Updated By TeckWrap Craft On September 24, 2024
How To Do Sublimation Shirts
Table of Contents
- What Is sublimation?
- Why Is Sublimation Better Than Other Printing Methods?
- Step By Step Guide On How To Sublimate Shirts
- Print The Design
- Cut Out The Edges
- Use A Lint Roller On The Garment
- Follow The Recommended Heat Press Settings
- Pre Press The Shirt
- Secure The Sublimation Paper With Heat Resistant Tape
- Sublimation On Light Colored 100% Polyester Shirts
- Sublimation On Light Colored 100% Cotton Shirts Or Poly Blend T Shirts
- Sublimation On Dark Colored Shirts
- Alternative Option
- Frequently Asked Questions
With a sublimation printer, sublimation paper, and a heat press, you can print bright and vivid images on a shirt. Sounds simple, right? It is! But there’s more detailed information you need to know on how to do sublimation shirts.
When printing the perfect sublimated shirt, there’s a combination of must-do factors like the right temperature, time, pressure, and of course the printer settings.
You should also know that you can’t directly sublimate on a 100% cotton shirt. All of this you will find out as soon you read this helpful guide in sublimation printing on garments.
What Is sublimation?
Sublimation printing is a printing technique that involves transferring a design printed using a regular inkjet printer with sublimation ink, printed into a sublimation paper, and heat pressed into a fabric or a sublimation blank.
With dye sublimation printing, the heat brings the ink and fabric together as one where the ink turns to gas and permanently adheres to the fabric or sublimation blank. Unlike other printing methods like printable HTV or dark transfer paper wherein the paper media also transfers to the shirt.
Why Is Sublimation Better Than Other Printing Methods?
Sublimation printing has plenty of benefits and although this printing technique differs from others, like using heat transfer vinyl or screen printing, it has its own benefits.
Furthermore, as a crafter or perhaps a future business owner of a printing shop, you’ll find sublimation printing an integral part of the printing services you’ll offer. Aside from that, sublimation printing is better than other printing methods because:
- Sublimation transfers do not get transferred on the garment or any other sublimation projects, only the ink.
- The cost of materials is cheaper from ink to sublimation paper.
- You can print on garments, canvas tote bags, sublimation mugs, sublimation ref magnets, and many more sublimation blanks.
- Printing time is faster and easier when printing multi-colored and bright designs. Unlike heat transfer vinyl and screen printing where you need to layer colors.
- Since the ink is infused into the material, the print does not fade or crack over time.
- Less clutter or garbage when sublimation printing because you’ll only need a few materials.
- You can print actual photos and expect them to print on the garment as it is.
However, when sublimating on shirts, there are limitations. The cardinal rule is — you can only directly sublimate on a LIGHT-COLORED POLYESTER SHIRT (at least ⅔ made of polyester). Yes, traditionally, sublimation only works on light-colored garments and polyester shirts.
Supplies Needed
- Sublimation ready printer
- Heat press machine
- Heat-resistant tape
- Scissors or cutter
- Sublimation paper from TeckWrap Craft
- Your shirt of choice
- Teflon sheet or parchment paper
- Lint roller
Step By Step Guide On How To Sublimate Shirts
Following are the detailed instructions on how to sublimate shirts transferring vibrant prints:
Print The Design
The first step is to find a digital image of your design. You can download free images or purchase SVGs, or any other image you want to print. Take care of the following:
- Print designs with the highest image resolution.
- Don’t forget to mirror the image.
- Printer settings: Slowest speed and highest quality.
- Before printing the sublimation paper, make sure you have the correct measurement. The desired print size of the design should not be too small or too big against the garment.
Cut Out The Edges
Once you’re done printing the sublimation paper, the next step is to cut the edges around the design. This will help align the design on the shirt correctly.
Use A Lint Roller On The Garment
The next step is to use your lint roller to run over the print surface of the garment. It is important to remove lint or dust on the garment before sublimating. Why? Two things might happen:
- Specks of dust will also be permanently heat-pressed onto the garment and will look like light blue streaks of print.
- If you sublimate over the lint, the sublimation ink will transfer over it, and not to the garment. When you remove the lint later, you will see tiny unprinted lines on the shirt.
Follow The Recommended Heat Press Settings
Let your print dry before heat application. When sublimating shirts, it is crucial to follow the recommended heat, time, and pressure settings on your heat press machine. These depend on the fabric of your shirt. The generally followed heat press settings for a 100% polyester shirt are 400°F for 35-40 seconds applying medium pressure.
| Fabric | Temperature | Time | Pressure |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polyester | 400°F | 40 seconds | Medium |
| Poly blend | 400°F | 35-45 seconds | Medium |
| Cotton with poly-coating | 380°F | 70 seconds | Medium |
| Cotton or dark-colored shirts with HTV | 380°F | 50 seconds | Medium |
Pre Press The Shirt
Pre-press the shirt for 5 to 10 seconds with light pressure to remove wrinkles and moisture. This is important for a vibrant sublimation print.
