In my efforts to re-vamp and get my own personal blog up to date (you can subscribe to me here), my goal is to talk more in depth about the materials and methods used in our Pimashirt videos. So this week, we used a new heat transfer vinyl called SPECTRA® Gloss. This material is the latest addition to the SPECTRA® line of heat transfer vinyl at Imprintables Warehouse.  SPECTRA® Gloss works just like any other heat transfer vinyl, but it has an extremely glossy finish. While most vinyl applications demand a matte finish, a glossy finish has been in high demand in European markets as well as street wear here in the states.  In talking with customers, I have been getting more and more requests recently for this type of finish. While this material probably won’t be your go to heat transfer material for day to day use, it does have it’s place in the market. In my opinion, SPECTRA® Gloss heat transfer material is perfect for street wear, club wear, dance wear, and for tone on tone designs for extra pop as you will see in the pic to follow.

SPECTRA® Gloss is currently available in four colors…red, black, white and pink. It works just like all of our heat transfer materials. You will cut all designs in reverse on your vinyl cutter of choice. Weed away the excess material from the mylar carrier, leaving only the design to be applied to the garment(cotton, polyester or poly/cotton blends). Once weeding has been completed, SPECTRA® Gloss is applied with a heat press at 302° F for 15 seconds with a medium pressure. After heat pressing, allow design to cool completely before removing the mylar carrier. Below is a pic of a t-shirt that was created with this new heat transfer material.

Customized T-shirt with SPECTRA® Gloss

In the photo above, we used two colors of vinyl, red and black and applied it to a 100% cotton t-shirt. I would like to go over the process on how the design was created and applied. Our design is very simple and was created in Corel Draw. You can use your design program of choice to create your cuttable designs. Remember, vector based programs such as Corel, Illustrator, etc. are best suited. The design was broken down into two parts…the word PEACE and the rest of the text.

With there being two colors, it will require us to cut and heat press each material separately. In our case, it doesn’t really matter which one is cut or pressed first as there are no overlapping parts, so lets just start with cutting the word PEACE out of the red first. Once the cutting is completed, the black is loaded into the vinyl cutter, and the remaining message is cut. While it is cutting, the red is weeded to save time. After the black has completed, weeding is once again performed on the black vinyl.

Now that the cutting and weeding have been completed, load the desired garment onto the heat press. As always, when doing any heat application, pre-press your garment for about 4-5 seconds. This will remove any moisture or wrinkles that could interfere with adhesion. Now its time to smash it on the t-shirt. As I stated before, it doesn’t matter which portion of the design is pressed first or second since there are no overlapping parts. In our case we applied the black first, then followed with the red. Each application of SPECTRA® Gloss is 302° for 15 seconds with a mdeium pressure. Be sure to let the garment cool before removing the mylar carrier.

There you have it folks…a simple customized t-shirt with SPECTRA® Gloss heat transfer vinyl.

A couple things before I leave you this week. With every post from here on out, I will be offering sales specials geared towards the topic of the post…after all I am a salesman. So with that being said…this week’s special is $6.25 per yard on SPECTRA® Gloss Heat Transfer Vinyl. To take advantage of this offering call me @ 800.347.0068 x240 or email mike@imprintables.com. Special will last until my next post. And as always, be sure to subscribe for email updates.

Until next time…

http://pimpashirt.com/2009/04/20/customized-tshirt-vinyl-how-to/

mk

By “pimp” we mean nothing offensive by this term…in our “y generation” the term pimp means cool…so with this being said…

What is pimpashirt you ask? Pimpashirt.com is a website focused on creating unique heat transfers using a variety of different techniques and materials together. This will be an example driven site that demonstrates how to achieve these “pimped out” looks. Each week we will be pimping a new shirt with a different design…and the best part is we will be giving away each one of our pimpashirt originals. All you have to do is subscribe to the site and you will be entered automatically every week for a chance to win.

So stay tuned and be sure to visit pimpashirt.com on Monday, April 13, 2009 for the official launch of pimpashirt.com and the first video. The site is currently live, so sign up now to be a registered member of the site to be entered in the giveaways and updates.

Thank you for reading.

The MAXX heat press is a high quality, affordable DIGITAL heat press with over the center pressure adjustment to ensure even pressure throught the entire platen. It is available in 11″ x15″, 15″ x15″,and 16″ x 20″, each with interchangeable lower platens to accomodate seams, zippers or buttons that may interfere with the pressing area of your decorated piece. 

Also standard with the MAXX heat press is also a teflon coated upper platen, upper floatational platen, laser cut steel with minimal welds, and a cast in heating element to ensure even heat across the entire platen. And yes, there is a lifetime warranty on the heating element as well. Plus you get the reliability and service you get with any other press manufactured by Stahls.

And last, but not least, the MAXX line of heat presses are competitively priced.
11″x15″ – $595.00
15″x15″ – $795.00
16″ x20″ – $995.00

This press is debuting in Atlantic City this weekend, and I have specials running at the show, so shoot me an email at mike@imprintables.com or 800.347.0068 x240 and we can get you stared. I will be hitting the road tomorrow for the show, so I you can reach me on my cell @ 724.963.9246.

