What are Sublimation Shirts – Sublimation on Shirts

If you are a shopaholic like me, I can bet my life on the fact that there is a pile of old t-shirts that went out of fashion. Because you got new ones and completely forgot about them. And now, you must be looking for ways to recycle them so that you can somehow wear those comfy cotton shirts with more style than they are currently present in.

what are sublimation shirts

One way to do this is by sublimating all those shirts with your favorite brand logos or characters. Now the question is what are sublimation shirts and how to convert one of your own into one? So, here is a detailed sublimation printing process for shirts. If you are interested, feel free to give it a read.

What Are Sublimation Shirts – T shirt Sublimation

What Is Sublimation Printing on Shirts?

Sublimation printing is an amazing form of printing in which you don’t just print a paper but a t-shirt, handkerchiefs, cups, goblets, plates, and so on using heat. In this process, you are required to use certain tools that are specified for sublimation printing for example sublimation printer, inks, paper, etc. To begin the process, you have to print the design onto a sublimation paper using the printer. Then tape that paper facing down onto the shirt you want to sublimate and put it in the heat press machine. In this way, you can recycle your old worn out shirts.

How to Do Sublimation On Shirts?

Making sublimation t-shirts is a fun way to pass time, however, you can also turn this little pass time into a full-fledged business. It is a very simple process but you will have to pay attention to each and every step of this process. If it is your first time because however easy it may be, there is a high chance that you may end up messing up everything. But the good news is that this process does not involve any technical steps which mean that none of this information is hard to retain. So, let’s get started!

Step # 1: Gather Up Everything You Need!

First thing, before starting what are sublimation shirts, you need to acquire everything you are going to need for this process. And in my opinion, this is the only difficult step in this entire process because it involves a lot of procrastination and budget limitations. In any case, you are going to need a sublimation printer, sublimation ink cartridges, sublimation paper, a heat press machine, and heat resistant tapes. Apart from that, you will need plain cotton or polyester t-shirts.

Step # 2: Selection Stage

I call this step the selection stage because this is the part of the process where you will have to select the image you want to sublimate on the shirt. Feel free to search on google and find something unique. Once you find what you want, simply download the image and edit it as per your requirements. Meanwhile, prepare your printer by attaching the cartridges, and fill the paper tray with sublimation papers. Once satisfied with everything, hit print to get a printout. The image will appear dull because of ink paper incompatibility but don’t panic and wait till the end.

Step # 3: Tape It!

Now, you need to iron your shirt so that you can get all the wrinkles out. It is very important because wrinkled shirts don’t give the best sublimation results. After that, put the printed page facing down onto the shirt and secure it with heat resistant tape so that it will not move when you put it in the heat press machine.

Step # 4: Heat It!

Finally, you are ready to put the shirt inside the heat press machine. But before that, you will have to preheat the heat press machine to four hundred degrees Fahrenheit. After that, set the shirt inside the heat press machine carefully and then cover it with butter paper. Let it sit for five to ten minutes before releasing the heat press shutter. I strongly advise you to not touch the shirt until it cools down. Once everything cools down, just peel off the sublimation paper. You have done it.

FAQs

Sublimation t-shirt printing is a kind of printing in which you can print your favorite designs, logos, and characters directly onto the shirts. This process involves a series of steps that you can perform to get the desired results. First, you will have to get all the equipment needed like sublimation printer, sublimation paper, ink cartridges, heat press machine and tape. Then, download the design you want to sublimate onto your shirt and print it onto the shirt using sublimation inks. After that, stick this printout facing down onto the shirt and put it inside the heat press machine for forty minutes to transfer the design onto the shirt.

The standard size of a shirt for sublimation printing is nine to ten inches in width. However, you can also work outside of this constraint but you will have to measure the width of that shirt first and then edit the size of the image on the computer. This will save you from the disastrous effects of a small shirt and a large print that won’t fit the width of the shirt.

You will need a separate printer for sublimation. You can use a regular printer for this purpose as well if you cannot afford to buy a separate printer for sublimation printing. However, you won’t be able to use this printer for any other purpose later on.

Final Thoughts

So, now you all know exactly how to do sublimation printing on shirts. It is really a very easy process. You will just have to be a very good student and learn all the steps in the first go so that you won’t have to ask anybody again in the future. However, if you ever get stuck, feel free to refer back to this article. All the best!

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