Printing on georgette vs cotton, chiffon, crepe and rayon

The short comparison

	Georgette	Chiffon	Crepe	Rayon (viscose)	Cotton
Common fibre	Often polyester; silk versions exist	Often polyester	Often polyester	Viscose	Cotton (cambric, poplin, mulmul, satin)
Ink for digital print	Sublimation or disperse	Sublimation or disperse	Sublimation or disperse	Reactive	Reactive or pigment
Absorbency	Low	Low	Low	High	High
Fine lines	Good; twisted yarns give a grainy surface	Softer, because the fabric is sheer	Good; pebbly surface	Good	Best on tight weaves
Colour look	Bright on a light base; semi-sheer	Lighter than on opaque fabric	Bright on a light base	Deep and rich	Clean; reactive feels soft
Shrinkage to plan for	Low, usually under 2%	Low, usually under 2%	Low, usually under 2%	About 3 to 5%, more in hot water	About 3 to 7% if not pre-shrunk
Starting DPI	200	150 to 200	200	200 to 300	200 to 300

Fibre matters more than the fabric name. A "georgette" can be polyester or silk, and the printer chooses the ink by fibre. Check the label or ask the seller.

Why fibre decides the ink

Polyester is hydrophobic: it absorbs very little water, and only disperse dyes can colour it. Digital printers use sublimation or disperse inks, which go into the fibre with heat.

Cotton and viscose rayon absorb water easily. SPGPrints recommends reactive ink for both, because it gives the highest wash fastness on cotton. Pigment ink also works on cotton. It sits on the surface and needs only heat curing, with no steaming or washing.

Warning: Sublimation on pure cotton washes out. Sublimation inks are also transparent and there is no white, so they need a white or light polyester base.

A 60:40 blend is harder. SPGPrints says the ink follows the main fibre, at least 70%, and that blends limit colour depth.

Georgette, chiffon and crepe

Georgette and chiffon

Both are light and see-through, so the print shows on the back of the fabric. Contrado says about half of a print shows through on its poly georgette. On chiffon, it says colours look slightly faded next to an opaque fabric.

Georgette is made with twisted yarns, which gives it its dry, crinkly face. Fine lines still print well on it by sublimation, but very thin pale lines can get lost in the texture.

What this means for your file:

• Push contrast between motif and ground. A light pink motif on a cream ground can almost disappear on chiffon.
• Avoid very thin lines and tiny text in pale colours.
• Deep tones and clear pastels work better than mid-tones that sit close together.
• 150 to 200 DPI is usually enough for chiffon, because the weave and sheerness limit how much detail shows.

Tip: For a saree or dupatta on chiffon, ask for a 1-metre sample on the same quality before bulk. Colours on a sheer base are hard to judge from a screen.

Crepe

Polyester crepe is printed by sublimation, like georgette; a silk crepe needs a different ink. Crepe is heavier and less see-through than chiffon, so colours stay stronger.

The surface is pebbly and matte. Bold florals and mid-size motifs suit it well; the finest line work looks softer than on smooth cotton. A 200 DPI file at print size is a good starting point.

Rayon

Rayon soaks up dye easily, and reactive ink gives it deep, rich colour. It is soft and smooth, which is why so many kurtis and dress materials use it.

Plan for two things. Ask the printer to show you how dark their blacks and navies come out on the rayon they stock. And allow for shrinkage: viscose commonly shrinks about 3 to 5%, and much more in a hot wash.

Note: Rayon kurtis are often placement prints. Shrinkage changes the length of the panel, so ask the printer whether to make the file larger before you finalise it.

Cotton

Tightly woven cotton such as cambric and poplin holds the sharpest detail of the five. Spoonflower says 300 DPI files print noticeably sharper than 150 DPI on its tightly woven cottons. Use 200 DPI as a base and 300 DPI for fine florals, outlines or small text.

Open weaves like mulmul and voile show less detail, so 200 DPI is plenty. Reactive prints are steamed and washed after printing, which leaves a soft hand. Pigment prints skip those steps, so they are quicker to finish.

Untreated cotton can shrink 3 to 7%, depending on weave and finish.

For a 58 inch wide cotton print at 300 DPI you need 58 × 300 = 17,400 px across. At 200 DPI it is 11,600 px, which is enough for most bedsheet and dress-material designs.

Shrinkage and the repeat

Printed fabric is often steamed, washed or heat-set after printing, and cotton and rayon can shrink in that step. If nothing is done, a repeat ends up smaller than you drew it, and a placement panel ends up shorter.

Some printers scale the print in their RIP software to allow for shrinkage. Ask your printer whether they do this. If they do, send the file at the finished size; if not, they may ask you to enlarge it.

Example: Your cotton print needs a 24 inch repeat when finished, and the printer expects 4% shrinkage. Divide by what remains: 24 ÷ 0.96 = 25 inches to print. At 300 DPI that is 25 × 300 = 7,500 px instead of 7,200 px. For a 90 inch rayon dupatta, 90 ÷ 0.96 = 93.75 inches, or 18,750 px at 200 DPI.

Polyester bases usually move under 2%, so most designers send the finished size and let the printer adjust.

Which fabric to choose

Choose cotton if

• The design has fine lines, small motifs or text.
• You want a soft, breathable fabric for kurtis, shirts or bedsheets.

Choose rayon if

• You want deep colour and a soft fall, as in kurtis and dress material.
• You can allow for shrinkage in the file or the cutting.

Choose georgette or chiffon if

• You want a light, flowing saree or dupatta with bright colours.
• The design is bold, with clear contrast between motif and ground.

Choose crepe if

• You want polyester brightness with an opaque, matte look.
• The motifs are medium or large, not hairline detail.

Printer checklist and mistakes

What to confirm

Before sending the file, confirm these points for each fabric:

1. The exact fibre (polyester georgette or silk georgette) and the ink they will use.
2. The DPI they want at the final print size.
3. Whether they scale for shrinkage, and by how much.
4. Whether they will make a sample on the same fabric quality.
5. The file format and colour mode they accept.

Common mistakes

• Approving colours on a phone screen and printing straight on chiffon. Sheer fabric usually looks lighter than the screen.
• Sending a design with a white motif for sublimation on a coloured polyester base. With no white ink, the white areas show the fabric colour.
• Using one file at one size for a cotton and a polyester run when the printer expects different shrinkage on each.
• Saving a sheer-fabric design at 600 DPI "to be safe". The fabric cannot show that detail, and the file gets very heavy.

What to do next

Work out the pixel size for your fabric and print size in the fabric DPI calculator, adding the shrinkage allowance if your printer asks for it. If the design is smaller than that, enlarge it with the AI image upscaler, which adds real detail and gives you a PNG tagged 300 DPI ready for the printer.