FAQ featuring some of the questions asked on a regular basis. We hope to answer most of your questions here, and inform you about a few things you may not have considered.
General, Billing & Delivery
For general queries, and those relating to billing/delivery of our primary services (see Store FAQ for orders made directly on our website).
What is your turnaround time?
Standard turnaround time is 5-10 days from confirmation of sales order and demonstration artwork. For orders that require custom sewn labels, this can extend to up to 15 days during busy periods.
If you have a tighter deadline
We often work to tighter deadlines, depending on our workload at the time and the complexity of your requirements, we can give accurate estimates. Do not hesitate to give us a call free on 01872 248 842 to be advised of our current lead times, which can be anywhere between 3 and 10 days.
What do I need to provide, to receive a quote?
If you’d like a quote from us, the quickest way is to use our quote form. Generally we will respond within 24 hours.
If you’d prefer to send an email to info@blackwaterstudios.co.uk, please make sure to attach your artwork and specify the garment type/colours that you require (along with a size breakdown – 10x Small, 15x Medium, etc). If you need advise, you can call us on 01872 248 842.
Please note, we cannot provide quotes over the phone.
What garment sizes should I order?
Take a look at our choosing a size breakdown page for more information on selecting garment sizes.
What are the costs for delivery?
Cost will depend on your needs, as prices will depend on volume / weight / distance of travel and urgency of delivery.
Please visit our delivery page for more information.
When do you expect payment?
We take payments in advance of printing your order. Lead times begin at receipt of payment.
Prompt payment will ensure the fastest possible lead times.
How do I make payment?
Payment instructions are sent with your sales order and demonstration artwork. There are 3 options:
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Internet bank transfer (BACS)
- Account details will be on invoice
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Cheque
- Payable to ‘Blackwater Studios’. Postal Address: Blackwater Studios, East Hill, Blackwater, Truro, TR4 8HW
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Credit/Debit Card Payment over phone
- Call 01872 248 842. We do not store card details.
Can I cancel my order?
Cancelations after payment and order confirmation are subject to a £30 charge. At this stage production has already begun, and is to cover us for the expenses of time, artwork processing, returning stock, reclaiming of screens, removal of film and other associated costs.
How do I care for / wash my garments?
We generally recommend these guidelines for garment care:
- Wash on low heat 30 degree, cool wash
- Wash garment turned inside out
- Avoid washing t-shirts with items that have zips
- Avoid drying in long periods of direct sunlight
- Do not add bleach to the wash
- Hang dry
The instructions above should help the garments last longer and avoid damage.
What happens if I have a complaint or want a refund?
In the event you’re unhappy with what you have received, you should inform Blackwater Studios immediately and in writing via email within 3 days of receipt of the goods. Please describe the fault with your order – photos can be extremely helpful. On agreement with Blackwater Studios, you should return the order or faulty items to us at the address below. If a fault is already clear, we may offer to collect the parcel.
Blackwater Studios
East Hill, Blackwater
Truro, TR4 8HW
If we are responsible for a fault, we will offer to either refund or credit the items. However if there are more than 10 faulty items in your order, we will offer a reprint. If a fault is found and you arranged the return yourself, we will also refund the delivery cost. This does not affect your statutory rights as a consumer. Customised goods cannot be returned or exchanged due to incorrect fitting, or if goods have been worn or washed.
Some Screen Printing questions are answered here, but for more in depth information take a look at our screen printing pages.
What is Screen Printing?
Screen printing is a printing process intended for bulk orders (25+). This is because most of the work undertaken is in the setting up of the print run, rather than the printing itself. When the set up is complete most screen printing machines print between 500 and 900 T-shirts an hour. These fast production rates mean that the print set up costs get more easily absorbed the more T-shirts you order.
See our T shirt screen printing page for more on the process.
How do I work out my quantity rate for pricing? Can I mix and match garments and sizes?
Screen printing becomes cheaper the more garments you are having printed with the same design in one order. You can mix and match any combination of garments and sizes to make up a quantity, but to get the best price all garments have to be printed from the same screens. This means that the design will be the same size and colour across all garments.
There are prices on the product pages to help you estimate your screen print costs, but we always advise potential customers to ask us to create a quote for them, there is no obligation to proceed with any order if you are not happy with the quote.
Do you charge for print colour changes within a print run?
If you require an ink colour change half way through the print run, we charge for the time taken to stop the print run, remove the screens, clean them thoroughly and set the job up again.
