More and more people want to personalize sweatshirts, t-shirts, towels and all sorts of other textiles. However, printing methods are not widely known to the general public, and it is quite hard for these people to get started without knowing where to begin.
That is why we have decided to show you, step by step, how to do textile flocking!
To walk you through this tutorial, we will first introduce the tools and accessories you need to get off to a good start in the world of flocking!
What do we need to do textile flocking?
You will need:
- A textile to work on. In this tutorial, we are going to use a t-shirt.
- A standard cutting machine. The best known ones include the Silhouette Cameo, the Cricut Maker, the ScanNCut...
- Some heat transfer vinyl for textile flocking. The vinyl is the material that will be printed onto the logo.
- An iron or a heat press to bond the logo onto the textile.
- Some baking paper (optional).
- Various weeding tools (optional).
The steps for the best flocking print
Step 1: Inserting the logo
Now that you have all the tools within reach, you will start by inserting your logo into your cutting machine's software. (The software for Cricut, Silhouette and ScanNCut cutting machines is free.)
This step lets you import your logo into the machine so that it can cut it out and give you the design you have been waiting for!
Once the logo is loaded into the software, you will need to make a number of settings (different on each cutting machine) so that you can then cut out your design.
Do not forget to cut your logo as a mirror image so that it appears the right way round when transferred onto the textile!
Step 2: Preparing the vinyl
After making the settings on the machine, take your roll of vinyl (preferably the Papier-transfert.fr brand 😉) and cut out a square a few centimeters larger than your logo.
All you have to do now is feed your heat transfer vinyl into the machine and lock it at both ends so that the flocking film stays still.
Step 3: The cut
IMPORTANT TIP: You are now going to move on to cutting the heat transfer vinyl, but before you do, it is important to have the right blade height as well as the right blade pressure so that you do not end up with a poorly cut piece of vinyl. We therefore always recommend keeping your blade height to a minimum and adjusting only the pressure when you work with vinyl, so as not to damage the vinyl and the poor machine that goes with it.
After starting the cut, it should happen automatically.
Step 4: Weeding
You can now move on to the famous weeding step of textile flocking! This step is as much a joy for some as it is a nightmare for others!
You will need to remove the excess vinyl that sits on the outside and inside of your logo. You can use tweezers or a special weeding tool, especially for small details.
It is important to weed away all the excess vinyl, even the small details. This step must also be carried out carefully so as not to damage the logo.
Step 5: Pressing
After a long journey, you finally reach the most crucial step, the one that will decide whether your creation is a roaring success or a sad flop...
It is called the pressing step!
Place the design you weeded earlier onto the type of textile you want (in this example we are going to use a t-shirt).
Be precise and careful when you position the logo, because once you have pressed the flocking onto your textile, you will only be able to remove it with great difficulty.
Once the logo is well positioned, press the vinyl using an iron or a heat press.
Every vinyl has a different temperature as well as a different pressing time. As for the Premium vinyl from Papier-Transfert, press it at 160 degrees for 15 to 20 seconds. You will then need to do a warm peel, that is, remove the plastic on top of the vinyl about 30 seconds after the pressing time is over.
Final step
Your t-shirt now has a beautiful personalized logo, but it is not completely finished!
For a perfect textile flocking result, take your baking paper, place it over the logo and press the vinyl again for 10 seconds. Then let your lovely creation rest for a few hours and be proud of yourself!
You are now a creator!
We hope this blog has helped you see this printing method called Flocking more clearly!
If you dream of launching your own textile personalization business or even your own clothing brand, our Magic Starter Pack is the ideal solution.
It brings together all the professional equipment you need to start personalizing your clothes from day one...
And above all: it includes our step-by-step training so that you are guided from A to Z, even if you are starting from scratch.
Order it today and start creating clothes that look like you!
You can also take a look at our collection of heat transfer vinyls, which keeps growing, if you already have all the accessories to personalize your clothes with flocking!
