Di you know you can tell more about a person’s personality by what they wear or the kind of print they have on their t-shirts? Heat transfer papers give you the chance to create or custom make any fabric design you want. The interesting part is that you can easily achieve this in the comfort of your home. Using heat transfer papers and inkjet printers requires no trained skills to achieve great results. Anyone can do it, provided you have the knowledge to handle a printer. Here you will find out what heat transfer papers are and what options are there.
What is it?
It is a fabric sticker that you can use to print any design using your home inkjet printer. After printing, you can then transfer the image onto the types of fabric that have 100% natural content, for instance, cotton fabrics. The paper is a special heat transfer technology that uses heat to fuse the printed design onto the fabric. All it requires is pressing using a hand iron or heat press.
How Does the Paper Work?
The paper has a typical base paper overlaid with a silicone release layer and another transfer release layer with an inkjet receiving solution coating. The coating can bear high-resolution printing of text and images. The upper layer of the heat transfer paper is heat sensitive, and when put under a high heat source, it melts. The photo or text is printed onto the fabric by releasing it from the backing base paper that melts into the fabric. The heat source must have enough heat and enough time for the process to be successful during the process.
What are the Heat Transfer Paper Options?
The paper comes in different options; cream or pastel for the light-colored fabrics, light t-shirt printing paper for the white fabrics, and dark paper, which is for the dark and black fabrics. These different options use the same technique, an ironing box with 1400w or higher or a heat press machine. If you are using the ironing box, you will need a solid surface that is heat resistant for a worktop. You will use this surface to press down hard when need be. Also, make sure the material receiving the image transfer can withstand the temperature of the iron or heat press.
When you buy heat transfer papers, you will get them with a set of instructions. The instructions will spell out if you can use an iron or a heat press machine. When using the heat transfer papers, make sure the image you intend to transfer is first printed transverse left to right. You then trim around the image roughly as you position it face down on the receiving fabric.
When using heat transfer papers, it is vital to cut as close to the image as possible. It is best to use a cutting machine; you can also use pair of scissors steadily. Also, before you get into the transfer work, do some experimenting with a small cut-off from the paper on a small piece of the natural fabric you plan to use. This will help you set the correct temperature setting and pressure to achieve the best outcome.