Impressions - March 2010 - (Page 26)

Reverse Decorating With CAD Materials Take a unique approach to fashion-forward decoration — from the inside out. By Josh Ellsworth, Contributing Writer Reverse decorating gives a fashionforward look to sheer or thin garments and can be achieved through screen printing, sublimation or heat-applied CAD materials. Garment courtesy of Royal Apparel, New York; decoration by cadcutdirect.com. mbellishing garments on their reverse sides is a trend that is growing in popularity and is ideal for a variety of market niches. For instance, consider presenting your local cheer squad with a new twist on their practice shirts — their mascot and team name applied on the inside of a sheer garment so the design shows through. Mirroring what the girls are buying at retail, this is a great way to garner that competitive school business by offering something different. Reverse garment decorating is a fun solution to offer your customers for everything from fundraising walk-a-thon shirts, to a local restaurant’s wait staff uniforms, to namedropped preprint lines. It can be achieved through traditional screen printing, dye sublimation (if the garment contains polyester) and by using heat-applied CAD materials, a cutter and a heat press. In this article and accompanying video, we’ll cover the basics of the latter form of reverse embellishment. 26 Impressions >> March 2010 SIMPLE STEPS For best results, choose a shirt that is either very lightweight, sheer or even a burnout style. These types of shirts will best allow the CAD material to show through. Choose a ﬁlm that complements the shirt but one that you’ll still be able to see once the process is completed. The ﬁnished look will appear muted since the decoration is on the inside of the garment. The adhesive side of the CAD material is what shows through the front of the shirt. Choose a material that is vibrant, not dull. Test various colors of ﬁlms and vinyls to see which ones show through the best. Load the ﬁlm into the cutter and output the design (in the positive, not the reverse) using your vector graphics program. Next, weed the excess CAD material from your design. Turn your shirt inside-out and position the side that will include the design over the lower heat platen of your press. Always use a cover sheet to protect the heated top platen. Press the garment according to your press manufacturer’s recommended time and temperature, and remember to cool for the appropriate amount of time before pulling away the excess ﬁlm. You’ll ﬁnd that thicker or full-coverage graphics stand out best when using this process. The type of shirt also affects the outcome. With burnout shirts, which have a mottled pattern, you will ﬁnd some parts of the design will show through better than others. Experiment to see which combinations work best. Because the ﬁlm will be against the body, always use a thinner ﬁlm vs. a thicker one for greater comfort. Visit impressionsmag.com/reverse to watch Josh present a video demonstration of this technique. Josh Ellsworth is the General Manager of Stahls’ CAD-CUT Direct. For more information or to comment on this article, e-mail Josh at josh@cadcutdirect.com or visit his Web site, joshellsworth.com. Hear Josh speak on apparel decorating using a vinyl cutter and heat press at this month’s Atlantic City Imprinted Sportswear Show. Individual seminars are just $25 and workshops are $99 each if you preregister: issshows.com. impressionsmag.com http://www.cadcutdirect.com http://www.impressionsmag.com/reverse http://www.joshellsworth.com http://www.issshows.com http://www.impressionsmag.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Impressions - March 2010

Impressions - March 2010
Contents
First Impressions
FYI
Product Gallery
Add Shine to Womenswear
Reverse Decorating With CAD Materials
Tech Tips Embroidery
Tech Tips Screen Printing
What’s Up With Water-Based Inks?
Technique
Production
For Screen Printers Only
Online Directory
Change Digital Workflow to Keep Profits Flowing
On Design
Business to Business
Classifieds
Ad Index

Impressions - March 2010