One very popular item we often find ourselves customising, is the trusty tote bag. We are based in Shoreditch, east London – and in this area you can’t walk two minutes down the road without seeing one dash past you. Londoners love them. That’s why they make such great promotional items, merch and give-aways. For high volume orders, getting your tote bags screen printed would be your best bet and they will last super well. For more of a promotional ‘hand out’ bag, totes that are digitally Direct to Garment printed are a fantastic option.
Here’s an example of a DTG printed canvas tote…
We printed these natural canvas tote bags the other week for the Courtauld Institute Of Art, they were designed by Bullet Creative. These were digitally Direct to Garment printed and as you can see, this particular print technique has handled reproducing this “painting style” image really well. Even though canvas tote bags often do have a slight texture to them, DTG printing can still adhere to this particular surface very nicely, with the full colour artwork not suffering at all.
If you have any questions about any of our printing techniques, drop us a line at: sales@iconprinting.com or give us a ring on 0207 183 8431. For more info on Digital Direct to Garment printing on t-shirts and tote bags take a look at our website.
We’ve noticed that this awesome “Half Empty/Half Full” tote bag is currently doing the internet rounds. And rightly so! What a clever idea…
These totes are by Lazy Oaf, who are known for their very cool, bright, pop graphic T-shirts, reversible sweats and accessories collections. The company is driven by illustration, graphics, drawing, and fueled by tea (apparently). The creative label started in 2001 – as a range of hand screen printed tees sold at a market stall in East London. All sorts of Lazy Oaf is now available in over 150 stockists worldwide. They’re now based in Shoreditch, London – which is where we are located too.
Come chat to us if you have smart little idea you’d like to see on some tees or totes, we even offer artworking services too!
email: sales@iconprinting.com
phone: 0207 183 8431
Last year, bimonthly visual culture and design magazine Print, invited 12 leading visual artists to choose a cause they would like to support and create a design for tote bags that would then be sold on MyDesignShop.com. One hundred percent of the profits from these bags went to the causes chosen by the artists.
The artists included in this project were:
Spin for Bone Cancer Research UK
Laurent Fetis for The World Wildlife Fund
James Joyce for Save the Children
Geoff McFetridge for Gabriella Charter School
Atélier Telescopique for Fondation de France
Sawdust for the British Heart Foundation
One design we found resonated with us in particular was created by Atélier Telescopique for Fondation de France. This organisation helps individuals and companies who wish to be involved in philanthropy by enabling them to create their own foundations under its aegis. They set up action programs in many areas – including education, medical and scientific research, culture, and the environment.
The tote bag design concept –
“This design is directly inspired by the tote-bag material. We called this model ‘Wild Canvas,’ and we chose to use an embroidery technique to print the pattern on the canvas. We do not really know why, but the tiger is certainly one of the most re-produced patterns on embroidered canvas! This tiger is a symbol for the environment and ecology.”
It’s nice see a concept for an embroidery based tote, as opposed to a typical screen print. Both these processes are just as impactful, but embroidery often denotes a slightly more professional, corporate feel.
If you’d like information on any of the print processes we offer or have any questions about custom tshirt printing, don’t hesitate to get in touch!
email: sales@iconprinting.com
phone: 0207 183 8431
twitter: iconprinting
We recently had the pleasure of screen printing some merchandise for French music group We Were Evergreen.
We got to go along to their gig in Shepherds Bush on Tuesday – here are a few snaps of the tote bags we printed.
If you would like to find out more about our custom t-shirt printing please get in touch! 🙂
As you’ll most definitely be aware (unless you’ve been living under a rock…) it is Her Majesty’s Diamond Jubilee this weekend. The UK is awash with Union Jack everything – you can’t move for red, white and blue. It is undoubtedly, cause for celebration – as the only other British monarch to celebrate a Diamond Jubilee was Queen Victoria in 1897 – so party on Ma’am (as in jam)!
