How to make a print on clothes with your own hands? How to make a print on a T-shirt: step-by-step instructions, necessary materials, tips, photos.

The video narrates and depicts how using a regular printer and unusual cheap paper print the image on the T-shirt/fabric. In this way, the picture will last many, many washes and will not deteriorate.
Price thermal transfer paper: approximately 10 USD for 10 sheets.

If you plan to seriously engage in thermal transfer, then you need a press; if this is just a hobby or a tryout, then an iron will do.

Thermal transfer happens:

— Laser

— Stencil

- Using film

— Jet

Jet transfer

Involves printing on inkjet printers. Moreover, if this is a household inkjet printer with regular ink, then the printing is done on special paper, which has a coating into which the ink is embedded, then the paper, if necessary, is cut out along the contour of the design, applied to the fabric with the image down and ironed. There is even paper for dark fabrics.

The advantages of this method include accessibility and low cost. All other indicators are complete shortcomings. The image turns out to be unstable, the colors quickly fade and are washed out. The pattern is rough and rubbery to the touch.

Sublimation (the second method of printing with an inkjet printer)

Sublimation is the process of transition of a substance from a solid state to a gaseous state, bypassing the liquid phase. There are different sublimation inks that are poured into an inkjet printer in CISS or refillable cartridges, and the printer must be an EPSON brand due to the design of its print heads.

After which the mirror image is printed on paper, dried and, using a press (an iron is unlikely to help here), transferred to an object with a polymer (synthetic) content of more than 70%. The paper can be ordinary, but when transferring about 30% of the ink will not transfer, and the image will turn out dull; it is best to take special paper for sublimation or, in extreme cases, any matte photo paper.

As for printing on T-shirts with sublimation, you don’t even have to try to transfer the sublimation to cotton fabric - even if it transfers, it won’t stick.
For natural fabrics, as well as for dark fabrics, there are special films that you first weld onto the fabric, as if getting a substrate, and then you do sublimation on it.

This transfer method is perhaps the most wash-resistant. Advantages – high image durability, relative low cost of “starting up”. Disadvantages - you need a separate printer, it is impossible to print on dark fabrics without using films, you need a heat press, insufficient light resistance.
Area of application: production of flags and sportswear. Manufacturing metal signs(special metal, recommended for indoor use), plates (special plate, you need a special press) and mugs (you need a special coated mug, a mug press).

Transfer from a laser printer

It has a lot of advantages. Laser transfer requires color laser printer(b/w is unlikely to be suitable due to the high temperature of the oven) and special transfer paper.

Papers are usually divided by printer brand and purpose.

Paper for light fabric - suitable for light cotton and synthetic fabric, the latter is better to hold on to. The image is printed “in the mirror”.

Paper for dark fabric - the image is printed directly, after which the paper is divided into 2 parts - a substrate, which is discarded, and a thin white film with a printed image, after which it is welded in a press or with an iron.

Backing for dark fabric - here the situation is similar to sublimation - first we transfer to a special backing, and then we transfer everything together onto the fabric. The backing has an interesting velvet finish, but feels rougher to the touch. Also suitable for sublimation.

Hard surface transfer paper - an amazing laser transfer option - transferring images to ceramics, wood, metal, glass, plastic, etc. Moreover, these materials can be without special coatings, although to some detriment to the durability of the image.
Here you definitely need a press and a special mat, which is placed on top and ensures uniform crimping of the product. By the way, this method is often used to make ritual ovals on monuments, but the durability of the image is about a year in the sun.

Very interesting paper “cold decal” - used to be such transfers that were dipped in water and then transferred, say, to the refrigerator? Well, this is practically the same thing, only printed on a laser printer! As you understand, a press is not needed.
This is how many people transfer pictures onto candles, plates, mugs and any other objects. Paper is available for both light and dark surfaces.
If you need to achieve image durability, then bake the product in the oven for 15 minutes at 180C.

Advantages of transferring from a laser printer: firstly, there are a lot of options, secondly, we use a “regular” color laser printer on which you can earn good money on operational printing, and thirdly, you can almost always get by with an iron at the initial stage.

And of course, the availability of ready-made media - mouse pads, puzzles, watches and more. Disadvantages - we get a souvenir item, which is still not intended for long-term use.

