Advice on sublimating clothing.

[cook_58]

So my brother in law is wanting some t-shirt and a couple hoodies made up for his business.

I have a clam press.

He is wanting the business details on navy blue/dark grey clothing. Hes not wanting anything lighter.

I havent yet used the press or printed on to clothing yet but have been doing mugs.

From what I've been reading up on etc. That you can't really sub to dark clothing.

So if I was to do somthing like business t shirts etc, and cant sublimate to them what other route would you advise going down in the future?

Transfers, vinyl etc?

Cheers in advance!

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[webtrekker]

HTV (heat transfer vinyl) is certainly a good contender for business clothing. You would need a vinyl cutter.

Other methods include heat transfers, such as Neenah Jet-Opaque, papers from The Magic Touch, etc, or DTG (direct to garment) printing which involves a large initial outlay and needs constant maintenance and enough orders to keep it running every day.

Screen printing, again involving a large outlay and steep learning curve, produces great results, but is not cost-effective for small runs. If you are to be repeating the same designs year on year, or have a large enough run of a single design then you may want to look into having plastisol transfers made which you can then apply just using your heat press, providing a print virtually identical to a screen print without the expense and hassle of running your own screen printing equipment.

[cook_58]

Awesome. Thanks. Screen printing is on the cards a wee bit down the road and also drag a bit further down the road Haha. Cheers.

Was thinking of the heat transfers and getting a cutter already.

But I'll look at other options as well.

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[cook_58]

The HTV does that go on any clothing, do you apply a spray first then transfer it on?

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[webtrekker]

HTV is simply very thin vinyl that comes on a plastic carrier sheet. You simply 'kiss-cut' your design (ie. cut only through the vinyl and not the backing sheet) then 'weed' away the unwanted parts of the vinyl. Your design must be flipped before cutting so that it's the right way round when laid on your garment for pressing. No sprays are needed, the vinyl adheres to the garment fibres under heat and pressure. The results are long-lasting and can be washed many times without any ill effects.

Note that there are basically two main types of vinyl: HTV for garments, and Sign Vinyl, which has adhesive on the back and is used for signs, window signs and vehicle wraps, so be careful you buy the correct type.

You can buy vinyl from many outlets, but as a guide to what's available check out MDP Supplies here - https://www.mdpsupplies.co.uk/Default.asp Make sure you look in the 'Clothing Vinyl' section for HTV.

Generally, vinyl comes in solid colours or patterns, so is no good for photographic designs or designs with smooth gradients, but different colours can be 'layered' on top of each other for effect (make sure use the same types of vinyl when layering).

Once you have a cutter this will open up a world of possibilities. Vinyl is relatively cheap and easy to work with and produces professional results. Of course, depending on the complexity of your designs, weeding can become a bit of a chore if you have many garments to do, but it is very effective for small to medium runs and one-off's. Vinyl has a 'hand,' or 'feel' to it, especially on full chest designs so for something with no hand you'd need to consider sublimation, which is a whole other ball game, and you'll find plenty of threads a about getting started in here.

[cook_58]

HTV is simply very thin vinyl that comes on a plastic carrier sheet. You simply 'kiss-cut' your design (ie. cut only through the vinyl and not the backing sheet) then 'weed' away the unwanted parts of the vinyl. Your design must be flipped before cutting so that it's the right way round when laid on your garment for pressing. No sprays are needed, the vinyl adheres to the garment fibres under heat and pressure. The results are long-lasting and can be washed many times without any ill effects.

Note that there are basically two main types of vinyl: HTV for garments, and Sign Vinyl, which has adhesive on the back and is used for signs, window signs and vehicle wraps, so be careful you buy the correct type.

You can buy vinyl from many outlets, but as a guide to what's available check out MDP Supplies here - https://www.mdpsupplies.co.uk/Default.asp Make sure you look in the 'Clothing Vinyl' section for HTV.

Generally, vinyl comes in solid colours or patterns, so is no good for photographic designs or designs with smooth gradients, but different colours can be 'layered' on top of each other for effect (make sure use the same types of vinyl when layering).

Once you have a cutter this will open up a world of possibilities. Vinyl is relatively cheap and easy to work with and produces professional results. Of course, depending on the complexity of your designs, weeding can become a bit of a chore if you have many garments to do, but it is very effective for small to medium runs and one-off's. Vinyl has a 'hand,' or 'feel' to it, especially on full chest designs so for something with no hand you'd need to consider sublimation, which is a whole other ball game, and you'll find plenty of threads a about getting started in here.

Thank you!

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