·  Inkjet or laser printer

·  Artwork/Photograph

·  Heat Transfer paper

·  Heat press (required for certain transfer papers) or a hand iron (hand iron requires hard surface and pillowcase)

·  T-shirt or other item to receive transfer

 

 

The Basics of Heat Transfer:

 

Heat transferring 

begins with an image being printed in reverse (or mirrored) onto a piece of high release transfer paper. The image is usually printed onto the paper with plastisol inks, which are flexible and durable, but normal inks also work well. The transfer is then applied to garments, mouse pads, and other fabric surfaces, by using a heat press or a hand iron. The heat press generally works better by allowing more heat and pressure to assist the transferring process, however, hand irons may be used as long as they can reach temperatures of up to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. The process of transferring an image from the paper to the garment typically takes 15-20 seconds with a heat press (2-4 minutes when using a hand iron) and does not require a drying or curing process once applied. However, please refer to your transfer papers specific instructions included with the paper for the correct transfer instructions.

  

Which Paper to Use: 

 

There are many different types of heat transfer papers available, so it's not unusual to be confused or lost when trying to decide which one is the best for you. The three main ways to determine this is by the type of printer you are using, whether you are printing on light or dark fabrics and, finally, the size of the image. The best way to start is by choosing which is the best for your printer.

 

Laser or Inkjet Paper?

Determine which type of printer you have or are going to purchase: inkjet or laser. Most desktop inkjet, laser, or CLC printer will work -- just call us if you are unsure if your printer will meet the requirements.

 

Inkjet printers have a higher quality print than laser printers with a larger selection of heat transfer papers to choose from. The options range from papers that excel in soft hand, less border, great color and more. Inkjet printers are easy to set up and use and can create amazing prints. Also, transfer papers for inkjet printers are universal; they will work on all inkjet printers. However, inkjets tend to be more expensive when it comes to printing and ink replenishing.

 

Laser printers are more cost efficient and can print at high speeds when printing hundreds or thousands of pieces. On the downside, laser printers run hot, so transfer papers don't always have a smooth printing process and can easily get jammed. Trial and error is the best way to find a paper that works best with your printer. In order to make the process easier for our customers, we offer two-sheet sample packs of all of our heat transfer papers so you don't have to spend your money on an entire pack of paper that may or may not work. Simply try different types of paper until you find one that will run through your laser printer with ease. (Sometimes, if a particular paper does not work, you may need to merely change to a heavier paper mode on your printer options to accommodate the paper.) One of the more important things you need to know if you are using a laser or CLC printer is whether or not your printer requires fuser oil. Only specific transfer papers will work on printers that use fuser oil.

 

So, in conclusion, when choosing a transfer paper you will need to decide what is more important to you -- color and a soft hand (inkjet) or cost and time efficiency (laser).

 

Light or Dark? Now that you have determined which type of printer you will be using, it's time to decide which paper is right for your project. Different colored fabrics require different types of transfer papers. If you are transferring to a fabric that is white, ash grey, or eggshell colored, a regular heat transfer paper will work fine. For anything other than those colors, you will need to use a transfer paper for dark fabrics, generally referred to as opaque paper. Opaque transfer papers are covered with a white background in order to have your image show up on dark fabric. You are, in essence, printing your image on top of a white layer. Therefore, the opaque paper tends to have a thicker feeling than regular transfer papers. Due to the white background on the opaque paper, trimming around your image is essential to making your item look professional.

 

Size? The last thing to determine is what size paper to use. Standard sizes are 8.5" x 11" (letter-sized) and 11" x 17" (tabloid), but we also carry sizes such as A3 and A4. The easiest way to decide which paper you need is by which size paper your printer will accept. Some smaller printers such as the Epson C88 or C120 will only run an 8.5" wide paper so you would not be able to run an 11" x 17" paper size. Wider format printers such as the Epson 1400 or color copiers can run 11" x 17. It is also important to take into consideration the size of your image and the item you are pressing onto. Although an 8.5" x 11" piece of paper will work great for a small or medium t-shirt, you may need a larger size paper to accommodate large or extra-large shirts.