For an image transferred to a light fabric, about 40 hand washes at 40C are stated. For dark fabrics, durability is higher, but paper is also noticeably more expensive. For example, an A4 sheet for a light fabric costs about 18 rubles, and for a dark one of the same format it costs more than 100 rubles. “cold decal”, regardless of the color of the backing - about 80 rubles. for a similar sheet.
With all this, profitability remains very good, the main thing is to set up the process correctly.

Stencil transfer

The image is printed using the same screen process, with the same inks, but in a mirror order and on special paper. When needed, it is transferred to the fabric.
It seems that everything is simple, but what do we get - since we print on paper and not on fabric, we can use cheap manual single-color machines, even homemade ones. In the event of a defect during printing, we only lose paper (about 1 euro per sheet of 70x100 cm), and not fabric.
We can print “in reserve” and transfer it if necessary.
We can finally print cool creative pictures and then sell them, or vice versa, buy ready-made ones and do only transfer (there are a lot of examples of such business, from clothing manufacturers, especially children’s, to salons for transferring pictures onto a T-shirt of the client’s choice).
The durability of the image with this transfer method is identical to direct screen printing!

Films

Everything is simple here - we have a film with an adhesive layer, which melts in the press and sticks to the fabric.
If everything is done correctly and the correct film option is selected, the bond is extremely strong and can be boiled, dry cleaned, rubbed and wrinkled. Films can be welded on top of each other, different color, obtaining simple color images.
Films can be smooth or velvet (flock).
The color range can be quite extensive, including fluorescent colors, metallics and reflective films.
Film is often divided into regular and more expensive, for fabrics with water-repellent impregnation (umbrellas, raincoats, bags, etc.)

Do you like to look original, but don't know how to do it? There is an exit. In this article, we suggest you use the method of applying your original print to a T-shirt using thermal transfer paper. If you do everything carefully and slowly, you are guaranteed a high-quality and good design on a T-shirt.

All that is needed

To apply, or rather, transfer a drawing from the virtual world to the real world, we need a printer, a T-shirt itself, an iron and thermal transfer paper. Such paper should be sold in electronics stores and not only - if you look hard enough, it will be quite easy to find.

The T-shirt must be one color, without any pre-printed designs or logos, and the percentage of cotton must be at least 85%. This is very important, because otherwise the design simply will not transfer to the surface of the T-shirt.

We advise you to take white fabric for the first time, since all inaccuracies during the transfer process will be most noticeable on it, and besides, thermal transfer paper should be purchased for a specific color, and white is much easier to find, and it will cost , most likely cheaper.

Preparations

First, we need to decide on a drawing. It can be anything: from your favorite movie character or mythical creature down to the most ordinary logos and inscriptions. After this, you need to edit the drawing and turn it into a mirror arrangement.

This necessity is caused by the fact that when transferring the design from paper to a T-shirt, the display will again change to a mirror image, and in the end we will get the original, which was what you intended. Next, you should adjust the drawing according to size and other parameters, and then print it on thermal transfer paper.

Printing

Printing on a T-shirt is the most important part of the process. Before you begin, you need to lay out the selected T-shirt on ironing board or other surface prepared for this purpose.

The area where the print is applied to the T-shirt should be even and smooth so that there are no problems when transferring the image. Then you need to place the thermal transfer paper with the printed design on the T-shirt.

If you want to place the drawing strictly in the middle, try to mark the place of application using a ruler or other measuring instruments. Besides, you still have a lot of time before you start transferring the print onto the T-shirt.

Turn the iron on at maximum power and once hot, iron the transfer paper onto the T-shirt for about 3-4 minutes. In this case, you do not need to place any additional fabric on the paper itself. Don't worry, the print on the T-shirt will not deteriorate due to high temperatures - paper and cotton fabric can easily withstand the heat.

After ironing, wait about five minutes for the joint to cool. Then you can carefully remove the paper that we no longer need. Try to do this slowly, without sudden movements - in this case, you have an almost 100% chance of complete and high-quality transfer of the print to the T-shirt. Ready.

For reference: the print itself should stay on the fabric for a long time and withstand a fairly large number of washes. Naturally, it will fade over time, but nothing can be done about it - even branded T-shirts suffer from this disease.

T-shirt print - unique style

Now that you know how to print on a T-shirt at home, you can easily choose your own style and surprise many friends and acquaintances.

