Heat Transfer Vinyl, or HTV for short, is a specialty vinyl that can be used on certain fabrics/materials to create designs and promotional products. It comes in a roll or sheet form with an adhesive backing so it can be cut, weeded, and placed on a substrate for heat application. Heat Transfer Vinyl is made in single colors and also has specialty options such as patterned, glitter, flocked, holographic, glow in the dark, reflective and 3D puff.
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Heat transfer vinyl brands
There are several large manufacturers of Heat Transfer Vinyl along with a few companies that have branded versions of their own vinyl. Brand selection is determined by the substrate the HTV is being used on, the method of heat transfer, and personal preference. Each brand has various versions of vinyl that are made for specific fabrics and substrates. Testing of each is recommended to determine which is best vinyl for the application being used.
Designing for heat transfer vinyl
Heat Transfer Vinyl comes in single colors, in the specialty options listed above, in full color pattern options, and in a printable version that must be used with solvent ink & a solvent printer. It is best used for simple designs with minimal colors since each individual color or pattern used in the design must be cut, weeded, and heat pressed. Certain Heat Transfer Vinyls can be layered to form multi-colored designs. The more layers involved, the harder it is to match up each to achieve the end result. Heat Transfer vinyl cannot be used for full color pictures or anything with gradients. There are other applications for those options.
Heat Transfer Vinyl is great for creating special effects with its glitter, flocked, holographic, glow in the dark, & 3D puff options. Although each color still has to be cut separately, the final result adds a "wow factor" because of the specialty vinyl type used. Layering of these vinyls is dependent on the type of vinyls used. Always reference the manufacturers instructions to see if specialty vinyls can be layered. If not the option to do a knock out, where the overlapping vinyl is cut away, maybe an option for designs.
Heat Transfer Vinyl is available anywhere from small sheets, to large "master" rolls, that can be up to 60" x 50y. Typical sizes are 15" and 19" wide rolls in 1 yard, 5 yard, 10 yard, 25 yard, and 50 yard lengths.
Products for heat transfer vinyl
Heat transfer vinyl is used on products like shirts, hats, koozies, tote bags, jerseys and headbands.
Heat Transfer Vinyl must be used on products that can take the heat and pressure necessary to transfer the vinyl onto the substrate. Each heat transfer vinyl manufacturer will list what products can be used with each type of vinyl. Fabrics such as cotton, cotton/poly blends, polyester and canvas work well with heat transfer vinyl. There are vinyls out there that can also be used with nylon and leather. However, products such as paper and plastics don't work well because they can't take the heat required to adhere the vinyl to the substrate. It is very important to make sure the correct vinyl type is used with the correct substrate.
Using heat transfer vinyl
Equipment needed to work with heat transfer vinyl includes design software and a vinyl cutter. Desktop cutters are suitable for low volume and low budget while standalone cutters are more appropriate for higher volumes. Print/cut printers have the ability to do printed vinyl.
Weeding tools are used to remove the heat transfer vinyl that is not going to be pressed onto the product from its adhesive carrier sheet. A heat press or iron is used to transfer the vinyl onto the product. Heat presses have the ability to set a specific temperature and pressure level to suit a specific vinyl, and is recommended for professional results.
Life of heat transfer vinyl
Heat Transfer Vinyl should last the lifetime of the product if it is attached to the substrate according to the manufacturer instructions. The correct heat time and temperature must be used to achieve this result. Most issues of heat transfers not binding to the product come from those two issues.
Tips & Tricks
Heat Transfer Vinyl can be applied to difficult to decorate surfaces if the right tools are used. For instance, HTV can be used to decorate a pocket on a backpack, but only if you use an accessory called a Print Perfect Pad. There are also accessories called Heat Printing Pillows that allow you to decorate close to and even over seams.
Sparkle heat transfer vinyl foils can be used in place of Rhinestones, but provide the same sparkle effect.
Unique effects can be achieved by mixing different types of heat transfer vinyl on the same substrate.