We have now set aside a new category on the MN Designs website that is dedicated solely to political corex yard signs! Making it easier for you to find what you need, and right here in the middle of the political season, our options are easy to navigate through, and turn around time is wondeful!

Our political yard signs are printed digitally with UV ink. They come with single sided and double sided options, and the price covers up to two colors!

To check out our political yard sign options, just click here.

This blog post is the second of a series of three relating to successful color matching for screen printing. The author of this very informative article is Mike Ukena, and he is a part of the Union Ink Company.

COLOR

Color is the most subjective criteria we have to deal with as screen printers. Everyone seems to be an expert. Everyone sees things a little differently, and color varies depending on the light you are viewing it in. There are expensive machines available that will analyze a color sample and tell you exactly what it is so you can match it... the key word here being expensive.

Most people go by eye, and that is most likely what the customer is going to use to approve a sample, so it is still the overriding criteria in any matching system. Plus, some of the man made colors that we use in screen printing throw off the expensive measuring equipment. Fluorescent/neon colors are very difficult for most of the devices to measure, especially when they are a part of an ink mix.

The key in any shop is a system that works and meets your customer's needs. Whether it is an expensive measuring device or a good eye is not as important as being able to hit a color. And, once you have matched a color, can you do it again and again?

MATCHING SYSTEMS

Most of the major manufacturers have at least one Pantone ink matching system. The advantage to these systems is that they allow you to make exactly what you need for an order. With a little practice, most ink departments can cut their waste by over 50% by using a matching system.

Matching systems are not expensive for the printer to use. The base inks are about the same price and pre-mixed inks and the only extra equipment that is required is an accurate weighing scale and a mixer. A smaller printer can be up and running with a matching system starter kit, a scale, and a small mixer for under $1,000. Larger printers can expand upon the base concept by adding dispensing equipment to speed up the process and to allow for larger batches. These systems run as much as $50,000 but are often subsidized by the ink manufacturer in return for a commitment to their ink.

The disadvantage to these systems is they are either opaque or general purpose, but not both. A small shop can do just fine with an opaque system and the use of a soft hand extender base (a product which reduces the opacity of the ink and makes it more economical to use on lighter fabrics) when printing on light garments. A large shop can justify two systems.

Color matching systems are design to allow a printer to mix specific color shades from a group of basic colors. They are most commonly used to simulate specific Pantone Matching System (PMS) colors. The Pantone colors are the most common system used by advertising agencies, corporations, advertising specialty companies and clothing designers to designate the colors that they want to use on a screen printed product.

TWO DISTINCT MATCHING SYSTEM TYPES

There are two types of systems in use. The differ greatly in philosophy. The two types are generally referred to as "finished ink" systems and "base and pigment" systems.

A finished ink system relies on base inks that are in an RFU (ready to use) formulation. These inks can actually be used right out of the bucket as is. If you like the color, it is printable without mixing.

Base/pigment systems rely on ink bases into which the printer adds a series of pigment concentrates to achieve a color. These systems cannot be used right out of the bucket.

WHICH TYPE IS BETTER?

The usual "it depends" fits real nice right here. Both types have their advantages and disadvantages. Finished ink systems are much easier to use and in general, they are a little less expensive overall. They are easier because it is much more difficult to make a big mixing mistake. If you add too much of a specific color, it is not a huge deal to adjust the other colors to the corrected formula. On the other hand, a finished ink system is less flexible in terms of base formulation. You get the base that the ink is made in and that's it. You can adjust opacity downward, you can put in additives to make it into one of several specialty formulations, but overall, it is more restrictive in terms of different specialty inks that can be made from it.

Stay tuned for part three!

Today's digital printing market is increasingly competitive, and when you just do not have the time to waste on extra steps, you need a simplified process that still produces high-quality results. Textile printing, for example, is one of those applications that once required several steps to complete. But that is changing with the rise of direct-printable fabrics, which has seen much growth over the past few years and has many uses in the signage industry.

