what is sublimation ?
Peoples mostly ask “what is sublimation printing and what does sublime mean”? Sublimation is a procedure of transferring the specific design/graphic printed on a special paper and then transfer to fabric through a heat machine. Your design however it’s a vector or a high res image it will be first printed on a piece of paper and then put on fabric and apply heat by this process ink from paper go into fabric and become part of it and then the paper is removed.
Process of Sublimation
Ever wonder how your athletic jersey was made? Here is a step-by-step look into the process of sublimation printing for sportswear:
1. Drafting the design for sublimation prints
In order to create a batch of jerseys with sublimation printing, the graphics for each individual part of each garment need to be designed. The jerseys will be sewn together from separate pieces of fabric: front, back, arms, and cuffs. A master layout containing the graphics for each part of each garment is created. This is the file that will be used to print the transfer paper.
2. Printing the design onto transfer paper with sublimation inks
Using a specialized digital printer, the design is printed onto a large ream of transfer paper using specialized sublimation inks. The inks are liquid within the cartridge, but are formulated to become solids especially quickly once printed.
3. The sublimation process
Once the transfer paper has been printed with the design, the ream of transfer paper is aligned with a bolt of polyester fabric so that the printed side is facing the fabric. The transfer paper and the fabric are then fed into a heated roller.
The sublimation process takes place within this heated roller. Through a combination of pressure and heat (between 350 and 420 degrees Fahrenheit), the solid sublimation ink on the transfer paper becomes so hot that it evaporates and diffuses before it even has a chance to melt. This intense heat also opens the pores of the polyester fabric, allowing the ink vapor to work its way deep into the fabric.