This wonderful thing can also be used as original gift, which will always remind you of yourself and have practical value.

This method is also good for those who work in a small company and want to put a logo on a T-shirt.

In general, such a thing can be used in many ways, because now you are not limited in choice!

Want to see how a T-shirt print is made from start to finish? Then we recommend watching the following video:

Take it for yourself and tell your friends!

Solution and implementation:

First, it was necessary to decide on an idea. The idea, as always, came to us from associations. We simply went through in our minds all the objects, words and images that we associate with the red ball, and chose the direction that seemed most interesting to us for further development.

Red ball: round, red, ball, circle, apple, clown nose, lollipop, snooker, ball, red giant, god Ra, rising sun, East, Japan, kamikaze...

Before us appeared the image of a kamikaze with a headband in the form of a Japanese flag with a symbolic image of a rising red sun. This already gave rise to interesting thoughts! But just drawing a samurai with a bandana is stupid to say the least. After all, we needed a cool image for an original and at the same time hooligan T-shirt. What is so original about a T-shirt with a samurai? Not with anything.

That's why the knight's move was made here. It was decided to replace the image of the sun with a ball gag. From a distance it was supposed to look like a flat image of the sun, but up close it would transform into a three-dimensional gag. Accordingly, the samurai should have been concerned. How? Tits, of course. It is tits that are the primary object of attention for all sick bastards. Well, as expected, the facial expression had to match.

Thus, the idea was found. All that remained was to implement it. It was necessary to do the simplest thing - to implement it purely technically. "Simple"? - you ask. Yeah, it’s simple, since Aaron Schnorbitz at that time already had his unique drawing technique fully developed.

In short, it can be formulated by the motto of Aaron Schnorbitz, which he applies within the framework of rubber art “I came, I saw, I changed” and sequentially implemented in two stages: collage and tracing

Following our motto and the instructions of Aaron Schnorbitz, we simply loaded the browser, where in the search bar we typed the query “kamikaze”, which was quite logical for our task, and went to the image search section.

Thus, we began the preparatory stage of implementing a T-shirt print - searching for the necessary visual material, or, more simply, images, photographs, drawings that we will use in our subsequent work.

Search for material. Preparatory stage.

So, we started searching for kamikaze pictures. We already have a very specific idea and approximate composition of the future print on the T-shirt. The composition will be fleshed out as soon as we find suitable material.

At this stage there are several rules that should be followed if you want to make your further work easier:

It is better to choose high-resolution images without extensive shadows. They show more detail. Accordingly, you can also make your image more detailed when tracing. It is always easier to miss some details than to complete them yourself.
The picture itself should be large. We are looking for a picture for a T-shirt, and large pictures look good on a T-shirt. That's why we need close-ups.
It is better to use photographs and not to use original graphic works, which are already close in execution to what you want to receive. By taking an author's drawing, you can violate copyright and initially make your picture secondary and unoriginal.
When choosing a picture, immediately figure out how it will fit into the given area. Our picture will be located on the T-shirt, on the chest. Accordingly, the print on the T-shirt will be in A4 or A3 format. Position yourself vertically.
Use several search browsers and several search phrases at once, in particular English ones. You will find more suitable pictures.

After half an hour of searching in accordance with the rules we outlined above, we found a suitable photograph of a real kamikaze, as well as the hieroglyphs for “kamikaze” (Divine Wind) and “banzai”, which could be useful to us. By searching for "ball gag" we also found a clear photo of a gag to give you a better idea of how to draw it.

We found almost all the necessary pictures. However, one thing remained - the facial expression. According to our idea, the kamikaze should have been preoccupied and excited. He must have screamed with excitement at the sight of a woman's breasts.

As you can see, our real samurai in the photo is the embodiment of restraint, purposefulness and calm - the exact opposite of what we desired. We needed to change the emotions on his face, and we didn't want to discredit the memory of the World War II hero by attributing our perverted thoughts to him. We are completely sick, but sometimes we still act within the framework, albeit abstract, but still of decency.

We had two options. Try to redraw the facial expression yourself, using photographs of screaming and screaming people as examples, which is not very easy, or try to accurately select the appropriate expression and then put it on the face of our samurai, that is, resort to collage.

We chose the second path, since our methodology involves minimal initiative and maximum use of ready-made third-party materials.

