Discuss the various aspects of heat press technology. Transfer paper, inks, plastisol transfers, vinyl cutters, printers, commercial usage, durability, suppliers, etc.
ok, lets see............ I've been reading on this forum a little bit now, but now i have my own questions! Anways, I'm wondering what all I need to get started doing heat transfers. this is what i have so far:
Epson c88+ (ink too!)
Heat transfer press
shirts
computer
transfer paper from newmilfordphoto.com
my shirt design.
I think this is all i need right? I know its basic stuff but i'm new to heat transfers!
Also, is there any prep/precautions you guys could give me before I start printing? I'm printing on green shirts...
One last thing...i'm printing on green shirts and my image is white letters...is that possible? will it show up?! or should i make the letters light grey? thanks!!!
the c88 will not print white take one of your paper and print then cut it up and try sample on one of your shirts untel you or happy with it make sure you go with instructions and make notes
On kelly green, you can use the light transfers but keep in mind that it will ahh....blend with the background color, being the shirt itself. It will show up, but it will be a bit darker than if you printed on a white shirt. If you go with the opaque transfer, it will show up more true to color, but the hand is gonna suffer just by the mere fact that you are using a dark transfer in the first place.
ok, makes sense. i'll grab some of the opaque tansfer...i guess i can just test all of em out and see which one looks best and does better in the wash and dry... any more tips?!?!
Yes, if you haven't already, watch a bunch of Lou's videos on Youtube. Alot of great information on there. He has one video that deals specifically with the new ironall for darks, that you may want to check out as well.
What do you think if I print black or dark purple letters onto light paper and press that onto medium pink shirts (azalea), do you think I can get away with trimming the paper into a box around the letters and avoid cutting each letter out?
ok, makes sense. i'll grab some of the opaque tansfer...i guess i can just test all of em out and see which one looks best and does better in the wash and dry... any more tips?!?!
If you get a chance, would you mind posting your wash results? I'm really interested in what happens for you. Thanks.
What do you think if I print black or dark purple letters onto light paper and press that onto medium pink shirts (azalea), do you think I can get away with trimming the paper into a box around the letters and avoid cutting each letter out?
......Maybe. It depends on how close together the letters are, and possibly what font. Keeping in mind that there will definitely be a block around the letters no matter how you do it, if the letters are really spread apart, it wouldn't look right. If they are real close together, you can get away with it, but it's kind of a tossup if you ask me.
I would probably rather save letters for the vinyl cutter, or get some plastisols done if the volume justified it, but if you have to use inkjets for the job....
How many letters are there, and how big? I'm trying to get a mental image here (not easy, as my mind is boggled with a bunch of corporate mumbo jumbo at ther moment) It's do-able, we just gotta figure out what would look most professional.
Well, it's for kids shirts, and it would be the "name" of their toy, so say "Sugar" or "Cupcake". If the letters were filled and pretty boxy, do you think it would show up really well? There would be a window, right? Would the window appear worse on a color shirt than a white shirt?
If the letters are pretty boxy, it would probably work. I think the window would show up only slightly more on a color shirt, but will wash out after a few washes.
I know it is a bit time consuming, but since it is on a small garment, I would just cut the letters out as much as possible, and you shouldn't have too much trouble keeping them lined up like you would on, say, a 3xl or something like that.
Thanks, I think I'm going to give it a try to see what happens.
How many shirts? Well... that depends if I get involved with the elementary schools (developing a fund raiser program with the PTO and they are waiting on my sample and sales poster for the kids.) It could be a few hundred to start (their estimate) with re-orders to follow. The hook is set, but I haven't pulled it yet because I am waiting for the new coastal paper. Trying to get rid of the fade issue before bringing the proposal to the principle of the schools.
My girlfriend is opening a kids store, and she would like shirts stocked there as well, so I have no idea how many sales that will generate, but the same thing - she wants personalized shirts. I guess that volume will depend on her foot traffic and if I outside market the product and direct people to her location.
I have another business, so I have to be careful how far to go with the one. I am looking to get my other girlfriend to take over this while I focus on my real little money maker. PS: I am not a shop or a store, I work from home, so my operations here are as small as the come in this field.
Do you know of an easy to learn - fairly inexpensive - graphics program for personalizing a photo with lettering? (Helps keep this thread on topic - back to lettering..)
new guy...questions of course! 
Re: new guy...questions of course! 
