What is Transfer Printing and How Does it Work?

Transfer printing is a type of mass-production method that includes the application of an image onto a curved or otherwise uneven surface. Most commonly, transfer printing is used for the printing of porcelain as well as other hard-surfaced pottery.

Transfer printing has been around for many years as a means of engraving and printing symbols and pictures on difficult to manage surfaces.

Prior to its invention, images could only be painted onto these curved surfaces by way of hand painting.

In the promotional industry often business gifts and other promotional items are transfer printed by way of water transfers or other transfer printing methods.

Often when the logos are CMYK or full colour process a transfer printing method will be used…

How does Transfer printing work?

Basically, how the process works is an image is printed or copied in some form onto a specific kind of special coated paper that is used exclusively for transferring.

This printed paper is placed face down onto the fabric material and then heat is applied, usually by steaming or some sort of oven or iron.

  • The image is transferred in a reverse form to that fabric.
  • One kind of paper works with ink jet type printers and the additional paper can work with colour copiers. Though one paper must be used with its chosen apparatus, as interchanging they can seriously damage one or the other apparatus.
    Then the fabric is applied to the surface that needs to be printed upon.
  • Heat is applied again and the image takes shape on that surface.
  • The heat that is applied makes the colour’s adhesive materials reshape and come off of the fabric, then bonding to the harder material of the pottery.
    This process can be used with other media instead of pottery, but it must be a harder surface in most cases such as metals, woods and so forth. Otherwise the heat of the image can burn or damage the material.
  • This process is often confused with iron printing which is used most commonly on shirts and articles of clothing for temporary picture creation.
  • However, these two processes are much different in accordance with the different temperatures that are applied to one or the other.
  • Transfer printing is a relatively simple process that does not take much effort, just the right kind of materials.
 

transfer printed tshirtsWhat products can be transfer printed?

Anything from promotional USB flash drives to printed t-shirts can be personalised using a transfer printing method.

Baring in mind that items that are sensitive to heat may be less likely to have the ability to transfer print onto them.

You can however use a water transfer process if the promotional items are not porous.

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