When choosing the second photo, we needed to consider two points:

Available angle. The head of our kamikaze is turned ¾. Accordingly, a photograph with a new facial expression should be taken from the same angle. The size doesn't matter - we can adjust it, just like we can make a mirror image of a picture.
Try to find a photo with similar lighting. That is, so that the light source is approximately in the same area as in the first photo. This avoids a lot of the hassle of having mismatched shadows when collaging.

After quite a long search and options search queries(this is where patience came in handy) we found a perfectly matching image through Google for the query “scream asian”.

The angle matched, the shadows too. The facial expression was spot on. A sick freak who would look great on our T-shirt close up.

That's our preparatory stage The collection of material to create a design for a T-shirt was completed. We've collected everything necessary photos and could begin the first stage of implementing our idea - collage.

SEE IN THE BLOG SECTION “DRAWING LESSONS” » THE SECOND PART OF THE ARTICLE “HOW TO DRAW A COOL PRINT ON A T-SHIRT.” SOON!

We are publishing a note about methods of printing on T-shirts in general and about screen printing in particular.

To begin with, we will tell you what textile printing methods there are in general.

Thermal transfer and sublimation- as you can understand from the name of the method, this is image transfer when exposed to heat. The image itself can be created different ways. For example, the most popular method for one-color printing of images without fine detail is cutting with a plotter from a special film. The cut-out image is placed on the product and, under the influence of high temperature, using a heat press, it is “pinned” to textile surface. But in the same way you can transfer a full-color image or even a photograph. To do this, the required design is printed (usually in mirror form) on a sheet of special paper, from which it is then transferred under the action of a heat press and fixed to a T-shirt. Here other nuances come into play: for example, if the T-shirt is completely or half synthetic, then the fiber itself will hold the paint and sublimation ink is used. If the textile is not suitable for sublimation, then before transferring or during the process of transferring the image onto the textile, a separate layer must be applied that will hold the paint. Pictures printed on T-shirts in this way do not withstand intense mechanical stress and are very durable. But photo quality and all that.

With the help of such a heat press, the film or image is “glued” to the surface of the T-shirt.

Direct digital printing- the simplest and most understandable way: a T-shirt is placed in a special test printer with textile ink! And the printer prints the required image on it just like on a white sheet of paper. Nothing could be easier! But what if the T-shirt is colored - red, green or even black?! So we are faced with the disadvantages of this printing method. In order to print on a colored T-shirt, you need to print on it White color. Yes exactly. The silhouette of the entire design is sealed with white paint. Drying. And a color image is applied to a layer of white paint. This way the T-shirt ends up with two layers of paint. You also need to smooth the pile and eliminate the absorption of white paint by the fibers, that is, apply a special primer. It turns out that all three layers of paint are applied to the product during direct digital printing on color T-shirts. Unfortunately, the properties of inks for such printers do not allow them to withstand more than 10 strong washes. It must be added that there are huge printers that print not on finished products, but directly on canvas in rolls. Patterns and large images are printed. And later this material with the printed image will be cut and sewn into products.

Printers for direct digital printing on fabric: popular i-dot for individual T-shirts and an industrial wide-format printer for applying patterns to uncut canvases.

Flex- This is the application of images with textile films. It's like an industrial applique. Used to apply an inscription or logo in 1-3 colors for small runs (1-10 pcs). An image, most often an inscription or parts of a logo, is cut out of a special textile film and fixed to the product under pressure. high temperature using a heat press. Textile films come in the most various colors and effects: gold, silver, with imitation foil, sparkles, “neon”. The name "Flex" comes from the English "flexible", "stretchy". These textile films adhere well to the fabric and stretch with it.

This is what applying a logo made of textile films looks like.

Screen printing (silk-screen printing)- a method of applying images using a stencil - a printing form through which paint penetrates onto textiles in places corresponding to the image. Silk screen printing suitable paints can be carried out on an almost infinite number of materials - textiles, paper, plastic, glass, wood, metals, etc. Paints are also different - water-based, solvent-based (solvent-based), ultraviolet-curing, plastisol (they require temperature fixation). Silk-screen printing is also used to print decals - these are transfer pictures on glass or ceramics. Screen printing is also used to apply a scratch-off layer for lottery tickets and payment cards.

This is the machine where they print using silk-screen printing. We will meet him later in the story.

