These plastisol ink textures started with white ink, black T-shirts and my small screen-printing press. I printed the ink, stretched and washed the fabric to create cracks, then scanned the results and turned them into texture packs for Photoshop and Illustrator. This is the story of how I made them.
I wanted to start with real printed ink. The interesting part was seeing how it broke apart, rather than trying to invent the damage on screen.
Why start with real screen-printed ink?
An old printed T-shirt has a particular kind of wear. Some areas of ink remain intact, fine cracks appear elsewhere, and larger gaps let the fabric show through.
That was the finish I wanted to capture. A photograph of concrete might give me cracks, but it wouldn’t give me the same marks as ink stretched across fabric.
For a fuller explanation of the effect, read what a plastisol texture is and how you use one. Here, I’ll concentrate on making the originals.
Printing white plastisol ink onto black T-shirts
I bought white plastisol ink and a pile of cheap black T-shirts, then started printing large areas of ink on my small screen-printing press.
There was one small problem: I had never printed with plastisol before.
The white ink against the black fabric made the gaps easy to see as the prints broke apart. These weren’t finished T-shirt designs. They were surfaces I could experiment with and eventually turn into digital textures.
Experimenting with different ink thicknesses
I varied the amount of ink between prints. Some received a thin coat, while others had a much heavier deposit.
I wanted a range of results rather than twenty versions of the same crack. Changing the ink thickness, then stretching the prints in different directions, gave me different patterns to work with.
My improvised heat-gun experiment
I didn’t have a flash dryer, so I experimented with a paint-stripper heat gun. These prints were test pieces intended for making textures, rather than finished garments. It was an improvised part of my process, not a curing method I’d recommend following.
This is a record of that texture-making experiment, rather than instructions for producing properly cured, wearable prints.
Stretching and washing the prints
After heating the prints, I pulled and stretched the fabric to force the ink surface apart. Changing the direction of the pull changed the pattern of the cracks.
Next came the washing machine and dryer. I repeated the process to develop more wear and see how far the prints would break down.
It was less textile care and more controlled neglect.
Some results had fine cracks with plenty of ink still intact. Others had larger gaps and much heavier damage. That variation became useful later: a design that only needs a little wear shouldn’t have to use the most battered texture in the pack.
Scanning and cleaning up the textures
I selected the most useful experiments and scanned them at high resolution. The aim was to bring the marks from the physical prints into a form I could use on screen.
Cleanup came next. I removed the bits that added nothing while keeping the irregular details that made each texture useful. The fine cracks mattered just as much as the larger missing areas.
I wasn’t trying to turn every mark into a neat, uniform pattern. That would have defeated the point of printing and damaging the fabric in the first place.
The cleaned scans became the source material for the digital packs. The work moved from making physical marks to preparing those marks for use on other artwork.
Turning the textures into Photoshop and Illustrator packs
Both packs began with the same physical ink experiments. I prepared separate versions so designers could use the textures in the application that suited their work.
The Photoshop version
The Photoshop plastisol texture pack brings 20 cracked ink textures together in a layered file with prepared Smart Objects. You add your artwork to the Smart Object and use the texture presets as a starting point.
It also includes brushes, background textures and edge-distressing actions, so you can adjust the finish rather than leave every design looking the same.
For the manual mask method and practical troubleshooting, follow my guide to creating a cracked plastisol texture in Photoshop.
The Illustrator version
The Illustrator plastisol texture pack contains 20 vector texture presets made from the same ink experiments.
In Illustrator, you can use an opacity mask to let the background show through the cracks in your artwork. The vector version gives you a different way to work with the same worn-print character.
Where I’d use these textures
Bold lettering and larger areas of colour give the cracks room to show. Vintage T-shirt graphics are the obvious use, but the effect also suits posters, album artwork, badges and packaging.
Start with the amount of wear the design needs. Protect smaller lettering and leave some areas relatively intact. The texture should add character without making the artwork difficult to read.
Frequently asked questions
Are these textures made from real plastisol ink?
Yes. I screen-printed white plastisol ink onto black T-shirts, damaged the prints through stretching and washing, then scanned and cleaned up the results. The digital textures began as physical printed marks.
Why did you use different ink thicknesses?
I wanted a variety of textures. Using thinner and heavier deposits of ink gave me different starting points for the stretching and washing experiments, rather than repeating one finish across the whole pack.
How did you create different cracking patterns?
I varied the ink thickness, changed the direction in which I stretched the fabric, and repeated the washing and drying process. Together, those experiments produced everything from fine cracks to larger areas of missing ink.
What’s the difference between the Photoshop and Illustrator packs?
The Photoshop pack uses a layered file with prepared Smart Objects and includes brushes and actions. The Illustrator pack supplies vector texture presets. Both come from the same real ink experiments; choose the pack for the software you use.
Keeping the character of the original prints
The aim was to capture the particular way printed ink breaks apart on fabric. The uneven cracks and gaps were the useful part of the experiment.
The digital files make those marks easier to apply and adjust, but the character started on a T-shirt.
Written by Simon Stratford, type designer and graphic designer. These are my opinions, reached after too little sleep and too much coffee. You can also follow my antics on @itsmesimonok, or leave a comment below. Despite all the opinions, I’m actually quite nice.