In traditional dye sublimation fabric printing, you first print a reverse image of the graphic onto transfer paper and then run both the textile and paper through a heat press. Once the fabric is removed, the image has sublimated from the paper to the fabric and is permanent. But with direct-printable fabrics, the need for transfer paper and a heat press is eliminated.

Direct printing technology takes a cumbersome step out of the printing process, and wherever a step can be omitted and time can be saved, it is so valuable to the print provider. Even with fewer steps and a faster turnaround, there is no drop off in print quality, which often happens when the process in simplified. Without the extra step you can possibly cut production time by 30-40%. Now, instead of dedication two employees to a single job, one can operate the direct print-to-fabric printer, while the other takes on different projects.

It's also good to mention that while elimination the need for transfer paper, you are becoming a bit more green. Without the use of transfer paper, your facility's waste is reduced. You're taking away a consumable because there is no use for it anymore.

Are you a sign shop that offers magnetic products to your customer? Sure, they're a simple and easy way to advertise someone's business, but are you really making that great of a profit for them? Most resellers normally offer magnetic signage for around $45-$65, and only make $10-$20 on average for the job. Maybe it's time you learn a few steps that can enhance your magnetic products and give you a way to make much more money off of them. Begin a new life of creating magnetic signs that retail at a life-changing $250-$350 price point. Of course, this signage is not for every client, but after being given our explanation (a.k.a. sales job) on what a custom-created mag graphic can do for them, they are usually convinced to pop for the full treatment.

Step 1 - White Ain’t Right - Change the magnet’s background, if possible, to a color that matches the vehicle, or create a contrasting gradient background, or a compatible but non-distracting pattern fill.

Step 2 - Shape It Up, Ship It Out - It’s not hip to be square, so whenever possible sculpt the magnetic piece into a custom shape by cutting around the logo or other elements, or using an oval background, for instance. If it has to be a rectangle, create a secondary smaller rectangle or creative cove for the client’s license number or other secondary copy.

Step 3 - Get Graphic - I know a picture really is worth a thousand words, because there’s a little magnet on my fridge that says so. Add some kind of an illustration or photo-realistic image of the client’s product or work. Truly fine clip art libraries - some offered in the pages of this fine publication - are often well worth the investment in time savings and graphic layout improvements.

Step 4 - Flaunt Yer Font - Limit your type styles to two at most, and since the surface area of magnetic vehicle graphics is usually small, make sure the fonts are bold and/or legible. Keep it simple with only the necessary copy.

Step 5 - Run for the Border - Many cheap magnetic signs look unfinished because they don’t have a border. Unless the graphics don’t lend themselves to it, add a compatible weight border to help give the graphics a more finished appearance.

Digitally printing magnetics make the above steps even easier to work with. MN Designs offers digitally printed magnets, which are printed on our flatbed, UV ink printer. More information can be found at mndesignsinc.com or by calling us toll free at 866.663.3746.

Running a business in a competitive economy means that you have got to be on your toes when it comes to market sharing. It is a basic survival rule! If you are running a business in the field of graphics, printing, and advertising, the idea of market sharing is even more important. Clients look for the easiest, most cost effective routes now, and in the printing industry, flatbed printers are a viable option to gaining expanded business!

The flatbed printer brings easy printing capabilities that can cut out, all together, the need for vinyl application onto substrates. Many local companies in South Carolina already come to MN Designs because of our flatbed capabilities, and it had expanded their markets greatly. The greatest capability of the flatbed printer is that it can print directly onto a substrate. As noted before, this eliminates the need for vinyl application which saves time, and ultimately saves money. Most flatbed printers use UV curable inks that when ran through the printer, are instantly cured. This shortens the amount of time a customer would have to wait to have their print installed. The type of substrates a flatbed can print on is really only restricted to the height at which the printer head can be raised. MN Designs can print on substrates up to 2" thick, and that has definitely been taken advantage of. From magnetics, to glass, and even to doors, flatbeds are a great tool to utilize for direct printing.

MN Designs offers wholesale digital flatbed printing on a wide number of substrates. More information on substrates can be viewed at the official MN Designs website.