time. Overall, the mesh used for these screens has more longevity.
Today we’re focusing on the recent innovations that have allowed us to burn designs onto screens in a more sustainable manner.
86’ing Aerosol Spray Adhesives
Aerosol sprays contain chemicals that are carcinogenic and toxic to our bodies as well as our environment. To limit our usage of these harmful products, we’ve stepped away from spray adhesives commonly used to secure garments onto the platen. In place of these, our printers apply dual-tack platen tape to the platens, which is a platen tape that’s sticky on both sides to hold the shirt in place without having to apply spray adhesives. The adhesive of this dual-tack tape can be reactivated by wiping it down with a wet sponge – only water is necessary, no soap!
Overall this platen tape is a game changer as it not only allows us to ditch the spray adhesives, but it has also limited the amount of platen tape we dispose of as the fuzz from garments can be scrubbed away with a damp sponge, allowing us to reuse this tape for much longer.
Earth Day Every Day!
While sustainability and environmentalism should permeate our day-to-day practices, on Earth Day many organizations, companies, and even individuals make great strides to reduce their impact on our ecosystems.
At Threadbare, we prefer to say “Earth Day Everyday” whenever April 22nd rolls around. That being said, we still like to do something extra special on Earth Day!
This year, while rocking some Allmade tees, we picked up litter from the streets and alleyways that surround our shop. This excursion was not only a positive move (when is picking up litter not a nice thing to do?) but it also serves as a way for us to encourage the business owners in our local community of Downtown Eugene to task themselves and their employees with being more sustainably-minded.
Our clean-up excursion was inspired by Allmade’s Earth Day Pledge for themselves, and other businesses who signed up, to clean up 10 garbage bags of trash.
Organic Garments & Apparel
Every business today should make an effort to implement sustainable practices. In the world we are living in, there is a corporate responsibility as well as a consumer demand for goods produced in a way that creates a lighter impact. While no one can deny that our industry is guilty of having a harmful effect on the environment (the fashion industry is, after all, the second-highest polluting industry in the world behind oil) our shop has been working at finding solutions to sustainable T-shirt printing for the last 10 years.
We choose to seek out apparel brands that are making strides towards reducing water consumption and paying livable wages. We start by educating ourselves and our customers on what we know of apparel brands and being transparent with customers about the garments they are buying.
We try to only show our customers brands that are transparent about manufacturing, environmental standards, and labor practices. We explain the benefit of paying a little more for garments manufactured with less water, or with better working conditions. Our showroom is organized with sustainability in mind since lots of buyers want T-shirts made from organic cotton or recycled materials. While not all clients want an eco-friendly shirt, we introduce those products, along with sustainable T-shirt printing, as an option.
We’ve also organized all of this information into a PDF with visuals. This helps educate our clients on each supplier’s practices, how they make their products, and the materials they source.
Links to environmentally conscious and ethical wholesale brands:
Implementing A T-Shirt Recycling Program
In this industry, there’s no such thing as perfect. Everyone makes mistakes! That being said, our misprints don’t get the same treatment as many other shops.
Instead of sending our misprinted garments into the landfill, we reuse every single misprinted tee until there are absolutely no other ways to put it to use. From re-utilizing these misprints for test-prints, donating the misprinted garments to artists/schools for their own projects, cutting these garments up and using them as cleaning rags, or even taking them home and making rugs! Ultimately, we ensure that nothing goes into a trash can unless it’s entirely un-repurposable. This not only minimizes our waste, but it also saves us money on cleaning rags and test-print sheets.
A T-shirt rug made by yours truly using TBPH misprints and other scrap fabrics
One issue printers/embroiderers may encounter with this method is that some customers would prefer that their logos don’t end up being used in ways that contradict their company values. This is entirely understandable! For this reason, we make sure that we cover these logos with black ink (or cut them out of the fabric) before sending the missprint to other groups/artists for repurposing.