Each of these methods is good in its own way and is ideally used in the appropriate case.

TEESHKA T-shirts - for everyday wear. They are 100% cotton. T-shirt colors vary. Quality and durability must be maximum. Hence, our choice is silkscreen printing. Let's tell you more about screen printing with plastisol inks on T-shirts. So:

. Every print starts with a layout. Of course, the image must be of high quality, so we will not consider the opposite option. Whether it’s vector or raster, it doesn’t matter, the main thing is that the quality of the print allows you to turn it into print quality. The first procedure that is assigned to the picture is the color separation procedure. The image must be divided by color. Paints different colors are applied in turn, so several pictures are obtained from the picture - each of its own color. This is the task of color separation. For clarity, we will give an example of division in the CMYK color model, which is used in printing: a color drawing can be represented as the result of the superposition of four single-color images (see figure). Likewise, when preparing for screen printing, the image is divided into several colors - their number depends on the model of the printing machine and the need to apply special paints.

Color separation in CMYK model

. Film output. Next, a separate layout is made for each color on a special plastic film. An image is printed on these films in black, which is responsible for each component color in the finished layout. Therefore, on the film with the signature “blue” the area that should be filled will be printed blue to get the necessary color picture. If the print is printed not on a white, but on a colored T-shirt, then an additional film with the general outline of the print is output - this area will be filled with white paint as a background. All films are also printed with marks for precise alignment with other films and printing plates.

Ready-made films for each color.

. What are printing stencils made of? The films are ready and now it is necessary to prepare the stencils themselves, because silk-screen printing is screen printing. Stencils are also called printing forms. These forms are also made each for their own color. Stencils are made on special frames that resemble a sieve - a fine mesh is stretched across the frames, through which the paint will be applied to the T-shirt. The mesh cells can be of different sizes, because there are a great variety of paints, and they have different properties, and some simply “do not fit” through very fine mesh. For each type of karski and color, the necessary mesh is selected and a stencil is prepared.

Various colors. Both in color and properties.

For example, there are paints such as gold powder or stardust.

. Creation of printed forms. How exactly does a stencil come out of a frame? A light-sensitive emulsion is applied to the mesh in a thin layer. The properties of the emulsion are such that when irradiated with bright light, the emulsion hardens. This is where we need the same ones plastic films! The frame with the mesh and the emulsion applied to the mesh is connected to the film using marks specially designed for this purpose. The idea is that the black-printed area on the film, intended to be printed with a specific color, will not allow bright light to pass through when irradiated. The light will not reach the emulsion, and it will then be washed off with water in the desired areas.

An emulsion is applied to the frame. Subsequently, a stencil will be made from the frame, emulsion and film.

. Exhibition of printed forms. So, an emulsion is applied to the frame, a film is glued to create a stencil shape, and this entire company must be exposed, or in other words, irradiated. This happens in a special cabinet. This is a special cabinet-table for display. A table - because there is a tabletop. Transparent, glass. And under it there is a very bright lamp - it is better not to look at its light. And the cabinet - because the top of the table is closed with a door made of very elastic rubber. It turns out that the presence of the door protects the printer’s eyes from the bright light of the lamp, and the elasticity of the door allows air to be pumped out using a pump, since the emulsion loves vacuum and is exposed faster in it. The future stencil needs to be irradiated for a couple of minutes. In general, those who are richer buy more modern tables with more powerful lamps, and the process speeds up, but this is no longer so interesting for us.

Wardrobe-table and lamp. The lamp is down and turned off, otherwise we would not be able to remove it, but we could go blind.

. Excess emulsion is washed off with water. Teak! The sensor on the exposure chamber (that’s what the irradiation cabinet-table is cleverly called) gives a signal, which means that the emulsion has hardened in the right places. Then the stencil is sent to the shower, where everything is simple: the part of the emulsion that was not exposed to bright light is washed off with water. Remember how the black film didn’t let him through? After the unhardened emulsion is washed off with water, the stencil is ready! Stencils for other colors in this print are made in exactly the same way. When the edition with this print is printed, the stencils will be washed off from the mesh on the frames - they will be placed in a special solution and the hardened emulsion will “leave” there. There is no particular point in storing ready-made stencils, since the frames are quite expensive, and tensioning the mesh is also not a cheap pleasure. It is easier, if necessary, to make the same stencils again - therefore, when ordering silk-screen printing, you almost always need to pay additionally for the production of printing forms.

