Transfer paper is used in

textiles Textile is an Hyponymy and hypernymy, umbrella term that includes various Fiber, fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, Staple (textiles)#Filament fiber, filaments, Thread (yarn), threads, and different types of #Fabric, fabric. ...

and

arts and crafts The Arts and Crafts movement was an international trend in the Decorative arts, decorative and fine arts that developed earliest and most fully in the British Isles and subsequently spread across the British Empire and to the rest of Europe and ...

projects. Transfer paper is a thin piece of paper coated with wax and pigment. Often, an ink-jet or other printer is used to print the image on the transfer paper. A

heat press In thermodynamics, heat is energy in transfer between a thermodynamic system and its surroundings by such mechanisms as thermal conduction, electromagnetic radiation, and friction, which are microscopic in nature, involving sub-atomic, atom ...

can transfer the image onto clothing, canvas, or other surface. Transfer paper is used in creating iron-ons. Transfer papers can also be used for the application of rhinestones to clothing and other arts and crafts projects.

Inkjet

Most conventional inkjet printers are not capable of printing white (though many wide-format and direct-to-garment inkjet printers offer white ink as an option). So on these devices, in any white areas, the garment's existing colour shows through. The mirror of the image is printed on paper. When it is transferred, the result is the mirror of the mirror (the original) results. Inkjet transfer paper for dark garments is covered with transferable white ink. For dark garments, the image is printed without mirroring. Garment printing needs transfer paper for high-quality garment printing results. Washability for inkjet transfer paper is not as good as for screen-printed items.

Dye sublimation

For dye sublimation transfer paper, fabrics historically had to be white or light in color. 100%

polyester Polyester is a category of polymers that contain one or two ester linkages in every repeat unit of their main chain. As a specific material, it most commonly refers to a type called polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Polyesters include some natura ...

, poly/

cotton Cotton (), first recorded in ancient India, is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus '' Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure ...

mix (the garment should be at least 50% polyester)

microfibre Microfiber (microfibre in British English) is synthetic fibre finer than one denier or decitex/thread, having a diameter of less than ten micrometers. The most common types of microfiber are made variously of polyesters; polyamides (e.g., ...

and

nylon Nylon is a family of synthetic polymers characterised by amide linkages, typically connecting aliphatic or Polyamide#Classification, semi-aromatic groups. Nylons are generally brownish in color and can possess a soft texture, with some varieti ...

can all be used. This printing process turns solid ink into a gas, avoiding a liquid stage. This process can be used on ceramic, wood, glass, or metal as long as they have a

polymer A polymer () is a chemical substance, substance or material that consists of very large molecules, or macromolecules, that are constituted by many repeat unit, repeating subunits derived from one or more species of monomers. Due to their br ...

coating. Transfer papers now exist for most textiles, including elastic fabrics used for making sportswear and swimming suits, and for natural fiber fabrics such as cotton, silk, linen, and wool.

Colour laser

Colour laser transfer is very similar to the inkjet transfer paper process and allows the decoration of any combination of fabric blends including 50/50 poly/cotton blends as well as 100% cotton textiles. This type of transfer paper is used for industrial printing jobs on a large scale offering better quality paper and image transfer.

History

"The initial intent for this method of moving a pre- made image from one location to another was to serve as an essential substitute for ink. In 1801, Pellegrino Turri, an Italian inventor, invented carbon paper to provide the ink for his mechanical typing

machine A machine is a physical system that uses power to apply forces and control movement to perform an action. The term is commonly applied to artificial devices, such as those employing engines or motors, but also to natural biological macromol ...

, one of the first

typewriters A typewriter is a Machine, mechanical or electromechanical machine for typing characters. Typically, a typewriter has an array of Button (control), keys, and each one causes a different single character to be produced on paper by striking an i ...

." Ralph Wedgwood obtained the first patent for carbon paper in 1806. Wedgwood's technique was then continuously perfected.

References

{{Paper products Paper products Coated paper

Inkjet

Dye sublimation

Colour laser

History

See also

References