Cool, Artsy Projects for Misprints and Scrap Fabric:
Make a Rug out of Fabric Scraps
Sustainable Shipping: Methods & Supplies
One area we’ve dedicated time to make more sustainable is our shipping department. Given the amount of plastics that are commonly used in this department, this is necessary to address for most, if not all, industries.
An example of the waste produced in shipping is one-use plastic mailers and plastic packaging (e..g bubble wrap). These materials are frequently sent off to the landfill even though they could have been reused. Instead of contributing to this, we’ve been saving each and every one of the paper/plastic mailers we receive as well as the plastic bags used to package garments from some of our wholesale distributors for the last couple years. So far, these efforts have not only limited the amount of waste we produce, but it’s also saved us money along the way as we don’t have to purchase as many mailers or packaging materials.
When we must purchase mailers and other shipping supplies, we always ensure we’re buying products that are recyclable and/or made with recycled materials.
Here’s a master list of our methods and materials for sustainable shipping:
Reuse all mailers, boxes, etc. sent to us (unless they’re unusable due to large holes or other issues) – To accomplish this, it’s important that all employees are opening packages carefully as to maintain the quality of these materials. This ensures we, and our customers, have the option to reuse them!
Refilling Jumbo Markers (and other pens) – The jumbo markers we use to label the boxes holding customers’ orders are refillable, so we’ve been purchasing the ink refills instead of new markers. This can also be applied to other pens within your office/shop.
Re-using the plastic packaging that’s sent to us – Some companies individually wrap things in plastic before putting them into a box. While it frustrates us to see large companies using plastic willy-nilly, it makes things a little better if we reuse these bags for our own shipping/packaging purposes. So far, these little plastic bags have come in handy for mask orders as well as other small items like patches, stickers, etc.
Recycled-Content Mailers – Sourcing products that are made with mostly (or entirely) recycled/repurposed materials is a step in the right direction. A brand we enjoy using is EcoEnclose – they’re the leader in sustainable packaging, offering many different eco-friendly packaging options (products with 100% recycled content, products that are recyclable/compostable/biodegradable, Plastic-free products, etc.) Their products don’t break the bank, either!
EcoEnclose sends you these awesome (and free) cards to include in your shipments
Compostable Mailers – Ideal for those who know their customer base is likely to compost the mailers! Otherwise, these mailers won’t reduce your ecological impact considering new materials (plants and veggies) are required to make them and, if they’re thrown away rather than composted, they’ll ultimately lead to relatively equal amounts of wasted materials/energy. If you’re interested, a compostable mailer we know of is NoIssue’s. Their mailers are made from a combination of a bio-based polymer (PBAT) which is compostable, and PLA which is made up of plant materials such as regular wheat straw and field corn. This company’s use of PLA makes up barely 0.05% of the annual global corn crop, making it a significantly low-impact resource!
Environmentally Conscious, Ethical Brands for Office Supplies
For many businesses, big or small, many of the run-of-the-mill office supplies are purchased without a second thought. Most of the time, price is a contributing factor. This pattern not only contributes to much of the plastic waste filling our landfills, but also to massive corporations that have been at the forefront of large-scale environmental destruction for the last 50+ years and increase this damage day by day.
At Threadbare, we think one of the best ways to make an impact is to purchase as much of our products and supplies from environmentally-conscious, ethical brands. While this initially takes time and can cost a little more money, this investment is something that each and every business should already be making in order to reduce our ecological impact.
To save you some time and headaches, we’ve compiled a list of our favorite brands/products that not only align with our personal mission of ethical sustainability, but also provide quality products at manageable prices.
Office Depot’s GreenerOffice™ – This is the most budget-friendly option. We mainly use Office Depot for our printer paper needs since they offer many recycled-content and chlorine-free options. For those who are trying to purchase strictly from sustainable and ethical companies/manufacturers, some investigative work may be necessary as large companies like Office Depot don’t often confirm that the products they market as eco-friendly are, in fact, sustainably and ethically produced.
