DTF Transfers

Fresh Prints is the top merch company if you want to use DTF Transfers to create custom apparel. Here’s a breakdown of how it works:

What is DTF Transfer?

Direct-to-Film Transfer is a full-color printing method that has fewer limitations than digital printing. The design is printed on a special film and heat transferred onto the garment of your choice. DTF Transfers have unlimited colors and are printed using CMYK, making it a great way to print full-color images and gradients.

What’s the difference between DTF and DTG?

DTF offers a better vibrancy as compared to DTG Printing but it has a different texture. Since DTF transfers are heat-pressed on top of the garment, they do not blend with the texture of the garment and are more rigid than other print methods.

When should I use DTF transfer for merch?

Fresh Prints has done over 40,000 merch orders using DTF transfers. Based on everything we’ve seen, here are the best times to use DTF:

• If your design is pocket-sized but has a gradient effect
• If you have a multi-colored design but are ordering less than 10 items or don’t reach the MOQ with screen print
• If your design has more than 8 colors and you’re using a t-shirt with less than 80% cotton (such as 50/50s, 100% polyester, <50% cotton blends)
• If you want a multi-colored design on any backpack or cooler and don’t want embroidery
• If you want a mult-colored design on a 6-panel hat
• If you’re doing a repeat order
• If you need a reprint of an order that was originally screen-printed

What are the best products and garments for DTF transfers?

DTF is compatible with a lot more garments than other print types. You can even use it for printing on a 100% polyester shirt!

However, we wouldn’t recommend it for fabrics that can’t be heat-pressed evenly or are too stretch-sensitive. We’d avoid using DTF for the following:

• Ribbed/Micro-Ribbed garments
• Sherpa Fleece garments
• Terry Cloth
• Elastic Garments
• Nylon and Water-resistant garments
• Textured Fleece Garments

With that being said, here are the best products for DTF transfers.

How big can designs be if I use DTF transfer?

The maximum size allowed for your design depends on the print location. See table summary below.

Location	Max Size
Front and back	15"w x 19"h
T-Shirt Pocket	Max Pocket Area but it must be 0.25" away from the seam
On sleeves	Across the width of the sleeve x 19"h
Pant legs	Across the width of the pant legs x 19"h
Shorts	Across the width and height of the shorts; it must be 0.25" away from the seam
Kids garments	Along the width and height of the garment; it must be 0.25" away from the seam and not exceeding 15"w x 19"h.
5-panel and Bucket hats	4"w x 3"h

What are the limitations of DTF transfers?

• Design Limitations
• Free-floating lines need to be 2pt (0.70 mm) minimum.
• The negative space (the area where the shirt shows through) in the design must be larger than 2pt (0.70mm).
• We can’t have a design fade into the color of the garment. The colors in the design can only fade into a different color.
• We can’t match Pantones exactly (more on that below).
• We can’t print designs with distressed effects using DTF Transfers.
• Pantone Matching
• Although we can print unlimited colors using DTF Transfers, it uses a CMYK process that blends the inks together to capture different shades of color and doesn’t guarantee a specific pantone match.
• If you need an exact pantone match, we recommend Screen Printing.
• Supacolor Transfers can get closer pantone matches than standard DTF, but they won’t be 100% exact.
• Placement Limitations
• We can’t press DTF over a seam
• The closest we can press to a seam is 0.25”.
• Wrap-Around Prints
• To heat press a DTF transfer on a garment, it must lie flat.
• Therefore, DTF cannot wrap around an area larger than the surface area of the garment lying flat.
• While we can heat press DTF on sleeves and the sides of garments with no seams, we cannot press a design that wraps completely around a garment.