Purchasing a mixing system allows a screen printing shop to match custom colors on-site, reduce inventory, and speed up turnaround time. The process can be simple, but repeatable color matching requires more than stirring several inks together until they look close.

The most reliable method is to choose the right mixing system for your shop, measure every component accurately, print and cure a sample, make adjustments, record the final formula, keep a wet sample and production standard to reference back to for reorders.

Choose The Right Mixing Method

Custom colors are created with either an ink-to-ink system or a pigment-to-base system.

An ink-to-ink system combines finished, printable colors. Each component can be printed successfully by itself. Our ELT Mix & Match System includes 17 colors plus a mixing white for simulating Pantone® colors. Because it uses the ELT formulation, the finished colors provide low-temperature curing, opacity, bleed resistance, and stretch across a broad range of fabrics.

A pigment-to-base system combines concentrated pigments with a printable base. Pigment concentrates are not printable inks. They must be used at the proper concentration in a compatible base. The base supplies the body, curing, adhesion, opacity, stretch, and other performance characteristics of the final ink. Our Pigment System includes 17 concentrated pigments that can be mixed with different bases. This gives printers the ability to make custom colors in a variety of series that are designed specifically for different types of fabrics. Frequently purchased bases include: 480 Base, Hybrid Base, and ELT Base.

Begin With A Clear Color Target

Before mixing, establish what the finished color is supposed to match. The target may be:

Colors generated by computer monitors and phone screens are unreliable standards. Their appearance changes with display settings and calibration issues. When color accuracy matters, use a physical reference.

Measure Each Component Accurately

Accuracy is the key to color matching. Measure each component precisely to the formula. These are a few variables that affect accuracy:

Always Evaluate A Cured Print

The color of wet ink in a bucket is only a starting point; the finished garment determines whether the match is successful. Never approve a custom color by looking at wet ink on a spatula. Print and fully cure the sample using the intended production process.

Curing and printing can effect:

The Garment And Underbase Change The Color

Fabric color and ink deposit influence the finished appearance of any given color. The same ink can appear different on white cotton, gray fleece, black polyester, and a white underbase.

A white underbase may make the top color appear cleaner. Adding a white underbase after approval can make a correct formula appear incorrect.

Compare Colors Under Consistent Lighting

A color may match under one light source and look different under another. This effect is known as metamerism.

Evaluate important matches under neutral, consistent lighting. Avoid approving colors beside brightly painted walls or beneath strongly tinted bulbs.

When practical inspect the sample under the lighting in which the finished product will normally be seen.

The standard light source for the screen printing industry is daylight. Check your prints outside during peak daylight hours for the best results.

Place the printed sample and target on the same plane so they receive light at the same angle.

Make One Correction At A Time

After the first test print, identify the specific problem before adding more ink. Is the color:

Select one component that addresses that problem, add a small measured amount, and mix completely. Changing several ingredients at once makes it difficult to understand what improved or damaged the match.

Every adjustment must be included in the final formula. The approved formula is not the starting recipe; it is the complete mixture after all corrections.

Add Strong Colors Slowly

Black, dark blue, violet, and other concentrated colors can change a mixture rapidly. Add them in very small amounts.

To darken a color, consider using a deeper version of the same hue before adding black. Dark blue may preserve a blue mixture better than black. Similarly, adding deep red may produce a cleaner dark red than black.

White should also be used deliberately. It makes a color lighter, but it can also reduce saturation and create a pastel appearance.

Record The Approved Formula Carefully

Once the color is approved, adjust and save your final formula. You can adjust, save, and revisit your formula from our webpage. From our homepage follow these steps:

You can revisit saved custom PMS formulas by going to the “My Custom Formula” folder. Located inside the “Colorbook” drop-down menu.

Record The Complete Production Standard

A formula alone may not reproduce the color if the printing process changes. Record:

Label the remaining ink clearly. Keep this ink sample as a retain to match back to. Also, keep a cured production sample with the formula. The sample becomes the visual standard for repeat orders. Make sure the cured sample is not printed on polyester. Polyester will eventually bleed overtime and that will change the appearance of the color.

Final Thoughts

Creating custom colors becomes much more reliable when the process is measured and documented. A carefully recorded formula and production setup combined with a wet sample and cured standard will speed up your production process and allow you to offer custom colors that are accurate and repeatable.