Soaking after printing

The reason we have you soak is to remove excess surface ink. Different inks react differently, and different waters can affect this. We would recommend that you:

  • Soak in distilled water.
  • Keep the fabric moving when you’re soaking – what you’re doing is getting rid of excess ink, so swish the fabric around in the water solution if you’re getting bleeding. Then at the end, rinse under running water until you do not see any ink coming off.
  • Lay the fabric flat on a towel to dry, and blot it with another old towel or paper towels, so that no surface water pools and bleeds into the surrounding areas.
  • Protect unused fabric. Our inkjet cotton is coated with special coating to accept the ink. The liquid is semi-transparent, but if it is exposed by direct Sun or UV light for some length of time, that coating will get yellowish and the fabric sheet will look more yellow than its original light cream tone.

Care after sewing your printouts

  • Wash, only when necessary. We recommend gently hand washing with Woolite. Do not use bleach. Lay flat to dry.
  • If you notice wrinkling, iron on low to medium heat if desired. Hot irons can cause some printer inks to look muddy, so do not use a hot iron. You are not heat setting the printouts—ironing is only needed to smooth wrinkles. Use a pressing cloth between the iron and the printed surface.
  • Do not place your printed item in direct sunlight. The colorfastness of your image depends on how colorfast your printer ink is. All fabric will fade in direct sunlight.

Storing unused fabric

If you open the package and leave it for long time (for some months), it may become a bit yellow. This phenomenon happens not only on our fabric but on other inkjet treated fabrics. Printability and water resistance will not be affected.

To prevent such a yellowing problem, it is recommended:

  • Store the sheets away from the direct Sun or UV light source.
  • After opening the package, seal it up again. Do not leave it opened.
  • Since storing the fabric in a hot and humid place may also affect the color, try to keep the package away from high humidity and temperature.