When you make crafts at home eventually you are going to need to print something. Whether it’s stickers, cards, packaging or tags. There is more to ink than just using the ink that comes with your printer. It’s important to think ahead about how your craft will be used. Will it get wet or is it a precious image you want to keep for many years, or is it a garment that will get washed?
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Pigment Ink
If you use an inkjet printer than you maybe trying to decide between pigment or dye ink. If you are printing anything that needs to be waterproof than you want to be printing with pigment ink. If you are printing stickers that need to be water proof for bath scrubs and lotions than you want waterproof so they don’t smear in the shower. Pigment ink offers long lasting photo quality prints that will give you a professional design, and it also works better on glossy material.
When printing with pigment ink it looks almost the same as dye ink, you probably won’t notice a difference. Pigment ink is more resistant to UV light and can last up to two years in an outdoor environment. Pigment inks are also less prone to fading than dye ink. The advantage of pigment ink is that the black tends to be more solid but you might find the colors are a bit lighter than dye ink.
If you are using pigment ink than you need to have a printer just for use with pigment ink. You can’t use a previously used printer that has been used with dye ink. It has to be a fresh and new print head. Check out this article about some of the best printers for crafters.
Dye Ink
Dye ink are another type of ink that is used in inkjet printers. They are great for use on paper products that will be used up within 1 years time and for indoor application. They come off with water so they are best used for products that won’t get wet. The are more easily available for all printer types and the print quality tends to be better than pigment ink. And it also tends to be cheaper than pigment ink.
Laser Printer Ink
Laser and inkjet are two of the most popular printer types, but they both operate very differently from the other. Laser printers use a powder cartridge versus inkjet printers which liquid inks. Laser printers use laser beams that transfer an image onto the drum which picks up the toner and transfers it onto the paper. Laser printers tend to be a lot more expensive upfront but tend to have higher yeilds for their toner so it can work out cheaper over time.
Laser printers can print onto a variety of materials including sticker vinyl, cardstock and paper. But in my experience, inkjet tends to be better for crafters because inkjet creates excellent photo quality prints. And I find laser printers are best for office use versus craft purposes.
For toner I recommend buying the brand that is made for your printer. I have bought compatible toners in the past and they leak and explode inside the printer and the toner dust is impossible to clean out and it will leave streaks on your prints. This means you will eventually have to purchase a new printer to replace your ruined one. Brand name toner is expensive but still cheaper than having to buy a brand new printer since laser printers are quite expensive.
Sublimation
Sublimation ink is a special in that is used to transfer images onto objects and clothing. Its a special dye that is suspended in a liquid and used with inkjet printers. You print onto special sublimation paper which is not the same as the office paper you use for regular printing. After you print your design, in reverse, onto the sublimation paper you can transfer it to clothing or object with heat using a heat press. When the heat is applied at around 180C to 210C the dye gets seperated from the other liquids and become a gas that will trasfer the image onto the surface.
Sublimation ink is transparent so will only work on white or light colored products so it won’t work on a black tshirt. Also the ink will only work on special materials such as polyester fabrics, it won’t work with cotton. You can also buy special sublimation blanks such as mugs, keychains and magnets that have been designed to work with sublimation ink.
It’s important to have a designated printer just for sublimation printing. You can’t use a previously used printer, it needs to be brand new and only used with sublimation inks.
CISS
CISS stands for continuous ink supply system. This is handy if you print a lot and it’s a great way to save on ink cost as well as not having to waste time buying and replacing cartridges. It can be handy to buy a printer with a large ink resevoir and after you can buy your ink in bulk. This is also handy if you want to print with specialty inks like pigment or sublimation because you can just fill up the chambers with the special ink. You can also purchase refiliable ink cartridges for some printers.
There are some printers on the market that have large ink chambers and I recommend this as the best option. But if you are not wanting to splurge on a new printer just yet and you just want to test the waters than a CISS that you can use to hack your printer is another option. Just remember that you can’t swap different inks, you need to have a designated printer for each ink type.
Online shops to buy ink
There are quite a few options for buying ink other than from a department store. You can find a huge selection online as a well as from other distributors. Some popular locations include
Well I hope that this article helps you to choose which ink is best for your craft projects. Since there is a lot to keep in mind such as does it need to be waterproof and the best way to keep your print ink cost low.