Shower for stencil. A stream of water washes off the unhardened emulsion, which was covered with a film.

. Installing stencils on a printing press. The stencils are ready to print, that is, they are ready to let the ink flow onto the T-shirt in the right places! As mentioned above, silk is printed using special so-called. rotary machines. They really are like a carousel (there was already a picture of a carousel machine above) - tables are attached to the rotating platform in the center, and on the stationary part of the machine there are fasteners for the stencils we are already familiar with. T-shirts are placed or worn on tables. Stencils are inserted into the mounts. Then the actual screen printing experience begins.

Fastenings for stencils on a printing press.

A stencil attached to the machine.

. The screen printing process itself. The attraction consists of this: stencils are lowered onto tables with T-shirts, and the appropriate paint is applied to each of them; it is smeared and pressed through the printing plate using a thing called a squeegee - it is plastic or rubber. Through the stencil, the paint gets onto the T-shirt exactly where it is needed. Then the carousel spins, and the table with the T-shirt arrives under the adjacent stencil, where a different color will be applied.

A stencil above the table on which the T-shirt lies.

. Intermediate drying. After visiting each stencil, the T-shirt is placed on its table under a special stove in order to dry the newly applied paint. So, with intermediate drying, the T-shirt on its table will visit all the necessary stencils and receive the necessary portions of paints.

This humble dryer dries the paint on T-shirts after each turn of the carousel.

. Final drying. After all the colors have been applied, T-shirts from all tables are sent to cure in a special “tunnel” dryer. I emerge from the T-shirt tunnel ready to wear.

Tunnel drying occurs in such a device. It comes out with a ready-to-wear T-shirt!

. All is ready! All that's left to do is pack it. Ready-made T-shirts to come The final stage adventures at the factory - packaging, where T-shirts are sorted by size and placed in individual bags.

***
So we talked briefly about how a picture created by a designer ends up on TEESHKA T-shirts.
Wait for the next publications!

P.S.
In addition - a story about one trick. This trick can be useful for those who print with silk for themselves or for business.
Silk-screen printing on special sheets followed by thermal transfer. This move allows you to save on products - T-shirts. Let's imagine that there is no certainty that the print is successful, and there is a risk of producing a batch of T-shirts that “won’t work.” So, you can print this print not directly on products, but on special sheets of paper, which are then covered with a special adhesive layer on top. If you have a heat press, you can easily transfer the image onto one, five, or as many T-shirts as you need. And if the print is really successful, then transfer the entire print run from sheets to T-shirts through a heat press. Otherwise (if the print did not fit in), the sheets with prints will remain, yes. But the T-shirts will not be printed and a different image can be applied to them.

Of all the options for applying prints to fabric, the most popular is printing on T-shirts. Branded items are used as:

casual clothes;
element of corporate style;
souvenirs;
presentation/handout material for various events.

Printing technologies

T-shirts are printed using different technologies. Let's write briefly about the most popular ones.

Digital

Direct digital printing - advanced technology transferring a drawing quickly and without intermediate steps. Suitable for working with small runs and single items.

Advantages:

high quality, gradient fills, detailed detailing;
no restrictions on the choice of fabric;
Print resistance to washing/ultraviolet radiation.

Flaws:

only handwash T-shirts/fabrics;
not suitable for large print runs;
pre-press preparation required.

With digital printing there are no restrictions on colors and shades

Sublimation

Another name is direct screen printing. Suitable for circulations of 50-100,000 copies or more. The drawings are clear. When producing batches of 200 pieces or more, the cost is reduced.

Two types of paints are used: plastisol and water-based. They come with different effects:

designs with sparkles - glitters;
image on dark fabric - etched paints;
volumetric patterns - foam;
gloss effect, gilding, silvering - metallized.

Sublimation printing technology on T-shirts is only suitable for synthetics light shades. The design is transferred onto special paper and then onto the material using a heat press. At high temperatures, ink evaporates and penetrates into the fibers of the fabric, coloring it.

A high-quality print will be obtained on fabric with a synthetic content of about 65%. The higher the proportion of cotton, the faster the print fades when washed.

