The Benefits of Sublimated Apparel – AUO Trying to decide what type of custom uniform or t-shirt to get can be stressful. There are so many options out there. Sometimes people don’t even understand the terminology related to custom uniforms. One terminology that many hear, but really don’t understand its meaning, is sublimated apparel. Let’s first look at the definition of the word sublimation. Sublimation’s meaning is basically when a solid turns into a gas without becoming a liquid. An example of this is when snow or ice turns into steam or fog without melting. So when you think of a sublimated product it has the basic meaning. In sublimated products the ink is actually melted into the fabric instead of being on top of the fabric like it is in heat press or screen printing. One of the biggest benefits of choosing a dye sublimated product over a screen printing or heat press is you can have as many colors as you want and create a sports uniform or t shirt that will be unique to only your team or yourself. The chances of anyone duplicating what you designed are nearly zero. You can use as many colors as you want and create any design you like. There is no pattern that you have to stick to. You design your own pattern and it is made especially for you. There are many football teams, basketball teams and other teams that seem to have the same colors; blue, red, yellow, green, with maybe another color to offset the primary color which can seem very boring. Sometimes two opposing teams can look exactly alike which is why they have home and away colors so it sets them apart. With a sublimated team uniform you will enter the field or court with your very own style. How many times has the question been asked when dealing with screen printing or heat press, “Will this number fade or come off when I wash it?” Probably more times than any of us can count. With a sublimated product that will never happen. Because the names and numbers are dyed right into the fabric there is no chance of the number or name coming off the shirt or peeling away. The color will last thru many more washes than a heat press or screen-printed product before you even begin to see a smidgen of fading. You also don’t have to worry about the ink rubbing off onto other clothes you may be wearing. Like if you are wearing a white t-shirt under your football jersey you don’t have to worry that the ink may bleed into it. Because the dyes are melted and locked into the fabric there is no way for this to happen. There are a few other advantages of getting sublimated apparel. Because the ink is basically melted into the fabric as opposed to pressed or printed it gives the apparel a much softer look. Most of the time when you do screen printing or heat press you have to use fabric that is heavier because of the process that is used using a delicate fabric will ruin it. When you use sublimation, you can use a lighter more delicate fabric which gives the softer look and also allows you to be able to wear a more breathable uniform or shirt. No one is saying to never get screen printing or heat press done but if you are looking for something that is different and were your team or your own shirts will be unique to just your team or you then choosing to have your apparel sublimated would be the way to go. You can get your custom sublimated apparel through an online uniform company which would keep the cost even lower because you are not dealing with a company that has a lot of overhead cost which increases your cost. Also, most charge for each color you want when using heat press or screen printing. With a sublimated product you can use as many colors as you want and the price does not change. Sometimes by the time you pay for cost of all the colors and each letter and number that you need to create your uniform thru heat press or screen
printing you will pay a lot more than just using sublimation. Most online uniform companies will take the time to work with you and help you design a uniform that is uniquely your own and that you will fall in love with. So give sublimation a try. If you do it once you will probably never want to do screen printing or heat press again.