[patamon]

My daughter is autistic and i hand design ties for her cause she thinks theyre cool and she wears them and uses them as a communication tool.
I wanna make more, streamline it and sell these.

Now from what ive read and seem to understand the material im looking at in the ties(polyester/different blends/silk imitation, dont know why but all the websites where id purchase bulk ties from arent listing specific materials/blends)
Would water based inks work?
I Would like to use water based b/c my customer: considering the item going in the mouth and soft hand feel option of using the same inks for shirts. Two birds one ink sorta thing.
Other forms of ink dont seem possible because they need to be heated so high and that doesnt or isnt recommended with the materials theyre made out of, From what im gathering correct me if wrong?
My friends old tenant left some stuff and i bought it off him. considering i already have a press some screens heat gun and lamp, can i use what i have to make my idea work? Do i need different ink?
does this work for my project? Anyone printed on similar materials? what would you do in my shoes?

 

[NoXid]

Hmmm, well, if you could ensure that you were going to be working with 100% polyester, dye sublimation would probably be the way to go. Need an inkjet printer, dye sub ink for it, dye sub transfer paper, and a heat press. We are talking about "blank" ties, right? If they already have a pattern/print on them, it may well be dye sub itself ... so not sure if could dye sub again without messing that up. But if blank and 100% polyester, should work well.

 

[patamon]

Thank you! Yes they would be one solid color i just got some for test prints and they are 100% polyester.

 

[patamon]

Thank you! yes 100% polyester solid color ties. Ill loo i to the dye sub thanks so much and sorry if i triple

 

[patamon]

Thank you! yes 100% polyester solid color ties. Ill loo i to the dye sub thanks so much and sorry if i triple

 

[patamon]

Thank you! yes 100% polyester solid color ties. Ill loo i to the dye sub thanks so much and sorry if i triple

 

[NoXid]

Note that they need to be White, or at least light in color. Dye sub cannot print white, so the garment has to provide the white, just like printing a photograph on photographic paper.

 

[americantailor]

Would it be possible to print on silk? I have been trying to find information on this topic. What is my best option for transferring designs in illustrator to silk. Thanks!

 

[patamon]

Note that they need to be White, or at least light in color. Dye sub cannot print white, so the garment has to provide the white, just like printing a photograph on photographic paper.

thanks for the info . i like the idea of sublimation ink but id want to do a print system that can do both 100 cotton and 100 poly,i know i want the world right?
i think im going to try jnkjet heat transfers for the poly ties and ill see how it goes and post my results here for anyone else. id like to note that the polyester of the ties is very different to athletic polyester shirts so im also hesitant to step into dye sub for that reason.

as for the question about printing on silk since ive been looking into ties i havent found much of anything on it and what i have seen says it can be a very stubborn and hard to work with fabric from what ive read delicate and doesnt like heat. i did find a video on YT and they were printing on ties with water based inks and had excellent results it was for a go fund me but they didnt reach their goal so i guess we cant check it our or ask them what they used. :/
(YT accidental gentlemen)

 

[webtrekker]

Hi. Dyesub 100% polyester ties are definitely the way to go if you want something soft to the touch as the inks are embedded in the polyester fibres of the tie and not laid on top like scrern prints or inkjet heat transfers.

Have you considered ordering some white polyester material, printing your design on it, then cutting and sewing it yourself? The advantages are that you can use different grades of material, cut different sizes and shapes, and are very cost-effective. Ties are very easy to sew together and there are ample youtube videos showing the process.