A sublimation t-shirts business is always a good idea if you have a lot of creativity and tons of designs in mind. And you really don’t need a lot of investment to start your business. Keeping in mind that you already have a computer in your home, the rest you need will not be very difficult to find.
Taking all this into account, below, we detail everything you should consider before starting your sublimation business. In addition to giving you some good advice on where you can get your materials at an excellent price. So get ready and take note of everything you can. Because this will make you want to start buying materials in a few seconds.
All Sublimation materials you need:
Let’s start with the basics and by this we mean all the materials you must have. The ones you will see below are essential when starting your sublimation t-shirts business. So make sure you have them all before you start working.
Sublimation printer:
It’s the most important thing, because you can’t sublimate if you can’t print your designs. So, what you have to look for is a printer to which you will exclusively dedicate the sublimation work.
This must be an inkjet or laser printer, otherwise it won’t work. But you can buy a small printer to save costs and it will be enough to sublimate small designs.I recommend the Sawgrass SG500 and the Epson Workforce WF-7710 sublimation printers
Special inks for sublimation:
These inks are also key, and you have to make sure they’re of the best quality for you to have a good result. For this, we recommend buying sealed cartridges, this will also help you a lot in maintaining the well-being of your printer. Then, you’ll need the basic colors for printing, that is, cyan, yellow, magenta and black. This way you’ll get the full range of colors.
You can also check that they are the correct colors by requesting a color profile from the ink manufacturers. This will save you a lot of work.
Transfer paper:
This works as a conveyor for the ink. This paper is where you’ll print and transfer the heat and pressure to the shirt you want to print. As with inks, they must be of a good quality to achieve good definition and excellent results on your print.
Heat press machine:
You should also select an iron, these usually come in different sizes and shapes. Heat press with Plate Size: 15 x 15 inches are perfect for Sublimation T-shirts and other flat items. So we recommend that you select one that is a good size and is flat.
Best T-shirts for sublimation:
The worst enemy for your sublimation t-shirts business is cotton. So you should only look for shirts that are totally polyester. This is key when starting your business, but there is also a great variety of polyester when it comes to the quality of the fabrics. Therefore, you should know what are the shirts that suit you.
First of all, the polyester blend must be right. If you’re looking for a well-defined finish, you’ve to opt for shirts that are 100% polyester. Because if you choose a lower percentage, the final finish will look much more opaque and faded. Unless of course, that is the result you are looking for.
On the other hand, you also have to look for good quality, good price and a pleasant feeling for your customers. In this way, the polyester should not be uncomfortable to wear or difficult to wash. Besides that, you can buy a couple of dozens of these shirts wholesale and that when you sell them you have a good profit.
In this sense, Jerzee 21M T-shirts offer you a cotton-like feel and incredible quality. At the same time there are the Team 365 jerseys, which offer you the same as a Jerzee, but at a lower price. Lastly, you can also find excellent quality 100% polyester t-shirts at Royal Apparel.
Best 5 Softwares For Sublimation Design:
We present these five sublimation programs that you will see are essential when starting your new business on the right foot.
- GIMP: This software has a large number of resources and features, similar to those of a professional program. But you know what? GIMP is totally free!
- Photoshop: After you have a good time mastering GIMP and have saved enough, you can try purchasing the Adobe suite. Because Photoshop isn’t famous in the design world for nothing.
- CorelDraw: This is a design software, but one that I specify to vectorize. So if you master this art well, go ahead and use CorelDraw to make your custom vectors and place them on your t-shirts. It can be a bit tricky to master at first, but you’ll get used to it.
- Illustrator: We consider this the easy-to-use version of CorelDraw. Part of the Adobe Suite, it also allows you to vector like a pro. Just understanding a couple of tools and practicing a couple of times.
- Inkscape: It’s a free vector editor that can also be used to create and edit lines, graphics, logos and more. It could be said that it is a more basic version of the vector programs that we have mentioned.
T-shirt sublimation printing process:
Best place to buy your sublimation t-shirts:
Of course, we haven’t forgotten a fundamental aspect of your sublimation t-shirts business. And of course, it’s all about the t-shirts. So read the following, so you don’t waste time looking for the best options on your own. Then we do the work for you.
- Etsy: In this Marketplace you can find thousands of handmade items. Therefore, you can find t-shirt distributors to sublimate independently. This means that you can get better prices than at a distributor or an official store. So give Etsy a chance when it comes to searching for your work supplies.
- Ebay: The Marketplace par excellence. Here you can find millions of items, sellers and auctions. Therefore, great diversity of wholesale distributors and excellent prices. Not to mention a good variety of shirts for sublimation.
- Social media: It’s also a good option to search social networks for some distributors of shirts for sublimation. And who knows? You may find better options and very tempting business deals additionally.
- Local: Never discount the idea of searching your own city for specific sublimation stores. In these you’ll not only find good quality shirts, but also other implements that may be useful for you. So give it a chance for the local business around you.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, all you need to start your sublimation t-shirt business is to simply take the first step. Everything else we’ve shown you throughout this article. So you may have realized that it’is quite easy and inexpensive to start with this kind of entrepreneurship.
Don’t be discouraged, take small first steps and continue on your way. If this is what you want to do, you will have plenty of opportunities to excel. You just need to break through and follow our advice. If you have good designs and great creativity, you’ll see that in a short time you will stand out in this market.
