Screen Printing Technique

Specialty Ink Screen Printing: Puff, Foil & More

Dimensional puff, mirror foil, glow, and high-density prints that make merch feel like a product, not a promo item. Printed in-house in Santa Fe Springs for Los Angeles and Orange County.

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French Press Custom prints puff, foil, glow, and high-density specialty inks in-house in Santa Fe Springs, from 24 pieces per design, starting from the standard screen printing tiers (about $8.00 per piece at 24 pieces for a 1-color print, blank garment additional). Puff adds $1.25 per piece, glow adds $1.00 per piece, and foil and high-density are quoted per job on your artwork.

The Effects

Which Specialty Inks Can You Screen Print With?

All four run on the same presses as standard plastisol, so they can be combined with regular ink colors in one design.

3D Puff Ink

Expands in the dryer for raised, dimensional prints. The streetwear staple for bold lettering, numbers, and logos.

+ $1.25/pc front, + $2.00/pc front & back

Foil

Mirror-finish metallic film heat-pressed over an adhesive print. Maximum shine for accents, logos, and limited drops.

Quoted per job (coverage-based)

Glow in the Dark

Charges in light, glows in the dark. A crowd favorite for events, Halloween merch, and youth designs.

+ $1.00/pc front, + $1.50/pc front & back

High-Density

Sharp-edged, raised prints with a flat top surface. A premium sculpted look for tonal and tone-on-tone designs.

Quoted per job (design-based)

Effect	Look	Best for	Pricing
3D puff	Raised, soft, dimensional	Streetwear lettering, school spirit wear	+ $1.25/pc front, + $2.00/pc front & back
Foil	Mirror shine	Accents, logos, limited drops	Quoted per job (coverage-based)
Glow in the dark	Charges in light, glows at night	Events, Halloween, youth merch	+ $1.00/pc front, + $1.50/pc front & back
High-density	Sharp raised edges, flat top	Tonal logos, premium brand pieces	Quoted per job (design-based)

Per-piece additives are read live from the same pricing engine as the instant quote calculator. Foil, high-density, and metallic effects are quoted per job on your artwork.

Pricing

How Much Does Puff or Foil Printing Cost?

Every specialty job starts from the standard screen printing tiers below (decoration only, live from our pricing engine), then the effect additive or per-job effect quote goes on top.

Quantity	Per piece (1 color to 3 colors)
24-47 pieces	$8.00 - $9.00/pc
48-99 pieces	$6.40 - $7.20/pc
100-199 pieces	$3.20 - $3.60/pc
200-449 pieces	$2.40 - $2.70/pc
450-999 pieces	$1.92 - $2.16/pc
1000+ pieces	$1.28 - $1.44/pc
Under 24 pieces	$15.00 - $25.00/pc DTG (no minimum, no setup fee)

Minimum 24 pieces. Prices are per piece, decoration only. Blank garment is additional and priced from live wholesale catalogs.

One-time screen setup: $25.00 per screen (one per ink color) plus film and press setup, billed on runs of 24 pieces or fewer ($65.00 for 1 color, $145.00 for 3 colors) and waived on larger runs. Reorders reuse your screens.

Range shown is a 1-color to 3-color print, one location. Each additional location is priced separately.

Puff adds $1.25 per piece (front); glow adds $1.00 per piece. Foil and high-density are quoted per job.

Prices exclude CA sales tax (10.5%), which applies to the blank garment only.

Price Your Specialty Job

Screens, multi-location jobs, and every line item are explained in our screen printing cost guide.

Recent Work

Recent Specialty Ink Projects

Real puff and high-density jobs straight off our production floor.

Puff bubble lettering with a script overlay on a royal blue hoodie

Tonal white-on-white high-density logo print on a heavyweight fleece hoodie

Royal blue puff script with a matching sleeve crest on a school spirit tee

Neon green puff print of our own shop logo on a heather hoodie

View the Full Portfolio

Go Deeper

Guides & Related Services

From the blog

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Questions

Specialty Ink FAQ

What is puff ink, and how does it hold up?+

Puff is a plastisol additive that expands in the dryer, so the print rises off the shirt with a soft, dimensional 3D texture. Cured properly it washes like any plastisol print; the raised areas keep their loft through normal machine washing. It is the signature streetwear look for bold lettering and logos.

How much does specialty ink printing cost?+

Specialty jobs start from the same quantity tiers as standard screen printing (about $8.00 per piece at 24 pieces for a 1-color print, decoration only). Puff adds $1.25 per piece for a front print ($2.00 for front and back) on top of the standard screen printing tiers. Glow-in-the-dark adds $1.00 per piece for a front print. Foil, high-density, and metallic effects depend on coverage and design, so we quote those per job on your artwork.

What is the difference between foil and metallic ink?+

Foil is an actual mirror-finish film heat-pressed onto a printed adhesive layer, so it reads like chrome. Metallic ink is plastisol loaded with metallic particles: printed like any other color, with a shimmer rather than a mirror. Foil is flashier and best for accents; metallic ink is more durable across large areas and repeated washing.

Is there a minimum order for puff, foil, or other specialty prints?+

Yes. Specialty inks run on our screen printing line, so jobs start at 24 pieces per design, and the effect layer is built into your screens and your free digital proof before we print. For runs under the minimum, DTG printing has no minimum, though it prints flat, without dimensional or foil effects.

Make Your Next Drop Stand Out

Send your artwork and quantity. We will recommend the right effect, build it into your free digital proof, and price it before anything prints.

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