Secure The Sublimation Paper With Heat Resistant Tape
Place the sublimation print face down on the shirt where you want it to be and secure it with heat-resistant tape. Place the tape on all corners to make sure the design doesn’t move when heat-pressed.
Sublimation On Light Colored 100% Polyester Shirts
If you are sublimating on a light-colored, 100% polyester shirt, place a Teflon sheet on top and heat-press the design, and that’s it. Once the time is up, let the print cool down before removing the heat-resistant tape and the printed sublimation paper. You will see a beautiful design transferred onto your shirt.
Sublimation On Light Colored 100% Cotton Shirts Or Poly Blend T Shirts
To sublimate on cotton shirts or those with high cotton content, you will have to use sublimation coating spray. It coats cotton fibers with a polyester resin. Apply it generously on the area where you want to place the design. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to sublimate on light-colored 100% cotton and poly-blend shirts:
- After the first pre-press, generously spray the sublimation coating spray over the print surface. Do it two to three times.
- Pre-press again for 5 to 10 seconds.
- Make sure the garment is dry before pressing.
- Press the design on the shirt using the recommended setting and you’re done.
Sublimation On Dark Colored Shirts
To sublimate on dark-colored shirts, you will have to use white glitter heat transfer vinyl as the base material. Here’s the step-by-step guide:
- Using your cutting machine, cut the heat transfer vinyl first. It should be the same size as the sublimation design.
- Apply HTV on the shirt where you want to place the sublimation design.
- Place the sublimation design over the HTV and secure it with heat-resistant tape.
- Apply heat to it and you have successfully sublimated on a dark-colored shirt.
Alternative Option
If you don’t have a cutting machine, there is an alternative option if you want to print on dark-colored shirts. Instead of using heat transfer vinyl and sublimation paper, you can instead use an inkjet heat transfer paper, specifically a dark transfer paper, which is also available in TeckWrap Craft.
Full Sublimation Shirts
- Heat press time: 45-60 seconds
- Heat press temperature: 385°-400°F
- Heat press pressure: Medium pressure
Must-have supplies: Must-have supplies:
- Large format heat press machine
- Large format sublimation printer
- Sewing machine
Are you wondering how full sublimation shirts are made? This one’s a little tricky because this is considered as large format printing. Also, you have to acquire impeccable sewing skills to pull this off. Which means you have to learn how to sew a t-shirt from scratch.
Also, with full sublimation, you can only use light-colored polyester garments, preferably white. You cannot use cotton or poly-blend shirts when creating full sublimation shirts. Full sublimation shirts are usually used for sportswear and office wear. To give you an idea, here are the steps when printing full sublimation shirts:
- Cut out the shirt pattern including the neckline, sleeves, and shoulder seam (front and back)
- Print on a large format sublimation paper (usually sold in yard or roll)
- You’ll also be needing a large-format sublimation printer
- Press the sublimation paper on the shirt pattern (front and back)
Sew together the back and front
This may sound like a straightforward process, but it takes sewing skills, which can be learned over time. You’ll be surprised at how profitable full sublimation shirts can be. Aside from plain old shirts, you can print fully sublimated polo shirts as well.
Alternate Option For Full Sublimation Shirts
If you’re not confident about your sewing skills or do not have enough funds to purchase on large format printers, there’s an alternative option to the one mentioned above. This is what you do if you have a regular 15x15” heat press machine.
It may not be a conventional process, but it may work. Here’s how you can do it:
- Print on a readily-available polyester shirt.
- Using a cardboard box, lay the shirt flat.
- Print the sublimation paper that covers the whole shirt.
- Tape the sublimation paper together in pieces using heat-resistant tape like a puzzle.
- Tape the sublimation over the shirt.
- Press part by part.
- Press the back and the sleeves.
This process may not be the recommended full sublimation printing technique and may cause streaked lines on the shirt. Also, there may be faded parts because of an uneven surface print on the heat press machine. Although this alternative method may work, the conventional method is still preferred.
Frequently Asked Questions
That’s It!
To cap it all off, just a list tip when it comes to printing a sublimation shirt is to use the best sublimation paper from TeckWrap Craft. TeckWrap Craft’s sublimation paper comes in A4 sizes, is fast-dry, and comes with a 98% transfer rate. This means you can expect bright and vivid colors when printed whether be it on a garment or any other sublimation blank.
Other than sublimating on a cotton or polyester shirt, you can also sublimate on canvas tote bags or pouches. For this process, spray a sublimation coating over the canvas garment. Easy is it? Now that you’ve had all these learnings, you can print as many sublimation shirts as you want, may it be for personal use, a gift for loved ones, or perhaps a future business idea.
