Cricut Crafts

8 Things to Remember When Using Cricut Infusible Ink

  Hello and welcome back. Circut Infusible Ink transfer sheets become more popular more questions are surfacing regarding using this process to personalize our projects.  Are you not sure what is an important step?  Which steps you can skip with Infusible Ink in your efforts to make it work?  I have to admit, I am the first person to skip a step if I don’t think it I totally needed.  I try to read what seems like important bullet points and omit the other nonsense more times than I can count on my two hands.  After all, I am a wife, a mom of three very active boys.  I  have three English Mastiffs and run several businesses.  This means that anytime I can skip an unnecessary step I will try it.   Then I can focus on something different.  This may be the reason why my kids are skeptical of my cooking.  Sometimes this means that I create an awesome shortcut.  Other times my project becomes an epic fail and I have to start all over admitting my defeat.  This is great news for you!  I can share my wins and fails with you and that is how you can skip this trial process.  Here is a list of 8 things to remember when planning and making a project with Cricut Infusible Ink transfer sheets.  100 Polyester Material is the Best.
  • The infusible ink or sublimation process binds only to polyester.  In order to have desired long time results that we all wish for, a 100% polyester blank should be used. You can use a material such as 80% polyester and 20% cotton blend.  By doing so, you have to understand that your results may vary. The sublimation process will not work with cotton, therefore, it is very likely that the colors of your image will wash out and may somewhat fade. There are many different blends of fabric available and some work better than others. Since I own a sublimation printer and I have tried it on many different surfaces including 100% cotton t-shirt.
  • I made a cotton shirt for my youngest son right after I got my sublimation printer. Not only did it not transfer correctly but it was also very dull.  After just one wash almost all the color was gone leaving his shirt with a very faint image that looked more like a stain. Yikes, not the results I wanted for sure.
White or Light Color Blanks Only.
  •  Another thing to consider when transferring an image with infusible ink or sublimation is that it works only on light color materials, preferably white. The ink is transparent therefore the darker your material color the less likely it is to show up. It will still bind to the polyester but will not be visible which defeats the purpose of your whole project.  Pastel color blanks also work well however they may change the final color of your design.  
  New Butcher Paper Every Time.
  • Remember to use a new piece of butcher paper underneath your project to protect your EasyPress mat.  Place another one on top of the project to protect your easy press itself. Also, I tend to put the butcher paper inside the shirt. The gas can bleed to the back of the shirt. While processing a large order of shirts for a client, I protected the surface of my pad and my press.  But the ink bled to the back of the shirt ruining a few shirts. Thankfully I realized it within the first few shirts I pressed and was able to avoid this mistake in the following shirts. I know that it seems wasteful and a little redundant but trust me on this one.
  • The ink becomes a gas, there is a good chance it will come into contact with whatever material it is pressed onto or with. The Cricut Infusible Ink and sublimation are permanent and cannot be washed out, especially from polyester surfaces much like the easy press mat, it is then likely to transfer back onto other items you press.
Remove All Lint.
  • Another thing to remember when using the Infusible Ink is to remove possible lint or hair. Try not to skip this step because the ink will not be able to go around fuzz you may not even see and will create a blank spot on your image.
Press Your Blank.
  • Your project surface needs to be pre-pressed to get the moisture and wrinkles out before you place your image on it. 
Press Only One Time.
  • Once the image is pressed onto the material, you should never repress it.  You can layer your different colors and varieties of HTV.   Repressing over the already placed image can cause ghosting or image distortion. You know, the whole gas thing again.
Make Sure You Mirror Your Image.
  • I have been crafting for many years now and I own a sublimation business. I still make the mistake of not mirroring my image sometimes. Last week, my printer rep set up my printer for the automatic mirroring so I, nor my employees, would ever forget this step again. I was printing my design for the YouTube channel and I was so proud of myself for not forgetting to mirror my image.  I forgot that the printer flipped the mirrored image back. Because I was in a hurry I did not even check it before I pressed it on the video. I realized it when I finally looked at the already made sock. This is why I usually check everything two or three times.
Check Your Heat Settings With Your Blank.
  • Use the correct temperature and time settings. With that being said, the heat settings provided to us by Cricut Heat Guide are for Cricut Blanks. If you are using blends or other material, Cricut does not guarantee the same results. Also, your temperature and time may vary especially if you are using any blends containing spandex.  This tends to scorch quite quickly.
I know this list of 8 Things to Remember When Using Cricut Infusible Ink seems like a long list of to-do and not to-dos. Yes, it is very easy to forget a step when you are first learning how to use the Cricut Infusible Ink.  Don’t worry, with a little practice you will become a pro in no time.  Now it is time for you to try.  Make sure to share your beautiful work.   As always, don’t hesitate to email me your questions or suggestions for new tutorials.  I love to hear about your wins because they need to be celebrated.  And remember that your fails are just a path to your success so don’t be scared to try something new.   Happy Crafting 🙂
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