Below is a sneak preview video of the press…yes thats me behind the camera.

To talk a little bit about the advantages of SPECTRA Eco-Film heat transfer vinyl, to me, it’s best advantage is it’s production friendliness. SPECTRA Eco-film has many benefits in the production friendliness category. First, the Eco-Film is very easy to cut. With the Roland GX-24 vinyl cutter and a 45° blade, Eco-Film cuts between 70-90 grams of force…this will vary depending on the life of the blade as well as blade depth. Once cut, the cut lines in the SPECTRA Eco-Film are very visible. In some other materials on the market, the cut lines are sometimes difficult if not impossible to see.

Secondly, as most of you are already thinking, SPECTRA Eco-Film heat transfer vinyl  is extremely easy to weed. Eco-Film comes mounted on sticky mylar backing, which makes the weeding oh so nice…especially in small lettering or very intricate designs.

Lastly in the production friendliness category, is application. SPECTRA Eco-Film heat transfer vinyl applies at 305° for 10 seconds at a medium pressure (5-7 on a Phoenix Phire of Hotronix Heat Press). In some cases with competitor brands, application requires at least 20 seconds. Once pressed, the mylar backing can be peeled immediately after the 10 second press. The Eco-Film can also be peeled warm or cold as well. Eco-Film also is a one step application. There is no need for a second application once the mylar backing is removed. A second press in other brands for an additional 5-10 seconds is required.

Next item on the list of advantages is the color offering in the SPECTRA Eco-Film heat transfer vinyl line. This heat transfer vinyl is currently available in 60 different colors! Included in the color offering of Eco-Film are some hard to find colors including, Vegas Gold, Cardinal Red, and Texas Orange to name just a few. SPECTRA Eco-Film is also available in neons, metallics, as well as a version for Nylons and leathers. Eco-film is also available in a very unique mesh form. See image below.

SPECTRA Eco-Film Mesh Heat Applied Film

I know by now everyone, is probably asking themselves about cost. Well, chalk up another advantage here to SPECTRA Eco-Film heat transfer vinyl. Eco-Film generally runs 10-15% cheaper than most other brands on the market. In these economic troubling times, to me, every little bit helps.

Here is a link to some comments on the SPECTRA Eco-Film from users of signs101.com.

With all tha being said, I bet you would like to try some SPECTRA Eco-Film heat tranasfer vinyl. I would be glad to send all those inerested  my Eco-Film heat applied materials kit. Shoot me an email, mike@imprintables.com, or give me a call at 800.347.0068 x240 and I’ll send one out to you.

-mk

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There are three differnt styles of heat presses to choose from…clam, swinger, and draw. What’s the difference you ask? Below, i will describe each of the three.

Clam – The name comes from the fact that the heat press opens and closes like that of a clam. This style of press is the mosy widely used style of press out there. These presses take up very little room because they open up and down, rather than swinging away, thus there is no need to have any extra space to the left or the right. Clam shells often have a variety of different options available including, digital or non-digital time, temp and pressue readouts, manual or auto open. If you are limited in space, this is probably the best fit for you. I would strongly recommend digital and auto-open simply for ease of use. One disadvantage is you will be working under heat.

Swinger – To open or close this heat press, rather than up and down, the upper platen swings away to the right or the left side. This heat press is ideal for those who wish to work with a “heat free workspace”. Since the heat press swings away, you will not have to work under a heated surface as you would with a clam press. You will need extra room to the left or the right with this heat press. Also available in an air operated model (air compressor required).

Draw – This is a rather unique heat press. The Draw heat press’s lower platen pulls out like drawer. This too, allows for a “heat free” surface as well. It is also a heat press that doesn’t require a lot of space.

Any one of these different syles of heat presses would all be an excellent choice. What you have to look at is, which of these features will best suit you. If I were recommending a heat press, I would have to go with the Phoenix Auto Open Heat Press for two reasons…1. the auto open feature, 2. it has digital time, tmperature as well as pressure read outs.

I am including the video the one of my colleagues has made highlighting each of these styles of heat presses.

-mk

If you are not familiar with Imprintables Warehouse, we are you one stop shop for heat applied materials, heat presses, vinyl cutter and Roland VersaCAMM Print/Cut Systems. I have been in the heat applied graphics industry for almost five years. In that time, I have become very experienced with different types of equipment and materials. I have also spent some time as a certified Roland Technician, servicing the Roland VersaCAMM units, which gives me a unique perspective on those machines. We also have a very experienced staff more than capable and willing to assist anyone currently doing heat application, start-up businesses, and even screen printers and embroidery shops looking to add heat transfer as a decoration method.

With all of that being said, why don’t you go ahead and hold down the “Cntrl + D keys” and bookmark me. I will be updating the site often with content and videos. Speaking of videos…i’m always looking for input on subjects, so if there is something you would like to see let me know, and i may be able to put together a video on that particular subject. OK i’m done for right now, so be sure to visit often. Thanks so much and happy reading.

-mk