Sublimation printing is a multi-million dollar industry and with good reason. The vibrant colors and infinite designs you can make mean that there are infinite possibilities. There is a wide range of products available to sublimate on, from polyester shirts to keychains to home office supplies and so much more. All it takes is some special paper, a regular inkjet printer with minimal modifications, some dye sublimation ink and a heat source. The sublimation printing process is easy once you get set up and is a cost-effective method to make some amazing products.
In this article, I’ll teach you want sublimation printing is, how to get started for cheap and what you can do with it.
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What is Sublimation Printing?
In it’s simplest terms, sublimation is the process of using heat to transfer ink from one source (paper) to another (sublimation product).
Unlike screen printing, which can be expensive and limited in colors that can be used together, sub printing offers full color designs. Production times are also much faster with sublimation than with screen printing. Finally, screen printed designs with fade or crack over time, while sublimation ink becomes one with the material it is placed on, meaning the colors would fade or crack.
Similarly, iron-on vinyl can also have a slower production time than sublimation because of the time needed to cut and weed your images. Vinyl can also crack with age, meaning less longevity when compared to sublimation.
There are million of products fit for sublimation. Some of the more common items include such as tumblers and t-shirts. But there are also items such as:
Regardless of what you are looking to make, sublimation printing is amazing. The images are durable and vibrate and the customization options are endless, making sublimation perfect for small businesses or individuals.
How Sublimation Printing Works
If you want to get really nerdy about sublimation printing, read on. If not, skip this section.
Sublimation printing works by heating the ink from it’s liquid state to a gaseous state, which infuses into the pores of the product you are sublimating. This means that what you’re sublimating becomes a permanent design and won’t fade or wash off. Pretty cool huh?
However, to actually do dye-sublimation printing, you need some specific equipment.
A special printer
To make sublimation printing work, you need a printer capable of printing the special ink used specifically for sublimation. The cool thing about this is you can actually just use a regular inkjet printer with a minor adjustment. It’s WAY cheaper than the alternative. You want a printer with INK TANKS though, not one with cartridges. It also needs to be a printer that has not had regular ink in it. Regular printer ink and sublimation inks DON’T MIX!!!
The Epson printers are my all-time favorite. I have had two (I used the first one for years until it died). The original Epson Ecotank 2800 I used for years worked great until it finally just got old. Then I upgraded to an Ecotank 3850 last year and it has been wonderful.
The process of converting an Epson printer is fairly easy.
- Unbox the printer.
- Throw away the Epson ink bottles that come with it (JK, but move them far far away from where you are working. If you accidentally add the wrong ink, you’re dunzo)
- Follow the instructions to get the printer ready but DO NOT ADD ANY INK
- Get your special sublimation ink, some gloves, a barrier to protect your floors, and slowly add the sublimation ink to the corresponding tank. Magenta to magenta, cyan to cyan, etc etc.
- Use a few sheets of regular paper to line up your printer heads.
- Connect your printer to your computer.
- And just like that, your printer is set up and ready to sub print.
If you’re wanting to go for straight dye sublimation printers, you cannot go wrong with the Sawgrass printer brand. They are a bit more pricey, but they are made specifically for sublimation printing so there’s no need to do any conversions like with a regular inkjet-turned-sublimation printer.
My friends over at Makerflo have some pretty stellar sublimation bundles. I highly recommend checking them out. I get 90% of my sublimation supplies from them.
Special ink
Sublimation ink is specially formulated to turn to a gas at high heat, helping to transfer your high-quality prints easily to their new home (or in this case, product). I have used several inks in my sublimation journey, and the Printer’s Jack brand is my favorite. The print quality is unmatched, even with intricate designs. The ink makes printing designs easy and painless.
Special transfer paper
Sublimation prints requires a special paper. Remember we talked about this? High temperature makes the ink gas and whatnot. That doesn’t work with regular paper. You need special sublimation paper.
Like ink, I have used lots of different sublimation transfer paper, but for best results, use A-SUB paper. The full-color images are amazing and transfer better than any other brand.
Heat Source
The heat source you need depends on what you are making.
If you’re going to making mostly flat objects, you’ll want a heat press. I use this one, and I love it.
While I am a fan of clamshell heat presses, some people like swing away heat presses like this one more. That’s just user preference. Either one will work for all your flat sublimation designs. They also work really well with heat transfer vinyl, so that’s a plus.
Some heat presses come with attachments for hats and tumblers. Mine did not, so I use the following:
For tumblers, I use shrink wrap and a convection toaster oven. Obviously this oven is for tumblers ONLY and I do not use it to also cook with.
For hats, I have this one. It works really well to stick patches to hats.
All kinds of people can benefit from sublimation printing. It’s straightforward setup is perfect for hobbyists, who can make durable prints for family and friends for any special occasion. High-resolution images make sublimation perfect for small business owners wanting to offer personalized t-shirts, keychains, and tumblers. Finally, anyone in the sublimation field can easily start an online store like Etsy to showcase and sell all of their amazing creations.
But what’s the investment to start?
If you want to start an easy sublimation side hustle, it’s cheaper than you think. I rounded up to the nearest increment of ten:
- Epson Ecotank Printer- $300
- Ink- $20
- Paper- $20
- Heat Press- $200
- Etsy store- free (the fees come when you list products)
- Materials to sublimate- $40
- Total- $580
That’s not bad for an initial investment in a great side hustle. I should know. I’ve started a LOT of side hustles.
That being said, I believe sublimation is a great addition to a crafting arsenal. It’s easy to get started, relatively inexpensive and the possibilities for products are endless.
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