BlueLand – This is a great company making eco-friendly cleaning products that don’t break the bank! Additionally, BlueLand is Cradle to Cradle Certified®. This certification is a globally-recognized measure of safer, more sustainable products that have positive impacts on people and the planet.
Marley’s Monsters – An awesome, local business in Eugene, Oregon that makes eco-friendly alternatives to paper towels, napkins, straws, utensils, and even household cleaning supplies! While the pricing isn’t as low as some of the online-based eco-friendly brands within this list, this is because all of the fabric and wood items sold by Marley’s Monsters are homemade (and high quality, as well!)
Who Gives A Crap – This company is one of our personal favorites. As a subscriber, you can get 100% recycled content TP (as well as a 100% bamboo option) that is ethically sourced and relatively budget-friendly at ~$1 per roll. They also offer “Forest-Friendly” tissue paper and paper-towels made with bamboo and sugarcane.
Alternatively, if DIY suits you better, there are tons of ingredients that can be used to make your own eco-friendly cleaning products, and you may already have some of these laying around! Here’s a blog post from EarthEasy that lists all of the natural ingredients that can be used to make safer cleaning products. It also lists plenty of different recipes for nearly every single cleaning task one could possibly imagine.
Water Based Inks: Replacing Plastisol
Plastisol inks are used in the majority of screen printing shops around the globe. These inks contain phthalates which function to transform the naturally hard plastic into a soft, malleable one. These phthalates are released into the ecosystem during the printing and curing process, resulting in cumulative harm to the environment and, potentially, even to human health.
In addition to the harmful content, plastisol also doesn’t dissolve with water. Harmful chemicals must be used to strip the plastisol from the screen, and these chemicals are often-times sent down the sink.
Considering the sources and energy used to manufacture inks, water-based ink comes out ahead of plastisol. Water-based ink on a shirt is also recyclable, making water-based inks even more eco-friendly than plastisol. In addition, water-based inks have significantly less plastic content relative to plastisol and contain zero phthalates, which reduces the overall usage and disposal of chemicals and plastic fibers. Here at Threadbare, we only purchase and use water-based inks. One brand of water-based ink, in particular, is Green Galaxy, and it’s definitely our personal favorite!
Links to the Info Used in This Section
Eco Freindly Screens
For the bulk of Threadbare’s beginnings, our screens have been coated and broken down with chemicals. While we’ve always tried our best to store and reuse burned screens to reduce our chemical usage, it hasn’t been possible to entirely step away from these chemicals until very recently. With new innovations, we’re officially able to get designs onto screens without the use of chemicals. Ryonet’s Eco Screens (see photo below) work by providing a metal base and mesh panels which are woven into a plastic locking strip. This locking strip replaces glues, ensuring that the mechanism used to hold the mesh on the frame won’t break down over time. Overall, the mesh used for these screens has more longevity.
Today we’re focusing on the recent innovations that have allowed us to burn designs onto screens in a more sustainable manner.
86’ing Aerosol Spray Adhesives
Aerosol sprays contain chemicals that are carcinogenic and toxic to our bodies as well as our environment. To limit our usage of these harmful products, we’ve stepped away from spray adhesives commonly used to secure garments onto the platen. In place of these, our printers apply dual-tack platen tape to the platens, which is a platen tape that’s sticky on both sides to hold the shirt in place without having to apply spray adhesives. The adhesive of this dual-tack tape can be reactivated by wiping it down with a wet sponge – only water is necessary, no soap!
Overall this platen tape is a game changer as it not only allows us to ditch the spray adhesives, but it has also limited the amount of platen tape we dispose of as the fuzz from garments can be scrubbed away with a damp sponge, allowing us to reuse this tape for much longer.
Earth Day Every Day!
While sustainability and environmentalism should permeate our day-to-day practices, on Earth Day many organizations, companies, and even individuals make great strides to reduce their impact on our ecosystems.
At Threadbare, we prefer to say “Earth Day Everyday” whenever April 22nd rolls around. That being said, we still like to do something extra special on Earth Day!