Print colour changes are charged at £15 exc of VAT per print colour change, with a minimum of 25 garments per print colour. If you were printing in 2 colours and wanted to change both print colours, this would cost £30.00 for the cleaning of two screens.
How do I work out the cost for additional print positions and print colours?
The prices on the product pages on this website cover additional costs like extra print positions, eg sleeve, back, and additional print colours in your design. If you are in any doubt at all, please get in touch for a no obligation quote.
For a full no obligation quotation, email info@blackwaterstudios.co.uk. Please supply your design(s) and full details of your requirements, including garment type, garment colour and garment quantity.
Can I supply my own garments for screen printing?
We no longer accept customer garments for orders. Suitability for printing, preparation of the items, stocking and the liability for them are some of the factors for this decision. Any unauthorised goods shipped to us will be refused on delivery or sent back with a fee applied.
Do you have a minimum order quantity (MOQ) for screen printing?
Yes, minimum order / re-order quantities depend on the number of colours/screens you require:
- 1-2 colour designs = 25+ garments
- 3+ colour designs = 50+ garments
Be aware, since printing light inks on dark t shirts requires an underbase / discharge, this will increase the colour count of the design by 1.
For example, say you want Red + Yellow printed onto Black. This would require an underbase or discharge, so it is a 3 colour print.
Do you store print screens for future use?
One of our eco friendly practices in the workshop for reducing waste is by keeping a sizeable inventory of screens. After your order is printed, we will strip the screens to recycle them for new orders. We don’t have the capacity to store all of the screens we print so reclaiming and reusing screens save both fabric costs and storage space. However, we do offer a reduction on the screen set up charge on all reorders for fast turnaround times. We eliminate the use of plastic film with our CTS (computer-to-screen) printer, which transfers the image to an emulsion-coated screen. We keep your CTS preparation files for future use and your design will be printed exactly as the previous order.
Is there a charge for artwork?
We can process basic artwork free of charge, all we require is that you provide your artwork in a suitable format at 300 dpi. For design creation, and edits we charge an hourly rate of £30. Most edits can be achieved within 30 minutes. If you are providing logos that require laying out (such as sponsor logos for an event), please ensure the logos are of usable quality and will work in the number of colours you require (as a 1 colour design, for example).
Where complex colour separations are required, we may need to make an additional charge, and will advise the customer before starting work.
Demonstration artwork is provided as standard, free of charge, and sent to the customer for approval before we proceed with an order.
What is your preferred format for sending artwork?
Take a look at our accepted file formats page.
Why Is there a price difference between printing on light and dark coloured garments?
Printing light colours on to darker coloured garments requires an underbase. This is similar to an undercoat when painting a wall, this is an additional screen in your set up when printing on to darker garments.
When printing dark colours on to light T-shirts this underbase screen is not required, making your T-shirt prints cheaper.
More about underbases, and discharge inks.
Why can I not have a discharge print on ALL T-shirt colours?
Some garment colours do not discharge very well. Strong, bright colours such as purple, royal blue and kelly green are difficult to remove colour from. Some black garments can also be problematic depending on the t-shirt dye , and the polyester content. It is best to contact us for our recommendations when discharge printing is required.
Please don’t hesitate to get in touch on 01872 248 842 if you need advice about colour selection and designing for this kind of printing.
Some Embroidery questions are answered here, but for more in depth information take a look at our embroidery pages.
Do you charge for digitisation of embroidery designs?
We make a one-off charge of £15.00 excluding VAT to turn your design into an embroidery pattern for your first order. Repeat orders of the same design would not incur this charge.
For stock designs such as standard scout and guide logos this charge would not be applied. We may also be able to digitise small, simple designs free of charge for orders over 10 garments. If you are unsure whether you would need to pay for digitisation, just email your design and details of your order requirements to info@blackwaterstudios.co.uk.
How do I work out my quantity rate for pricing? Can I mix and match garments and sizes?
We make a one-off charge of £15.00 excluding VAT to turn your design into an embroidery pattern for your first order. Repeat orders of the same design would not incur this charge.
Embroidery becomes cheaper the more garments you are having embroidered with the same design on one order. You can mix and match any combination of garments and sizes to make up a quantity.
The prices on the product pages on this website include garment with 1 embroidery of up to 6,000 stitches (usually enough for most small, simple logos) and are exclusive of VAT.
All quantity rates for pricing are PER DESIGN.
Do you have a minimum order requirement for embroidery?
