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Questions
Everything people ask.
If it is not here, call the shop. We would rather answer a question for free than have somebody guess and order the wrong thing.
How much does t-shirt printing cost in Rhode Island?
Flat rates start at $225 for 20 shirts in one color and include the shirts, screens, setup, ink and labour. Pricing scales for 50 and 100 shirts and up to four colors across three shirt options: Gildan, American Apparel and Comfort Colors. Custom runs take a 50% deposit up front with the balance due at pickup.
See the full rate card, or price your own run.
Is there a minimum order for custom shirts?
No minimum. Twenty shirts is a normal order here. The published rates cover 20, 50 and 100 shirts, and in-between or larger quantities are quoted off the same rates rather than bumped to the next tier.
How fast is your turnaround?
Typically 5 to 7 business days after your proof is approved and the order is confirmed. The clock starts at approval rather than at the first phone call, because that is when blanks get ordered and screens get burned. If you need shirts for a specific date, tell us the date and we will tell you the last day artwork can land.
Where is 25A Print Shop and how do I get my order?
We are at 25A Carrington St. in Lincoln, Rhode Island, serving all of Rhode Island and southeastern Massachusetts. Every order is will-call pickup at the shop, and we email you as soon as your run is counted, folded and boxed.
Can you match my exact brand color?
Yes. Give us a Pantone number or a hex code and we mix ink to it, checking each mix against the target with CIEDE2000, the industry standard for measuring color difference, rather than judging it by eye. That means your brand color prints as your brand color, and because the recipe is logged against your job, a reprint months later still matches.
What counts as a color?
Each color needs its own screen, and each print location needs its own screen too. A one-color front plus a one-color back is a two-screen job, not a one-screen job. Printing a light color onto a dark shirt usually needs a white underbase beneath it, which is another screen. We will tell you before it turns into a surprise on the quote.
What file do you need from me?
Vector is best: .ai, .eps, .pdf or .svg with the text converted to outlines. A PNG or PSD at 300 DPI at the size it will actually print, on a transparent background, is also fine. We accept screenshots, images saved off Instagram or a website, and photos of a design too — low-quality files just mean a quoted redraw before we can print them.
Full specs and a Canva walkthrough are on the artwork page.
What is the artwork prep charge?
If a file needs cleanup, resizing, redrawing or color separation before it can go to screen, that is $65/hr with a 30-minute minimum. Most jobs need none. You always get the prep quoted before we start, so it never appears on an invoice you did not agree to.
Can I print more than four colors?
Yes, it is just off the published rate card. Designs over four colors, and photographic or gradient artwork that needs halftone separation, get quoted by hand. Send it over and we will look at it.
Do I have to pay up front?
Custom runs take a 50% deposit with the balance due at pickup. The deposit buys the blank shirts and screen materials, which is what lets your job get ordered the day you approve it. A preorder storefront is the exception and costs nothing up front at all, because prepaid orders fund the run.
More on how preorders work.
What is a preorder storefront?
A hosted page with your artwork, sizes and pricing on it. Your buyers prepay during a set window, a live goal meter shows progress, and when the window closes we print exactly what sold in exactly the sizes that sold. You pay nothing up front and end up with no leftover inventory.
Can I supply my own blank shirts?
Sometimes, and it is worth a conversation before you order anything. We cannot warranty a garment we did not buy, and unusual fabrics behave differently through a cure. Call the shop before you commit to a pallet of something.
Do you ship orders?
Every order is will-call pickup at the shop in Lincoln. If shipping is the only thing that will work for you, call and ask rather than assuming either way.
Will the print crack or wash off?
Not if it is cured properly. Plastisol has to reach a specific temperature all the way through the ink film, and we measure that rather than guessing at it. Under-cured ink looks perfect on day one and comes off on the second wash, which is the most common reason a cheap print fails.