This year, while rocking some Allmade tees, we picked up litter from the streets and alleyways that surround our shop. This excursion was not only a positive move (when is picking up litter not a nice thing to do?) but it also serves as a way for us to encourage the business owners in our local community of Downtown Eugene to task themselves and their employees with being more sustainably-minded.
Our clean-up excursion was inspired by Allmade’s Earth Day Pledge for themselves, and other businesses who signed up, to clean up 10 garbage bags of trash.
Organic Garments & Apparel
Every business today should make an effort to implement sustainable practices. In the world we are living in, there is a corporate responsibility as well as a consumer demand for goods produced in a way that creates a lighter impact. While no one can deny that our industry is guilty of having a harmful effect on the environment (the fashion industry is, after all, the second-highest polluting industry in the world behind oil) our shop has been working at finding solutions to sustainable T-shirt printing for the last 10 years.
We choose to seek out apparel brands that are making strides towards reducing water consumption and paying livable wages. We start by educating ourselves and our customers on what we know of apparel brands and being transparent with customers about the garments they are buying.
We try to only show our customers brands that are transparent about manufacturing, environmental standards, and labor practices. We explain the benefit of paying a little more for garments manufactured with less water, or with better working conditions. Our showroom is organized with sustainability in mind since lots of buyers want T-shirts made from organic cotton or recycled materials. While not all clients want an eco-friendly shirt, we introduce those products, along with sustainable T-shirt printing, as an option.
We’ve also organized all of this information into a PDF with visuals. This helps educate our clients on each supplier’s practices, how they make their products, and the materials they source.
Links to environmentally conscious and ethical wholesale brands:
Implementing A T-Shirt Recycling Program
In this industry, there’s no such thing as perfect. Everyone makes mistakes! That being said, our misprints don’t get the same treatment as many other shops.
Instead of sending our misprinted garments into the landfill, we reuse every single misprinted tee until there are absolutely no other ways to put it to use. From re-utilizing these misprints for test-prints, donating the misprinted garments to artists/schools for their own projects, cutting these garments up and using them as cleaning rags, or even taking them home and making rugs! Ultimately, we ensure that nothing goes into a trash can unless it’s entirely un-repurposable. This not only minimizes our waste, but it also saves us money on cleaning rags and test-print sheets.
A T-shirt rug made by yours truly using TBPH misprints and other scrap fabrics
One issue printers/embroiderers may encounter with this method is that some customers would prefer that their logos don’t end up being used in ways that contradict their company values. This is entirely understandable! For this reason, we make sure that we cover these logos with black ink (or cut them out of the fabric) before sending the missprint to other groups/artists for repurposing.
Cool, Artsy Projects for Misprints and Scrap Fabric:
Make a Rug out of Fabric Scraps
Sustainable Shipping: Methods & Supplies
One area we’ve dedicated time to make more sustainable is our shipping department. Given the amount of plastics that are commonly used in this department, this is necessary to address for most, if not all, industries.
An example of the waste produced in shipping is one-use plastic mailers and plastic packaging (e..g bubble wrap). These materials are frequently sent off to the landfill even though they could have been reused. Instead of contributing to this, we’ve been saving each and every one of the paper/plastic mailers we receive as well as the plastic bags used to package garments from some of our wholesale distributors for the last couple years. So far, these efforts have not only limited the amount of waste we produce, but it’s also saved us money along the way as we don’t have to purchase as many mailers or packaging materials.
When we must purchase mailers and other shipping supplies, we always ensure we’re buying products that are recyclable and/or made with recycled materials.
Here’s a master list of our methods and materials for sustainable shipping:
Reuse all mailers, boxes, etc. sent to us (unless they’re unusable due to large holes or other issues) – To accomplish this, it’s important that all employees are opening packages carefully as to maintain the quality of these materials. This ensures we, and our customers, have the option to reuse them!
Refilling Jumbo Markers (and other pens) – The jumbo markers we use to label the boxes holding customers’ orders are refillable, so we’ve been purchasing the ink refills instead of new markers. This can also be applied to other pens within your office/shop.