Yes, our minimum order / re-order requirement for embroidery work is 10 garments.
How do I work out costs to add additional embroidered logos to a garment?
Embroidery prices are based on stitch count, confirmed prices are given on sight of design.
For a full no obligation quotation, email info@blackwaterstudios.co.uk. Please supply your design(s) and full details of your requirements, including garment type, garment colour and garment quantity.
Can I combine embroidery with screen printing on the same garments?
Yes, it is usual to have a small logo embroidered to the front of garments and a larger design or text screen printed to the back. You can work out costs for adding a screen print to the back of your garments from the contract screen print rates list, depending on quantity of garments to be printed. Remember to add the screen charge(s). Screen charges are one-off charges and would not be payable on future re-orders of the same design (minimum order / re-order quantity for screen printing in 1 colour is 10 garments).
We can also use heat-pressed vinyl for the addition of individual names, job or society titles or other customisation required to a garment order. The price for this would depend on the size and complexity of the design, as each is cut and pressed individually.
Can you embroider individual names?
Yes, we can add this detail either beneath your embroidered logo or to the opposite breast pocket or sleeve. Standard price is £2.00 excluding VAT per name.
Can I combine a number of embroidered garments and a number of screen printed garments to make up a quantity rate for pricing?
No, these are completely separate processes requiring separate set ups and are thus charged as separate jobs.
Questions relating to the store elements of our site - both the Blk Store (collaboration project) and our Sample Store.
Are out-of-stock items restocked?
If an item from our Sample Store is out of stock in a number of sizes, we will then print more of the design in our studio. If we don’t plan to re-print stock, it will be marked as discontinued and then it will be removed from the website once the stock is completely depleted.
Do you have a size guide?
On each product in the store, there will be a link to the garment it has been printed on. There you will find a size guide.
How long does delivery take?
Delivery dates and times will vary depending on delivery address and country.
For information on delivery timescales, please visit our Delivery page.
However, if you’re worried your parcel is missing, please allow 10 days for UK deliveries or 3 weeks for international deliveries. If your parcel still has not arrived, please contact us via admin@blackwaterstudios.co.uk or our quick contact and we will investigate the issue.
Do you delivery to my country? How much is delivery?
We currently ship worldwide, and the cost is dependent on Royal Mail’s International Zones. To find out more, please visit our Delivery page.
How can I be sure that I've made my purchase correctly?
Once you have placed your order, you will receive a confirmation email. If you do not receive an email, contact our customer service – admin@blackwaterstudios.co.uk
Why might my credit card be refused?
Your credit card may be refused for any of the following reasons:
- The card may have expired. Check that your card is still valid.
- You may have reached your credit limit. Contact your bank to check that you have not exceeded the authorized purchase limit.
- You may have entered some information incorrectly. Check that you have filled in all the required fields correctly.
What if i'm not in when my delivery arrives?
If you’re not in when the courier arrives, they will try to leave your parcel with a neighbour or in a safe place around your property. They may attempt to re-deliver the next working day (excludes Sundays & bank holidays). If this isn’t possible, they will leave a card explaining how to arrange re-delivery.
If you have any delivery requests you can state these during the order process. If you need to do this after the order has been placed, please contact admin@blackwaterstudios.co.uk before the item is dispatched.
Can I amend my delivery address?
You can amend your delivery address before dispatch by emailing us. Once your order has been dispatched, we can’t make any changes to your delivery address and your order will be sent out to you as per your order confirmation.
Can I remove items from my order?
You can delete any unwanted items from your shopping bag as long as the order hasn’t been processed yet.
Can I cancel my order?
Yes. If the order hasn’t dispatched then the order can be cancelled. In this instance, contact admin@blackwaterstudios.co.uk. You will receive an email if your order has been already dispatched.
What should I do if I receive an incorrect item?
In the event of receiving a faulty item or wrong item, please contact us via admin@blackwaterstudios.co.uk or using our quick contact form. You will receive the refund cost of the item, this excludes shipping and handling. You can also choose to have the item replaced. Please note, we only accept refunds for faulty goods within 14 days of receipt.
How long will it take to process a return?
Please allow up to 10 working days for us to receive your items, process your return and confirm your refund amount via email. It may take up 4 weeks for your refund to be returned to you from the date that you post your item/s back to us, and will vary for international returns.
If you’re having any problems returning the item or it has been more than 4 weeks since you sent it, please contact admin@blackwaterstudios.co.uk.