Early on this month, we at Black Swan were lucky enough to have the opportunity to work with one of our favorite local companies, Leprechaun Cider Company. Screen printed dresses!

We’ve worked with Jake from Leprechaun before in the past, and were excited when we got the opportunity to take on a rare side seam project. Custom printing on the side of a garment usually only takes a little extra effort; in fact, just about any placement can be done on a garment as long as the printing area is flat, and the garment is securely in place. But the real surprises begin when the actual garments arrive!

Arriving to our Houston studio direct from American Apparel’s primary factory, the garments came with an additional surprise… an unmentioned side seam construction. Any raised area on a garment leads to additional difficulties, since screen printing relies on a flat surface in order to evenly transfer ink. Rather than be stymied in our efforts, we took off to our lab to construct a seam platen to print on, when the seam could sit in a groove in order to provide a smooth printing surface.

Despite a few set-backs, we finished the project with some very unique, custom screen printed dresses for our client to use in promotions and brand building activities. They definitely make an impression!

Many thanks again to Jake and Leprechaun Cider Company for bringing their project to us.