Continuing the series Printing on Fabric 101. Last week we looked at printer feed paths so today I’ll discuss printer inks, which is another important aspect when printing on fabric.

Understanding inkjet printer inks can get a little confusing because each printer manufacturer makes their inks using different technologies and these technologies are advancing and changing constantly. I’ll try and keep this simple to understand for those of us (including me) who don’t really care about technologies but do want our printed images to have crisp clear detail, the color to be bright and fade-resistant, and the print to be either water resistant or waterproof depending on your application.

I discussed in a previous article how to make your printed images waterproof, but what about fade-resistance, color brightness and detail? A general understanding of printer inks will help you understand these features.

Types of Inks
The most common printer inks used in home printers fall into one of two categories – pigment-based or dye-based although some printers use a combination of both types. For example some printers will use a combination of a black cartridge with pigment based ink and color cartridges with dye-based ink. If you’re not sure what type of ink your printer uses, refer to the printer manual or check online with the manufacturer.

Dye Based Inks
Dye Based Inks are generally more vivid in color than pigment based inks however as technology advances this is changing, however dye based inks are less water and fade resistant than pigment based inks. They also tend to take a little longer to dry and this can sometimes cause blurring of the image.

Pigment Based Inks
Pigment Based Inks on the other hand are more light fast and generally water resistant. Although less intense in color than dye based inks, as mentioned previously improvements are constantly being made to improve this feature.

Let’s see it in action
The best way to demonstrate is always by testing. The picture on the left is the image I used. The picture on the right is the image printed on untreated fabric using two different printers; the “pigment ink” print was printed on my Epson Workforce 1100 using durabrite (pigment) inks, the “dye ink” print was printed on my Epson RX595 using claria (dye) inks. Both prints were printed using exactly the same printer settings but the results are only *similar*, not the same.

If you look closely you can see that the “pigment ink” print has printed significantly more detail than the “dye ink” print and you can notice this particularly around the center of the main flower where the “pigment ink” print has printed the little black dots in detail, but the “dye ink” print has not and the detail is blurred. The color on the “pigment ink” print is also more true to the original image.

And this is not the only difference. After washing only for a few seconds, this is what happened… You can see that even when printed on untreated fabric the “pigment ink” print holds the ink much better than the “dye ink” print. Even though Epson doesn’t guarantee their durabrite inks to be waterproof, only water-resistant, they do in fact hold up well with a hand wash.

Fade Resistance
As technology advances, printer inks are becoming more and more fade resistant. However there are also products that can be used to ensure further fade resistance as well as additional moisture resistance, such as Krylon Preserve It! which is a spray-on preservative for inkjet prints. The manufacturer guarantees that the spray will double the life of your printed image so if you want your printed images to be around and looking as good as new in a couple of hundred years you might consider using this type of product.

I use this product and I have to warn that it should be used outside because the fumes are quite overwhelming. You would also want to leave your prints in a well ventilated area for a day or two until the smell and fumes dissipate.

Generic vs Brand Name Inks
When printing on fabric your goal is to print high quality images, preferably water and fade resistant, and I can’t stress enough that generic inks simply will not provide these features.

Regardless of what the companies that sell generic ink tell you, generic inks are not of the same quality as brand name inks and do not meet the same standards, which is why they are cheaper than brand inks. Manufacturers spend a lot of money developing their inks to meet very specific requirements such as color and image quality, and fade and water resistance which means that genuine ink cartridges will provide you with very specific results which is often important when printing high quality, long lasting, images on fabric.

So What’s The Bottom Line?
The best printer for printing on fabric without a doubt a printer that uses pigment-based inks and has a straight through or an L-shaped feed. With some brands you still may have problems feeding, however most printers have a “thick paper” setting that you could try. My personal favorite is an Epson printer that uses durabrite (pigment) inks. This type of printer always provides me with troublefree printing and always gives the best results in color, detail and clarity, and washability.

It should be mentioned that I constantly hear reports about how the ink jets on the Epson printers are prone to clogging, however I’ve used Epson printers for 8 years or so and have only ever had one occurrence of this when I put my printer into storage and didn’t use it for about 8 months. Otherwise I leave my printers on all the time and have never experienced any problems whatsoever.

NEXT … Fabric Options

Resources

Krylon Preserve It 11 oz Gloss Krylon Preserve It more than doubles the life of digital photos and documents by keeping them safe from harmful UV rays, moisture and smudging. Ideal for scrapbook projects and memory albums. Can also be used as a clear protective finish on surfaces such as wood, metal, ceramic and more. Acid-free and archival-safe. Covers up to 20 square feet. 11 oz Gloss

Krylon Preserve It 11 oz Matte Krylon Preserve It more than doubles the life of digital photos and documents by keeping them safe from harmful UV rays, moisture and smudging. Ideal for scrapbook projects and memory albums. Can also be used as a clear protective finish on surfaces such as wood, metal, ceramic and more. Acid-free and archival-safe. Covers up to 20 square feet. 11 oz Matte

… Continue reading →

Continuing the series Printing on Fabric 101, today let’s look at printers and the best feed path when printing on fabric.

One of the most common problems when printing on fabric is having the fabric jam when feeding through your printer. This problem can be alleviated in part by ensuring that the fabric is properly adhered to a paper backing so it feeds through your printer smoothly. Additional information about adhering your fabric to a paper backing can be found here for using freezer paper and an alternate method can be found here for using sticky labels .

Paper jams can also be avoided by using a printer with a feed path that better supports the thickness and texture of fabric, and ideally a straight through feed or an L-shaped feed are the best options for printing on fabric. If you’re not sure about your printer’s feed path, check your user manual.

Best Choice – Straight-Through Feed
The paper feeds from the back (or the front) of the printer and exits at the front (or the back) in a straight line. This ensures that the fabric remains securely bonded to the paper backing and feeds smoothly through the printer.

This type of printer offers the best solution for printing any type of material from very thin to quite thick.

Next Best Choice – L-shaped Feed
The paper feeds from a tray located at the back of the printer in a downwards angle, curves slightly and then exits at the front. Because the fabric feeds through with only a very slight curve, the fabric remains securely bonded to the paper backing.

This type of printer is probably the most common and should work well with most types of material except the very rigid.

Least Preferred Choice – U-Shaped Feed
The paper feeds from a horizontal tray located at the front or on top of the printer, feeds into the printer and makes a curve in order to exit.

This is the most difficult type of printer to work with as the fabric has to make (an often) sharp u-turn in order to feed through, and this can cause the fabric to form wrinkles as it bends, and then it peels away from the paper backing which in turn increases the risk of a paper jam. This type of printer will limit the types and thicknesses of materials that can be printed.

NEXT … Printer Inks

… Continue reading →