Re-using the plastic packaging that’s sent to us – Some companies individually wrap things in plastic before putting them into a box. While it frustrates us to see large companies using plastic willy-nilly, it makes things a little better if we reuse these bags for our own shipping/packaging purposes. So far, these little plastic bags have come in handy for mask orders as well as other small items like patches, stickers, etc.
Recycled-Content Mailers – Sourcing products that are made with mostly (or entirely) recycled/repurposed materials is a step in the right direction. A brand we enjoy using is EcoEnclose – they’re the leader in sustainable packaging, offering many different eco-friendly packaging options (products with 100% recycled content, products that are recyclable/compostable/biodegradable, Plastic-free products, etc.) Their products don’t break the bank, either!
EcoEnclose sends you these awesome (and free) cards to include in your shipments
Compostable Mailers – Ideal for those who know their customer base is likely to compost the mailers! Otherwise, these mailers won’t reduce your ecological impact considering new materials (plants and veggies) are required to make them and, if they’re thrown away rather than composted, they’ll ultimately lead to relatively equal amounts of wasted materials/energy. If you’re interested, a compostable mailer we know of is NoIssue’s. Their mailers are made from a combination of a bio-based polymer (PBAT) which is compostable, and PLA which is made up of plant materials such as regular wheat straw and field corn. This company’s use of PLA makes up barely 0.05% of the annual global corn crop, making it a significantly low-impact resource!
Environmentally Conscious, Ethical Brands for Office Supplies
For many businesses, big or small, many of the run-of-the-mill office supplies are purchased without a second thought. Most of the time, price is a contributing factor. This pattern not only contributes to much of the plastic waste filling our landfills, but also to massive corporations that have been at the forefront of large-scale environmental destruction for the last 50+ years and increase this damage day by day.
At Threadbare, we think one of the best ways to make an impact is to purchase as much of our products and supplies from environmentally-conscious, ethical brands. While this initially takes time and can cost a little more money, this investment is something that each and every business should already be making in order to reduce our ecological impact.
To save you some time and headaches, we’ve compiled a list of our favorite brands/products that not only align with our personal mission of ethical sustainability, but also provide quality products at manageable prices.
Office Depot’s GreenerOffice™ – This is the most budget-friendly option. We mainly use Office Depot for our printer paper needs since they offer many recycled-content and chlorine-free options. For those who are trying to purchase strictly from sustainable and ethical companies/manufacturers, some investigative work may be necessary as large companies like Office Depot don’t often confirm that the products they market as eco-friendly are, in fact, sustainably and ethically produced.
BlueLand – This is a great company making eco-friendly cleaning products that don’t break the bank! Additionally, BlueLand is Cradle to Cradle Certified®. This certification is a globally-recognized measure of safer, more sustainable products that have positive impacts on people and the planet.
Marley’s Monsters – An awesome, local business in Eugene, Oregon that makes eco-friendly alternatives to paper towels, napkins, straws, utensils, and even household cleaning supplies! While the pricing isn’t as low as some of the online-based eco-friendly brands within this list, this is because all of the fabric and wood items sold by Marley’s Monsters are homemade (and high quality, as well!)
Who Gives A Crap – This company is one of our personal favorites. As a subscriber, you can get 100% recycled content TP (as well as a 100% bamboo option) that is ethically sourced and relatively budget-friendly at ~$1 per roll. They also offer “Forest-Friendly” tissue paper and paper-towels made with bamboo and sugarcane.
Alternatively, if DIY suits you better, there are tons of ingredients that can be used to make your own eco-friendly cleaning products, and you may already have some of these laying around! Here’s a blog post from EarthEasy that lists all of the natural ingredients that can be used to make safer cleaning products. It also lists plenty of different recipes for nearly every single cleaning task one could possibly imagine.
Screen Printing Services
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Threadbare Print House & Design Lab
Monday-Friday: 9:00-5:00
Saturday-Sunday: closed
Meetings by Appointment Only
463 Washington Street
Eugene, Oregon
97401