How to Use T-Shirt Transfer Paper
While t-shirt screening is the generally accepted commercial method of printing t-shirts, people who want to make amateur t-shirt designs can also use t-shirt transfer paper. Entrepreneurs have even started their small businesses by printing unique designs and sayings on t-shirts made using transfer paper.
Things You'll Need
- T-Shirt transfer paper InkJet printer Image design software (like Adobe Photoshop) Blank T-shirt X-Acto knife and cutting board
Instructions
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Format your design on your computer so that it can be printed on T-shirt transfer paper. To do this, you will need to "mirror" the image. This means you have to flip the image horizontally. This is done easily in Photoshop; just click Image>Rotate Canvas>Flip Horizontal.
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Print a tester sheet of regular paper into your printer that is marked on one side. Print a draft of the image on this sheet to see which side the image is printed on. This will tell you how to place the T-Shirt transfer paper into your InkJet printer properly.
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Wash your hands and carefully place the T-Shirt transfer paper into your printer so that the transfer side is going to be printed. When you print the image on your computer, choose the highest quality setting so that you can get a clear picture.
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Allow the image to sit for a few minutes after it has printed. Eliminate extra white space by placing the paper on a cutting board and using a sharp X-Acto knife. The paper needs to be cut straight or else it will look crooked when transferred to the shirt.
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Turn on your iron to a normal cotton setting and allow it to heat up completely. Place the T-Shirt transfer paper face down on the T-Shirt and adjust it so that it is just right. Slowly place the iron on top and glide it across from side to side. Allow the iron to linger in all spots for at least a few seconds. Sit the iron on the corners and edges slightly longer than anywhere else.
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Allow the sheet to cool completely for at least ten to fifteen minutes. Slowly pull the backing of the transfer paper up from one corner until all you see is the transferred image. Allow the T-Shirt to cool for a few minutes longer before handling or wearing.
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Tips & Warnings
If you need to do more than one T-Shirt transfer, start an assembly line. Grab a buddy and set it up so that one person is printing and cutting, and the other person is ironing.
Don't rip the paper backing off too quickly; it could leave cracks in the transferred image that will make the shirt look cheap.