The sublimation process requires the following equipment:

heat press - with its help, paint is converted into gas and transferred to the material, giving it a given color;
computer/laptop - for searching, editing, printing images;
printer - inkjet models are suitable, for example, 4- or 6-color Epson;
paint - sublimation ink, absorbed into fabric fibers under the influence of temperature;
CISS - ensure continuous supply of ink to the printer;
paper is an intermediate carrier with a loose surface; when heated, the pores expand, absorb the dye, then the paper cools, the pores close and hold the color inside.

Raster (RGB/CMYK, with a resolution of 200 dpi) or vector images (CMYK, mesh filling or replacement with bitmap are not allowed) are suitable as images.

Industrial sublimation printer FT-1904X

Advantages:

no restrictions on image resolution/colors;
durability of the pattern (at least 50 washes), protection from UV - the paint penetrates into the fabric,
becomes part of the fiber;
practicality of the product - the T-shirt can be ironed, the pattern will not be damaged;
low cost.

Flaws:

fabric restrictions - only synthetic;
high price;
duration of the manufacturing process.

Sublimation technology for printing on T-shirts is one of the most affordable in terms of price finished product. The average price range is from 10 (one-color printing, batch of 50,000 pieces) to 200 rubles (full-color patterns, small edition).

Silkscreen printing

Performed both in a printing house and at home. To work you will need a mesh stretched over a frame, ink, and a stencil. The pattern is obtained by pressing. Silk-screen printing is used when printing on T-shirts with various effects on fabric is required:

fluorescent patterns;
designs in gold and silver;
volumetric ornaments;
printing reflective images/inscriptions on a T-shirt; 3D, glitters.

The average circulation is from 50 to several thousand units. The larger the circulation, the lower the price.

Silk-screened photos of Homer and Margery

Advantages:

low cost;
high speed;
image durability;
the ability to create various special effects;
compactness of the equipment used.

Flaws:

difficulty in printing photographs;
duration of preparation;
application of identical patterns throughout the entire batch of products.

Silk-screen printing is suitable for applying inscriptions, logos and pictures in small quantities. Specially processed vector and raster files are used.

Thermal decal

The colored film is cut on a plotter and assembled into a single pattern, similar to appliqué. The carrier is fixed to the T-shirt using a heat press. The technology is optimal for applying small inscriptions/logos.

Advantages:

a wide selection of films of different colors and textures;
printing on T-shirts of any color - the shade of the fabric does not reduce the saturation of the image.

Flaws:

long term;
the complexity of the procedure.

The drawing is voluminous and clear

Thermal transfer technology

Modern indirect printing method. Special transfer paper is used. The pattern is transferred to the fabric using a heat press, or less often, an iron. High-resolution vector and raster files are suitable as source images.

You can print on transfer paper using silk-screen printing, or less commonly, offset.

Advantages:

multicolor pattern;
duration of storage of transfers;
high speed;
minimal restrictions on the choice of fabric.

Flaws:

lengthy preparation/setup of equipment;
impossibility of printing different images within the circulation.

T-shirt printing equipment

The choice of equipment depends on the technology. For sublimation you will need a printer:

manual - easy to use, inexpensive, suitable for home use/small runs, cost - from 35,000 rubles;
semi-automatic - the possibility of drying the T-shirt during the intermediate stage of the process is provided, cost - from 60,000 rubles;
automatic - labor costs are minimal, all processes are debugged, printing speed is high, cost - from 150,000 rubles.

For iron-on you will need a digital/inkjet printer and a heat press. At home, it can be replaced with an iron.

Thermal transfer uses:

PC/laptop with graphic editor;
printer and scanner;
sublimation press - vertically folding (inexpensive, easy to operate) or rotary.

Direct digital printing requires an inkjet printer.

Digital printer for printing on fabrics

You can see how digital printing on T-shirts works in this video:

Results

Each printing technology has its own advantages. Choose based on your goals/circulation.
Sublimation and silk-screen printing are suitable for printing pictures with a circulation of over 1,000 pieces. For single orders, the cost will increase significantly.
For batches up to 50 units - thermal transfer technology. It is also suitable for applying a pattern where direct printing on a T-shirt is not possible.
For urgent printing - printer transfer. The resulting image will not be very durable.
Images are prepared taking into account the requirements of a specific printing technology.
The type of equipment also depends on the specific technology.