Garment Decoration – Page 2 – Coastal Business Current

How to Create Multi-Colored Shirts with Heat Transfer Vinyl

Getting started with garment decorating can be a headache at first, especially when presented with so many heat transfer options.That’s why we are showing you one of many solutions for creating an intricate design with screen-print softness using heat transfer vinyl on a 100 percent cotton shirt.

Follow along as we show you how to use Xpress Cut heat transfer vinyl, one of our favorite vinyl brands for T-shirts. Xpress Cut is also a great product for new businesses due to its easy weeding capability with a sticky backing. This vinyl can be cut with any cutter but in this case, we are using the Graphtec CE6000 24″ vinyl cutter. Our Graphtec line of cutters are perfect for small and large jobs alike! They are incredibly fast, quiet and easy to set up.

In this tutorial, we are using Graphtec’s Cutting Master 3 plug-in for Adobe Illustrator CC. If you already have your design ready, feel free to skip to step 2!

Step One: preparing the design for cutting

Here we have our finished design in Adobe Illustrator CC. Illustrator is our favorite tool for creating vinyl designs, but Corel Draw and Graphtec Studio are alternatives. We chose to color the design to match the vinyl we are going to use. Doing this can save you headaches when it comes to cutting and applying the vinyl. Now it’s time to send our design to Cutting Master!

Open Cutting Master through Illustrator by going to File and clicking on Cutting Master 3 (or the version of Cutting Master that you have installed). This will open your design in a new program.

The Cutting Master plug-in pulls the design from Illustrator in its original vector format with the separate colors we previously set. The program automatically recognizes that there are two different colors and makes it incredibly easy to toggle between them. Not every program can do this. That’s why we love Cutting Master! Now it’s time to cut!

Tip: Don’t forget to mirror the design (flip horizontally) because heat transfer vinyl is always cut on the back side and later placed upright on the garment. This can be done in Illustrastrator or inside Cutting Master. In Cutting Master 3, go to Page Window and select your Mirror setting from the drop down under the Orientation section.

Step Two: time to cut!

Before sending the design to the vinyl cutter, we need to set the blade depth and speed correctly for this specific vinyl media to get optimal results. We used the following settings for Xpress Cut on Graphtec CE6000:

Speed: 20 cm/s
Depth: 14

Load the vinyl with the back adhesive side (usually the duller matte side) facing up.

Tip: Perform a test cut if your machine allows it prior to sending your design to the cutter. Over time, the cutting blade can dull and the depth setting may have to be increased.

Step Three: weed away

Grab your favorite weeding tool (here’s ours) and weed away the excess vinyl. This stage can be sometimes the most time-consuming part of the process.

Tip: When designing, the more connected your lines are with each other, the easier it will be to weed.

Step Four: Pressing Stage

Xpress Cut is easy to layer and requires little time and low temperature, making it a great heat transfer vinyl to use on cotton, polyester, rayon and other blends. We are placing our design on a dark 100 percent cotton shirt.

We are applying the orange vinyl first because it outlines the entire design and makes it easy for the next layer to line up. Set up the heat press machine to 305 – 310 F° when using 100 percent cotton shirts.

Use the following settings to press the design:

First layer – Three to five seconds with medium pressure, peel hot
Second layer (final layer) – Ten seconds with medium pressure, peel hot

For the best pressing settings for your material, visit our Xpress Cut support page!

Helpful Tip: Use a foam pillow underneath or inside your shirt to raise the transfer area for a smooth, flat surface. Seams, zippers, wrinkles and other imperfections can throw off the pressure and cause the vinyl to peel later on.

Finished!

After pressing the design, wait 24 hours prior to washing. The finished garment is ready to be worn for many years to come!

Order some Xpress Cut vinyl today and start making custom vinyl shirts with screen print-like softness.

Do you have awesome creations you want to share with us? Use #InspireMeCoastal and tag us (@coastalbusinesssupplies) on Instagram for a chance to be featured on our channel!

The Direct to Garment Process: What Happens If I Don’t Pretreat?

Direct to Garment printing is a revolutionary digital printing method for customer T-shirts which offers the look and feel of screen printing but in a much more simplified process. A T-shirt is simply laid onto the flat bed of the printer and the image is directly printed onto the shirt in full color.

To ensure that the printed image actually shows up on a colored or dark T-shirt however, there are a few extra steps we need to take. The most important step is to always pretreat the garment with “pretreatment” solution. Pretreatment is a milky or clear liquid that acts as a primer base and prevents the ink from soaking into the shirt and disappearing into the fibers. It also helps the water based inks stay put during printing and not mix with each other while still wet. Pretreatment is especially important for the white base that is printed underneath the colors to make them pop!

