Spot Color Separation?

[creativegal5]

I'm going to be working on some t-shirt designs. I was told that they need to be spot color separated. I'm going to be using Illustrator CS3. How would I go about doing this? Thanks!

[WannaBrie]

swatches>open swatch libraries> choose pantone coated, uncoated, etc...

[creativegal5]

So would I need to separate the colors I use onto their own layers? Am I making this more complicated than it is? I've never done t-shirt designs before. :confused:

[Craig B]

You don't have to make separate layers for your colors, but they should be PMS colors. Avoid transparencies.

[panzer]

do all your work then save as eps DCS 2.0

im not 100% but i think this will seperate all your colours

so the person who receives them will get it how he wants

it will do cmyk but will also add spot colours as well
(he gets all the plates he needs then)

http://www.cedesign.com/html/zigerpawz.htm

[urstwile]

I don't think it needs to be DCS EPS in order to work, at least I've never used that format when going to silkscreening.

You just need to make sure that each color you use is able to separated by the silkscreener as a distinct color. And as CraigB said, avoid transparencies.

Also, who told you it needed to be spot color separated, was it the printer? If it wasn't the printer, then make sure to check with them first before you start designing.

[panzer]

i just tried it
yes it does do what i said
sometimes people would rather work with spot colours than cmyk
this might have to do with peoples and different programme calibrations
etc

what i mean Urst is the end file

i know its not the only format that does it
but it works good on our plate maker etc
again i dont know about screen printing etc

but you do get all colours seperated etc

[creativegal5]

It wasn't the printer that told me the designs needed to be spot color separated. I'll ask to make sure that all he meant was to use PMS colors. Thanks for your suggestions:)!

[urstwile]

Panzer, I wasn't saying it was a bad choice, by the way, just that I've never had to use it for silkscreen stuff.

I have used that format, however, when I have a Photoshop file that needs spot colors as well. :)

[creativegal5]

Thanks again for all your help, now I'm wondering... does it make a difference if I use coated or uncoated?

[urstwile]

Check with the printer. The real issue is how the color will look on whatever color fabric the t-shirts are being printed on.

[panzer]

yes coated and uncoated is what the colour is supposed to look like on that on that (damn cant think of word) on that stock

pick uncoated in the programme

as urst said above etc (always check with your printer he doesnt mind usually happy actually)

[creativegal5]

Okay I was trying this out (eps DCS 2.0) but, I don't see where to save it as that file type. I'm using Illustrator CS3 and I don't see an option for DCS 2.0 after I select EPS. Help.

[urstwile]

To the best of my knowledge, it's not available out of Illustrator. Which is partly why I initially said I didn't think you needed to go there.

In Photoshop, you need the DCS EPS format in order to get spot colors. This is not, however, a problem with Illustrator, which lends itself quite easily to using spot colors.

[creativegal5]

Thanks, that makes sense :)

[urstwile]

Cool!

Are you getting a better handle on what you need to do to set your file up properly? Did you talk to the printer?

[creativegal5]

So I'm basically going to use PMS colors and keep the design simple. Also, take into consideration the fabric for the shirts (cotton) and the color. So, for t-shirt designs do designers usually submit the original file for print (Illustrator)?

[urstwile]

Again, that's going to be up to what your printer requires. However, I usually do submit Illustrator files, but I also sometimes submit PDF's. It all depends on the printer's requirements. :)

[panzer]

oops not on illy :s