Why we do not print WHITE ink on Swedish Dishcloths

Why we do not print WHITE ink on Swedish Dishcloths

December 06, 2022

We have been asked why we do not print White ink on Swedish Dishcloths, and others do.

We are printers, we do not rely on 3rd party printers for our designs, they are all produced in-house.  In fact, to our knowledge, we are the only main-stream Swedish Dishcloth supplier that does in fact print their own designs without relying on 3rd party screen printers.

When a company relies on contract printers, the printers simply print what is requested of them regardless of the understanding of what is going on.

Swedish Dishcloths unique composition makes them super absorbent.  This is ONE of the awesome benefits of them over paper towels.

Knowing this, it is important to understand the actual printing process, and what is being used to create the prints. 

Water based ink colors are created by the addition of dye suspended in solution.  Colors (not white) are absorbed by the cloth, and the cloth fibers themselves are dyed to the actual color printed.  The fibers retain their natural absorbent properties.

White ink on the other hand is not a dye, it is titanium dioxide in suspension.  Titanium dioxide does not "dye" cloth fibers, instead it adheres itself to surface of the fibers as a "layer" or surface coating vs. being absorbed into the fibers.

White ink on a Swedish Dishcloth creates a barrier between any liquid and the core fibers.  When used, fibers coated with white are not able to absorb liquid.  

White ink printed on a Swedish Dishcloth dramatically degrades the absorbent properties of the cloth as a whole.  The more white ink, the less absorbent the cloth is which defeats on the main features of a Swedish Dishcloth.

SWEDEdishcloths has never printed white on its cloths, and never will.  Our designs are secondary to the core purpose of a Swedish Dishcloth and by utilizing well thought out graphics that do not require white, our Swedish Dishcloths perform 100% to their original intent.

If you have any questions relating to the manufacture of the actual cloth material, or the production process, please feel free to email us, we would love to answer any questions you may have.