The pretreatment liquid is applied onto the shirt by either a hand sprayer or a spraying machine , then allowed to air dry or dried under a heat press and finally pressed at 338F for 40-45 seconds at medium pressure to set the pretreatment. The layer should be close to invisible and will completely wash out after the first wash.

What happens if we don’t pretreat the T-shirt?

Nothing good. The white ink soaks right into the T-shirt, leaving the rest of the colors with nothing to sit on top of. The result is a muddy mess due to the rest of the colors soaking further into the fibers and bleeding into each other.

Lesson learned: Always pretreat a T-shirt that is a brighter or darker color (you may be able to pull off a light gray shirt or tinted off-white but that’s about it).

There are a few brands of pretreatment available, but generally the pretreatment liquid and the inks should be the same brand. Our top choice is the Epson SureColor F2000 Pretreatment Liquid which is compatible with the same brand printer and inks. It comes as a concentrate and needs to be diluted with distilled water.

For best results, we recommend using the pretreatment process on any colored shirt. Even light colored garments can show through the design and tint it slightly.

Top 10 Back to School Products For Every Occasion

Summer is almost over and the back to school frenzy is in full blast. Stock up on these great products – they are a must for the new school year! From backpacks to socks, we have you covered.

1. Backpacks

These hot items can be personalized for any age and fashion sense and are highly functional during the school year. Our unisex sublimation backpacks (pictured on left below) come with a full white flap cover for either partial or full sublimation. Already have a backpack that you bought from a store but can’t sublimate on? Heat Transfer Vinyl may be what you are looking for, which is perfect for lettering, logos and school mascots (pictured on right below).

2. Drawstring Bags

Our drawstring bags provide a different option besides a backpack and are fully dye-sublimation friendly made from 100% white polyester (both one sided and two sided bags are available). These would be a cool accessory for sports teams and after school activities, but can be used to make a fashion statement too! They are ideal for middle school students and older as they are somewhat large for a small child.

3. Vinyl

We can’t forget our vinyl which can be applied to cotton, polyester and blends along with other fabrics that can withstand heat of up to 320F. Our vinyl comes in many colors and textures, from standard matte to specialized glitter and flock materials. Add letters, school mascots, quotes and logos to any shirt that can match and even outshine the school spirit clothes offered at the school bookstore. Go a step further and create designs inspired by current trends: animals, motivational quotes, and personal hobbies!

(Vinyl used in photo: Easyweed Silver)

4. Water Bottles

Pick from two styles of waterbottles: stainless steel straw-top and regular removable cap, available in a natural silver/steel finish and glossy white to achieve your desired look. These are ideal for sublimation in a mug press or an oven with a silicone wrap. They are easy to carry from one classroom to another or to any after school program.

5. Socks

100% white polyester socks for front and back sublimation are perfect for youth and adults alike. These come in different sizes as well as lengths. Crew socks, tube socks, knee high socks: we got all the socks for you! For better results, we recommend using a straight jig or a hockey jig, which stretches the sock and allows for sublimation ink to dye maximum surface area, however that is not necessary with the black interior socks (pictured below).

6. Bookmarks

Never lose another page with our custom bookmarks! These are a must, and they are made from durable aluminum and come in a longer 1.5 x 5 in. size (pictured below) as well as 2×3 in. size. The ultra white glossy side is made for quality sublimation results. The days of dog-eared book corners are over!

7. Compact Mirrors

Pretty AND useful: our beautiful mirrors are truly compact at only 2.25 inches and can fit in purses and even smaller pockets. There is a regular mirror on one side and a magnifying mirror on the other and the top cover comes with a separate glossy white sublimation insert that is easy to attach. Square and round shapes are available. Middle school to high school girls would love this great addition to their makeup kit for a midday touch-up or getting ready for a school event.

8. Headbands

Headbands have become a must-have accessory for everyday use to keep those stray hairs away. Our headbands have a satin white finish and a black velvet interior for comfort and slip resistance.The satin finish results in excellent image clarity and vibrancy. The adjustable elastic back allows them to fit most ages from elementary all the way to college. To sublimate, simply unclip the back and lay them flat on the press. Easy and beautiful!

9. Cuff Bracelets

Add the finishing touches to any outfit with custom bracelet cuffs! These Chromaluxe bracelets promise a vibrancy that is equivalent to the gallery worthy photo aluminum panels made by the same company. This year, we have added many more styles and finishes to the list. Now there is a choice between white, gold and silver finishes and multiple shapes and thicknesses.

The bracelet cuffs arrive flat for perfect sublimation and then are curved using our form tool.

10. Arm Sleeves

Vapor’s arm sleeves are still fairly popular, especially among students who play sports but with the right design, these can be worn by just about anybody, regardless of age. They are available in a range of youth and adult sizes for the perfect fit. Their dual function of protection and fashion placed this item on our top 10 list.