 

Preparing your artwork: 

The heart of your t-shirt design is the image. You can create original artwork from scratch, customize scanned clip art, or use ready-made designs or even photographs from your digital camera with almost any graphics or creative printing program. However, if you want color consistency and accuracy, we suggest using a program intended for design. Not only will this allow you to use the best available tools to create or enhance your image, but it will also enable you to tweak color settings if necessary.

 

Once your image is ready to be printed you may need to reverse the orientation of the image, depending on the transfer paper being used. If you are using a heat transfer paper for light colors, then you will need to reverse or mirror your image's orientation so that your image prints out backwards onto the paper. This is especially critical if you have text in your design. The text should be backwards on screen or on the print out. Ideally, the program or printing options will have an opportunity for you to reverse the image.

 

Since opaque papers are pressed face-side up, there is no need to print the image backwards.It's always a good idea to print a preview copy of your image before actually printing it on the sublimation paper. You can verify that the image will print correctly, doesn't fall into your no-print zone and is correctly sized, as the on-screen view can be deceiving. Also, remember that the colors you see on your screen will not always be exactly what prints out.

As with any desktop publishing project, consider the color of the item you are pressing when selecting colors for your designs. This is where you may need to decide to use an opaque transfer paper rather than a regular heat transfer paper. Also consider trimming your image before transferring. As with all heat transfer papers, there is a clear background film called "polymer" that will appear around your image after transferring. Trimming will eliminate the majority of the polymer border and create a more professional looking image. It's also important to note that the polymer border will fade away after a few washings and is not a permanent part of the shirt.

 

Test your design on “scratch fabric” before applying it to your final t-shirt or other fabric. Some fabrics may require more heat and pressure than others and may not show off your design as well as you expected. Therefore, it is best to determine the best specifications for pressing before you press your final product.

 

 

Iron-on Transfers: 

In order to make iron-on transfers transfer your image with the best quality, use your iron's hottest cotton setting without steam. It takes extreme heat and pressure to transfer the image evenly and completely to the fabric. This is why most transfer papers work best with a heat press (see below). Some transfer papers, such as laser transfer papers, can't be used with a hand iron. Laser transfer papers require very high heat and heavy pressure so they must be transferred using a heat press. The reason transfer instructions specify using a hard surface is because it helps to hold the heat, whereas ironing boards tend to disperse heat.

 

Heat Presses:  

A heat press is a machine that presses a transfer onto an imprintable substrate. By using high temperatures and heavy pressures for a certain amount of time the transfer is permanently embedded into the product. Heat presses are recommended for professional and satisfying results simply because standard laminating devices and home hand irons cannot reach the temperatures required for a reliable transfer. Standard transfers require anywhere from 350 to 400 degrees F and demand serious force in pressing, often from 40-80 psi. These temperatures and pressures are simply not possible with other heated devices. We categorize our heat presses by the manufacturer-Geo Knight, Hix, Mighty Press, Stahls MAXX, and Hotronix. How do you choose which one is right for you? Here are a few points to think about before you make your purchase:

·  The size of the heat press platen: Depending on the size of your transfer paper, you will need to select your heat press size accordingly. Standard heat press sizes are 9"x12", 11"x15" and 16"x20", with a number of different sized inbetween. If your heat transfer paper is 8.5" x 11", you will need a press that is at least 9" by 12". We also offer mug presses and cap presses so you can create different items with out transfers.

·  "Bells and whistles": Higher end presses will have features such as digital readouts for times, pressure, and temperature, as well as automatic release when the timer goes off. Other, less expensive, presses have manual time controls with analog dials to manage the output. Regardless of the high-end features or not, the heat presses will all get the job done.

·  Clamshell, Swinger or Draw: Our heat presses come in three different forms: Clamshell, which opens and closes like a clam, Swinger, in which the upper heat platen swings away from the lower platen, allowing more space to arrange your items and transfer papers andDraw which literally pulls the lower platen out from the heat press in order to organize your materials. Each of these has their pros and cons, however they all work wonderfully to give your product the professional and finished appearance you are looking for.