Updated By Teckwrap Craft On May 22, 2024
The Best Shirt For Infusible Ink
Table of Contents
- What Is Infusible Ink?
- How To Use Infusible Ink Sheets?
- Infusible Ink Pens And Markers
- What Shirt Is Best for Infusible Ink?
- Does Infusible Ink Work On A Tri-Blend Shirt?
- Infusible Ink On 40/60 Polyester-Cotton T-Shirt
- Infusible Ink On 65/35 Polyester-Cotton T-Shirt
- Can You Use Infusible Ink On 100% Cotton Shirts?
- Can You Use Black And Dark-Colored Fabrics With Infusible Ink?
- White Glitter HTV With Infusible Ink On 100% Cotton Shirt
- Frequently Asked Questions
The best shirt for infusible ink is one made of polyester and is white, or light-colored! If you still want to learn more about experimenting with the shirts to use with infusible ink, here is a beginner’s guide and we’ll walk you through it. Excited? Let’s get started.
What Is Infusible Ink?
Infusible Ink is a product that allows you to transfer professional prints onto compatible fabrics using a heat source. You just have to follow a few simple steps to apply it. The designs stay beautiful longer and maintain their bright and vivid colors as if they are embedded in your shirt. They don’t crack, peel, or tear off.
You can transfer prints with this method using Infusible Ink Transfer Sheets or through Infusible Ink pens and markers.
How To Use Infusible Ink Sheets?
If you are using the pre-printed infusible ink transfer sheets, you just have to follow these easy steps:
- Finalize your design on the software that comes with your cutting machine. Set the dimensions according to the area where you are planning to place the design. Do not forget to mirror the image.
- Now put the infusible ink sheet on the cutting mat liner side down and load it into the machine.
- Once the design is cut, weed out the extra parts using a tweezer, weeder, or a weeding pen.
- Preheat your polyester shirt to remove moisture and creases and put cardstock between its layers.
- Now place the design where you want it, put butcher paper on top, and apply heat.
- Remove the carrier sheet slowly and your shirt is ready.
Infusible Ink Pens And Markers
With Infusible Ink pens and markers, you draw your design directly onto a sheet of copy paper. Print the outline of your design on the copy paper and color it with infusible ink markers. This design you drew onto the copy paper is transferred onto your polyester shirt using a heat press.
What Shirt Is Best for Infusible Ink?
A 100% polyester shirt is best for Infusible Ink transfers. Truth be told, since Infusible Ink works best on 100% polyester, when this material isn’t available what will work second best is something that has more polyester than other materials. 20/80 cotton-polyester t-shirts work better with infusible ink than a 50-50 poly-cotton blend.
A white shirt will have the best results when using infusible ink. But if you want to get away with white shirts try using light-colored shirts. The darker your designs are the better they will show on your shirts.
Does Infusible Ink Work On A Tri-Blend Shirt?
Infusible ink will work best on tri-blend shirts if the polyester content is high in them. Tri-blend shirts are made with cotton, polyester, and rayon. For infusible ink to transfer well on it, the polyester content should be more than 70%. If it is not, you will face problems while transferring vibrant colors.
Also, the color of the shirt has to be white or any light shade. Infusible ink is transparent. It will not work on dark-colored shirts.
Infusible Ink On 40/60 Polyester-Cotton T-Shirt
So now, what blank T-shirts are you going to use infusible ink on? What if the only shirt available has a 40/60 polyester cotton blend, can you still use it? Yes, you can still print on it, but it won’t stay long. After around three washes it won’t be visible or will just be a shadow of your original design.
Infusible Ink On 65/35 Polyester-Cotton T-Shirt
Using Infusible Ink on a 65/35 polyester cotton will result in a print that looks like it has been washed several times. Since Infusible Ink cannot embed well into non-polymer materials, do not expect the best results with your infusible ink transfer sheet.
Can You Use Infusible Ink On 100% Cotton Shirts?
Sadly, Infusible Ink does not work on a 100% cotton shirt. This is because the Infusible Ink heat-transfer process requires specially engineered polymer or polyester-based substrates.
These substrates are materials manufactured to comply with this special kind of ink as a permanent bond and work best on white or light-colored surfaces with high polyester count.
But for instance, if you want to design 100% cotton t-shirts and you really want to use infusible ink, you must use Cotton Infusible Ink Solution spray on them. For example, if you are designing a kid’s shirt with infusible ink transferring their favorite cartoon character, you will have to saturate the area where you want the design with the solution first giving it a polyester-like coating. This helps in transferring the design, however, the print might not come out as vibrant and be as long-lasting as the one on a pure polyester shirt.
- Spread your fabric on a flat surface.
- Preset your Cotton Infusible Ink Solution spray to “fine mist” to ensure that it will not soak your fabric.
- Saturate the area where you’re going to transfer the image.
- Be sure it’s not soaking with the solution. You don’t want that. You just want a fine mist.
- Dry the fabric that has been misted by hanging the t-shirt.
- Repeat this whole process again then transfer the infusible ink design.
Can You Use Black And Dark-Colored Fabrics With Infusible Ink?
White or light-colored polyester shirts are more submissive to infusible ink transfer. If you are designing garments for men and want the infusible ink decal to be applied directly on a black or dark-colored shirt, it will not show up. However, a technique called layering has been discovered that has made this process possible and easier. In this, the Infusible ink design is put on the white heat transfer vinyl layer and it works!
This way, let’s say if you are applying an infusible ink design on a dark navy blue shirt for boys, you will have to use white HTV as the base. Follow the steps of applying HTV and then transfer the design to it so that it will show.
- Spread your fabric on a flat surface.
- Preset your Cotton Infusible Ink Solution spray to “fine mist” to ensure that it will not soak your fabric.
- Saturate the area where you’re going to transfer the image.
- Be sure it’s not soaking with the solution. You don’t want that. You just want a fine mist.
- Dry the fabric that has been misted by hanging the t-shirt.
- Repeat this whole process again then transfer the infusible ink design.
White Glitter HTV With Infusible Ink On 100% Cotton Shirt
TeckWrap Craft’s White Glitter HTV on 100% cotton to layer with your infusible ink transfer is a technique that has been around for a while. You can employ this to design shirts and garments for women and girls. You can use any fabric and it will work just fine since you’ll be applying infusible ink on the white glitter HTV not on the shirt itself.
- Prepare the shirt by pre-pressing it then cut the mirrored image on the HTV and the infusible ink transfer sheet.
- Place the HTV first and press at 385°F for 15 seconds.
- Peel off the carrier sheet then carefully put the infusible ink design over it face down.
- Put butcher paper on top and press again for 40 seconds.
- A brilliant print will be transferred onto your HTV. You’ll be surprised how this technique works!
For women who like a slight dose of shimmer in their outfits designed using infusible ink, this is the best way. You can create partywear and glamorous shirts using Glitter HTV as the base.
Frequently Asked Questions
Final Word
Hence it is concluded that the best shirt for infusible ink is the one made with 100% polyester. If you are using a poly/cotton or tri-blend shirt, the polyester content should be up to 80% for the designs to transfer well and stay vibrant.
For the best results, work with premium quality infusible ink sheets or markers and use the right fabric. If you are using HTV as your base, visit TeckWrap Craft for eye-catching, high-grade white heat transfer vinyl.
