Photo transfers

Well the most common options would be -

treat your own fabric and print from your PC or use a pre-treated fabric and print from your PC

I prefer to use a pre-treated sheet of fabric just to save the mess and bother. (It's not hard to do, I just do a lot of them as labels for my classes and I am getting lazy lol). I use EQ Printable sheets, but many here speak highly of other brands. I am sure they will speak up.

You can now get different fabrics in pre-treated sheets - cotton, satin, sateen, etc. Your choices are many and varied. What is this to be used for? Will it be subject to hard wear and laundering? How big are the images?

I use the prepared fabric sheets, Sarah; those already treated and stuck to a paper backing. I have tried several, and have to try my latest. It is best to read about them, as there are so many. Or, could I recommend that you have a word with 'Lawrence' - the Man from Rio, at Riodesigns (I don't know the proper address but Googling on that will find him. He had a stand at Malvern last year that was almost entirely devoted to photo-transfer and all the methods. If you are planning to do a lot, then getting the special liquid (Bubble Jet) and pre-treating your own fabric would be the most economic way to go; but I'm afraid I have never tried it. Like Cheryl, so far I have used mine mostly for labels. . In message , Sarah Dixon writes

As well as labels I print a lot of photos on fabric for memory quilts made in the classes. We finished one tonight - the photos set in a ladder-like setting of black fabric with a stip of B&W horizontal stripe fabric (cut to look like squares) and another of black, so it looks like a roll of film right across the back of the quilt.

Because of the number we do I buy the 50sheet packs from Electric Quilt. Even with air mail postage to Australia it works out cheaper than buying a few sheets at a time.

If you are part of a group you could propose buying a larger qty and sharing the cost. There are considerable savings to be had that way.

I suggest Printed Treasures fabric sheets. They don't feel stiff. I hate the ones that Jo-Ann's & Wal-Mart sell, I think some of them are June Tailor and other brands. The EQ fabric sheets are okay, but I still prefer Printed Treasures. Another guild member and I use them a lot, so a lot of times we will order the 50 sheet box, and split the cost. You will probably want to print out what photos you are using, on plain paper first, to make sure you have the lay out and everything correct. This keeps you from wasting the fabric sheets. I mad DH a photo quilt a few years ago, and I have done lots of photo pillows.

Sherry Starr

The difficulty in preparing and using your own fabric is not the soaking and drying, but getting the fabric to adhere to a sheet of paper. Some use freezer paper which allows the fabric to be ironed to the shiny side. Others use spray adhesives. I read that someone used masking tape on the leading edge to be sure the fabric entered the printer correctly. If the fabric is not firmly attached to its paper backing, both fabric and printer could be harmed.

I use Printed Treasures, mostly for quilt labels. I don't like handsewing with PT but am otherwise quite happy with the product.

I want to make 6 small sepia toned photos about 4" x 3" they will go into a fabric photograph album for my mum for Christmas, so no washing. Around here you just seem to be able to find the transfer sheets - how different is the effect from them to the effect from the fabric sheets?

Sarah

I have never used transfer sheets so couldn't say.

The printed sheets are just like any very high thread count fabric. It's not necessarily the nicest stuff to hand sew through but not all that difficult. And if you printed on it, it is probable that you won't want to sew through the middle of it anyway.

Sherry, I can't figure ot the difference between Peel and Stick and Sew on. Can you help?

"Sherry Starr"

I've used the Timely Treasures fabric sheets, which worked very well for some special quilt labels. They were a bit hard to needle when I appliqued the labels to the quilts. However, I purchased those around

2-1/2 years ago, so they could be dramatically different now. I've ordered some of the Electric Quilt sheets, but I have not received them as of yet.

Here are a couple of sites that give some details on the process -- I am sure there are many more.

The follow> I would like to do some photo transfers, how would you recommend I do