Heat printing is already one of the fastest decorating methods out there–there’s really no other way to print 10 personalized jerseys, with individual names and numbers in under 10 minutes. But sometimes even the best heat printers are tempted to take short cuts. Here are my top two heat printing short cuts you should try to avoid and why.
Pre-heating your shirt before you apply your graphics can be crucial to proper application! Don’t skip this step, especially in the humid summer months!
1. SKIPPING THE PRE-HEATING: Sometimes you just don’t want to take those extra few seconds and pre-heat the shirt before you apply the graphic. In fact, you may have applied hundreds of shirts this way and never had a problem. However, keep in mind that pre-heating to release moisture and fabric finishes can sometimes be crucial to the success of your application. Especially in the summer, when there is more humidity in the air. Even the best adhesives can’t stick to water. So take those few extra seconds and pre-press your fabric before arranging your graphic.
2. NOT MEASURING: You’ve probably all seen the sad baseball player that had to tuck his shirt in and unfortunately half of his number became invisible. Applying graphics too low is a common heat printing mistake. To avoid this, take a few extra seconds to measure the proper placement. One handy trick is to use your fingers. Just measure 2-3 fingers down from the neckline when positioning names or numbers. If you’re not sure, always err on the high side. Graphics that are placed to low, whether it’s a name and number combination or a left chest design will just look unprofessional. For more measuring and placement tips and ideas, click here.
When positioning a Left Chest design, your best bet is usually 3.5″ to 4″over from center’s edge and 6″ to 8″ down from the seam of the shoulder. Even expert “eye-ballers” should take care to make sure the graphic is not too low, especially important when printing on shirts for women.
For more heat printing application tips and tricks from experienced heat printers here at Stahls’, click here.
I want to second that first one. When I started in heat transfer, we had huge issues with garments getting returned because the prints were peeling off. Finally I read the instructions that came with it and showed my boss that it said to prepress the garment, and returns dropped like a rock. Huge difference in performance with that one step.