a Sustainable Screen Printing Co.

If you are concerned about how your screen printing needs are affecting the environment, you’ve come to the right place. At LifeWork, we make it easy for you to be kind to the environment while still delivering the highest quality printing possible. We offer eco-friendly and environmentally conscious printing options that include water based and phthalate-free plastisol inks, biodegradable cleaners and fair-trade certified organic cotton t-shirt options.

LifeWork is the one-stop source for authoritative business and technical information crucial to starting and building a profitable decorated apparel business. We can help you with any size order, from one shirt to one million shirts. Your business is important to us and we will work hard to deliver the customer service you deserve. We’re happy if you’re happy.

Most of us try to be conscious of how our daily choices are affecting the environment. Being proactive about preserving the environment means evaluating our professional choices as well. Who doesn't want to make a positive impact? For you, going ‘green’ professionally may be as simple as taking public transportation to work or as complex as tracking your carbon emissions and trying to live carbon-neutral. Living green can take many forms. However, the environmental movement has become a mainstream, ongoing and important part of society and commerce.

Screen printed T-shirts have doubled as billboards for pro-environmental sentiments as far back as the first Earth Day in 1970. Because T-shirts have been so closely associated with environmentally conscious lifestyle choices, it only makes sense that our customers look to us to lead this movement. Thus, our impact on the environment becomes especially important to our businesses. Not only do we want to make responsible ecological decisions, but we are learning that it will help our businesses be more successful and profitable.

The inks used in screen printing generate the most concern, but also provide the most opportunity to use green processes and sustainable materials. Plastisol inks are generally considered the easiest and most versatile inks for printing apparel. However, traditional plastisols are commonly considered the least "green" ink option available.

While there is some genuine debate about this, our opinion is that compared to water-based inks, plastisol inks are indeed the least sustainable ink system used when it comes to printing on light colored garments. Although the plastisol brand we use is phthalate-free, plastisol inks are made with polyvinyl chloride (PVC) resins, a material that is often considered objectionable to the sustainability movement because it is a heavily manufactured, non-natural material. PVC is persistent in the environment because it does not easily break down into natural components. On the positive side, this is why plastisol inks are very durable and why plastisol prints last much longer than the shirts they are printed on. Also, when it comes to printing on dark colored garments, phthalate-free plastisol inks are a much more sustainable option than water-based inks because dark garment water-based screen printing requires 'discharge printing' -- a process that requires the use of harmful chemicals released into the air during the curing process.

Water based ink screen-printing contains neither PVC nor phthalates, making them an environmentally friendly choice when printing on light colored garments. Water based ink ingredients are non-toxic, lead-free and do not contain any heavy metals. Therefore, they are safe for use on infant clothing, underwear and swimsuits.

Organic apparel printing offers another environmentally friendly screen printing method. Using organic cotton that is grown with safe, nontoxic, non-chemical pest repellents, such as manure and herbs, protects the ground, our food, and all animals -- including humans. Additionally, organic cotton is pure and has not been genetically altered or modified. Conventional cotton, one of the most widely manufactured fibers today, is grown with toxic chemical pesticides and fertilizers which remain on the fibers even after they are manufactured into wearable apparel. In fact, almost half of the agricultural herbicides and pesticides used on U.S. crops are applied to cotton. These chemicals have been scientifically proven to negatively affect health. Promoting the production of organic cotton is very important to personal and environmental health and it has the same fiber strength, length and characteristics as conventional cotton.

Organic agriculture utilizes alternatives to conventional chemicals to control pests and disease. Methods like inter cropping and companion planting, where beneficial crops are grown next to each other, are just a few way to illustrate organic farming options. The quality of one plant provides nutrients, deters harmful insects, or attracts beneficial insects to the other. Cover crops are grown to build topsoil and replenish nutrients. Rather than destroying farmland as mono-cropping techniques do (growing one crop over a large area), organic farming actually improves the overall quality of the land. 100% organic cotton t-shirts custom printed with 100% all natural inks can be one of the best health products you can buy.

When you print green, you’re doing your part to protect and conserve the environment. Sustainable screen printing produces less waste and contributes fewer toxins to the environment. You’ll be conserving energy and making certain that the products used by your printer come from sustainable sources and operations.

Save the earth, think organic and wear organic!!!

ARTICLES:

Your Organic T-shirts Help Save the World | Water-based Screen Printing: An Eco-friendly Choice | Sustainable Screen Printing As a Better Alternative | Making an Impact with Environmental T-Shirts | Eco-friendly T-shirts for Pro-environment People | Wear Sustainable T-shirts and Help Save the Planet | Using Water-Based Inks for a Cleaner and Greener Planet | Organic Screen Printing for Our Environment’s Safety | Green Screen Printing for a Safer and Greener Earth | Eco-friendly Screen Printing: A Greener Solution Against Environmental Pollution