So, at least there is good reason for this colour scheme to be absolutely everywhere at the moment. But imagine if everything you created and looked at on a daily basis was red, white and blue. This literally is the case for design duo Crispin Finn. Everything they produce is red white or blue, no tonal variations, nothing. Pretty amazing! They offer “quality design, illustration and goods released in limited quantity at affordable prices” – but there is no justification as to why they work to such a strict colour scheme. As a result, the work on their website ties together beautifully and their style really does lend itself to such restraints – almost giving the work a retro, 1950s feel…
One of our favourite items they’ve come up with is this “Hello my Name is” T-shirt, shown above. It’s a two colour screen print and comes with a washable pen for filling in the “sticker”. They’ve got an array of wonderful screen printed goodies available – from totes to tea towels.
Above, is a collaborative range of sweaters created by talented embroiderer Becky Hogg alongside Crispin Finn. These were inspired by vernacular shop signage of a time gone by. Digital embroidery is a service we offer at Icon Printing, so obviously these were another hit with us. Such great work!
Feel free to chat to us about screen printing and digital embroidery – we love it. We’re big on polo shirt printing london.
email: sales@iconprinting.com
phone: 0207 183 8431
One of London’s leading art centers The Barbican, launched their Bauhaus “Life as Art” exhibition this month. This is the largest exhibition related to the famous art school the UK has seen in over 40 years. This collection of works feature a rich array of painting, sculpture, design, architecture, film, photography, textiles, ceramics, theatre and installation.
To compliment the exhibition a number of related collectables – or “inspired by” items have been created, in celebration of the launch. Creative consultancy Patternity have produced these “unique art pieces for the legs” – well, beautifully hand screen printed tights to be precise, that reflect the Bauhaus aesthetic. They are a collective driven by the certainty that pattern is everywhere; from the mundane to the magnificent, much like the minds of the Bauhaus movement.
From expressionist beginnings to a pioneering model uniting art and technology, this London exhibition presents the Bauhaus’ utopian vision to change society in the aftermath of the First World War. Bauhaus: Art as Life explores the diverse artistic production that made up its turbulent fourteen-year history and delves into the subjects at the heart of the school: art, culture, life, politics and society, and the changing technology of the age.
Another group of creatives who are also inspired by the works of Bauhaus, go by the name – or rather, statement “MY BAUHAUS IS BETTER THAN YOURS”. Their website reflects their quirky, experimental nature and stylistic sensitivity, but there is also an element of fun thrown in there too. An obvious hit with us at Icon Printing, was their statement screen printed canvas tote bag. Nice work all round!
Drop us a line if you’re thinking about doing some custom t-shirt printing, or have a message you’d like to see out there. We’d love to hear from you!
email: sales@iconprinting.com
phone: 0207 183 8431
Chat to us on Facebook too!
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Aren’t these printed totes by Alphabet Bags great?* Simple, bold graphics printed onto canvas tote bags make fantastic promotional hand-outs or gifts.
This kind of product also makes a great online seller for web based boutiques. Get in touch to find out how little it costs to print onto these bags. We can screen print, use DTG printing or transfer print, we have something for every budget.
Plus it’s free UK delivery on all orders over £100! Get in touch for more direct to garment printing info.
email: sales@iconprinting.com or phone: 0207 183 8431
* PLEASE NOTE: These tote bags by Alphabet Bags are NOT purchased from, or printed by Icon Printing.
Just a few goodies & inspiration to brighten up this slightly dreary Sunday. Enjoy!
1. Copy & Paste Character.com is filled with ‘hidden’ symbols to use almost anywhere on the net – for when words aren’t enough!
2. Nixon do the best watches in the world. Fact. Very rarely can a watch brand do unisex so well.
3. “Masculin et Feminin” hand screen printed tote bag – by I Miss You Already on Etsy.
4. The coolest pair of Vans we’ve seen in a while, the mix of leather and suede is a bit nice.
5. The Grid System Website. A super geeky treat.
6. The “Snow White Case” – by Kristin Reiter. It’s always handy when your iPhone doubles up as a personal mirror.
7. An usual approach to printing. Alphabet print by beauchamping on Etsy.