Pressing onto Nylon & Fleece

If there are two fabrics that customers need help with it is nylon and fleece and questions often arise about what products you can use & how to go about pressing onto these types of fabrics.

Nylon causes the majority of issues for garment decorators using heatseal products. This is not down to the quality of Nylon films such as easiMARK, but it lies with the variety of waterproof coatings used by clothing manufacturers.

The simple answer is, prior to undertaking any work for nylon, pre testing your garments is always recommended. If you find a brand that will allow you to layer heatseal garment films successfully, it would be prudent to always use the garments you have tested. If your customers bring their own garments, then it is essential you pre test prior to undertaking the full order.

The most effective way is to press your transfer onto one garment and if the carrier releases when hot you may think the adhesion is successful. However, this may not be the case. Let the garment stand for 24hrs so the adhesives can set, then conduct your own wash test. After washing, try & pick the logo off the nylon garment to test how well it has adhered. If successful you can then have confidence in the products you are supplying to your customer.

If your customer requires full colour logos then easiMARK Colour print (Solvent/thermal ribbon) & easiMARK Darkjet (Inkjet/Sublimation) can provide the solution. Again, always pre test your nylon garments before proceeding. One of the many benefits of the easiMARK range is that both the easiMARK Colourprint & Darkjet will adhere onto easiMARK Nylon. This will allow you to use a nylon specialist product & a full colour printable film together.

Another consideration when pressing onto nylon is to make sure you separate the front & the back of your garment. If not, you can find that under the heat, the nylon will stick together. The best way to tackle this problem is to use a heat press like the easiPRESS Pro that allows you to separate the front & back of garments. If you are using another heat press & you cannot separate the garment. Place a piece of cotton between the front & the back & this will prevent the garment from sticking.

When it comes to fleece, all of the easiMARK range except easiMARK Nylon is suitable for this type of application. The thicker the film, however, the better the result. One of the best ways to apply your customers logos onto fleece is to use easiMARK Flock. As this is a thick velvet finish product it will raise the logo above the surface of the Fleece. Using standard films such as easiMARK Cotton or Opaque will not give you a quality finish. They will adhere but, due to the nature of the Fleece surface it will just rest on top of the fleece and issues with durability can be found with this after repeated washing.

A common option is to multilayer your garment films, such as easiMARK Flock & Cotton together. This will allow you to create a raised effect logo that looks professional on the garment. Using the cotton will allow you to finish your logo off with a semi matt finish as opposed to the velvet flock.

Should you decide to use easiMARK Flock in the future, please make sure you use a 60 degree blade in your plotter. If you use the standard 45 degree blades, you will find issues with being able to create smooth cutlines, fine detail will be difficult & it will damage the life span of your regular 45 degree blade.

Should you have any further questions, following this article then please call Glynn, Dan or Katy at Victory Design on 01246 570570 or email sales@victorydesign.co.uk. Full details on the easiMARK range can be found at www.victorydesign.co.uk