A woman carries a tote bag which has been customised with a panda motif from Creative Park with Canon's iron-on transfers.

CREATIVE PRINT

Customise your wardrobe with Canon PIXMA textile printing

If you've got an image or a design that you love, it's easy to add it to a t-shirt, tote bag or cushion, or any other textile, using Canon's Iron-on Transfers and a compatible Canon PIXMA printer. Perhaps you're a member of a sports team or want to print custom clothes for an event? Maybe you want to make personalised gifts for your friends, or even create fabric wall art? Whatever your imagination can dream up, you can make a reality. And if you're struggling for ideas, Creative Park offers a range of exciting designs that you can download for free.

Iron-on transfer is incredibly easy to do and you'll soon find that there are lots of things that look better with a little customisation.

A sheet of iron-on transfers on a printer tray next to a smartphone and a t-shirt.
You'll find lots of fun iron-on transfer designs on Creative Park including this cute Roly-Poly Penguin Family.

You will need:

  • A compatible* Canon PIXMA printer
  • Canon Iron-on Transfers (available for light or dark fabric)
  • Your favourite design
  • A T-shirt/tote bag/textile of your choice (the material should be min. 50% cotton; machine washable at 30°C)
  • Scissors
  • Ironing board and iron

Transferring your design

Canon's Iron-on Transfers are available in A4 size, so you can create large designs. If your motifs are smaller you can fit several on the same document in a tile pattern to make the most efficient use of the transfer paper. Once your design is ready to go, follow these simple steps:

1. Load the printer

A woman loads a sheet of iron-on transfer paper into a Canon PIXMA TS5350 printer.
We're customising a dark t-shirt, so we've selected the Dark Fabric Iron-on Transfers for this project.

Select the correct transfer paper. There are two versions, one for light fabric and one for dark fabric, which means that whether you're planning to put the design on dark curtains, a light cushion, a denim jacket or a white T-shirt, the colours will be nice and bright. Both versions work best on natural fabrics such as cotton.

2. Print your design

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Print directly from a computer, smartphone or tablet.

Print your design onto the transfer paper. You can print from your computer, or even directly from your smartphone or tablet using the Creative Park app. It's easy to print whenever the inspiration strikes!

3. Cut out the design

A woman uses a pair of scissors to cut around an iron-on transfer design.
You can either leave a border around the design, or trim right up to the edge.

The 'unprinted' parts of the transfer will show on your final design so, using a sharp pair of scissors, either trim neatly around the image on your transfer paper to create a nice frame, or carefully cut out the printed section, keeping as close to the edge as you can.

4. Peel and position

A woman stands at an ironing board and peels the backing off an iron-on transfer. A dark t-shirt is on the ironing board.
Use a few pins to mark your chosen location but don't pin the design to the t-shirt.

Peel the backing sheet off the transfer paper and position the design on your fabric. If you're putting the print on a t-shirt, it's worth trying it on first and using a mirror (or a helper) to work out the best location for your design. If you're using several small designs and you don't want a uniform layout, try rolling a few dice or tossing a few coins onto your fabric to select random positions.

5. Iron on

A woman irons an iron-on transfer onto a dark t-shirt.
The Dark Fabric Iron-on Transfers pack comes with two sheets of parchment to protect the transfer paper while you're ironing on the design.

Put your fabric on an ironing board with your transfer(s) in your chosen position(s) and remove any guiding pins. Next, find the sheet of parchment that comes with your Iron-On Transfers and lay it over your design. Now comes the exciting bit – actually transferring your design to the fabric. Simply iron over the parchment applying even pressure so that the design on the transfer paper bonds to the material. When bonded to the material, your designs are machine-washable so you can wear your garment over and over again.

6. Plan your next project

A man wears a dark t-shirt customised with an iron-on transfer of a family of penguins.
Now you've discovered how easy it is, you can start planning your next project…

Once you've created your first personalised item you'll start to see lots of opportunities to revamp your wardrobe or add a fresh twist to your accessories. Why not order some more paper – the possibilities are endless!

* Light Fabric Iron-on Transfers LF-101 compatibility: PRO-100/PRO-100S, TS series (except TS31xx series/TS20x series), TR series (except TR45xx series), MG77xx series/MG75xx series/MG68xx series/MG67xx series/MG57xx series/MG56xx series/MG36xx series, iX68xx series

Dark Fabric Iron-on Transfers DF-101 compatibility: PRO-100/PRO-100S, TS series (except TS31xx series/TS20x series), TR series (except TR45xx series), G series (except GM40xx series/GM20xx series), MG77xx series/MG75xx series/MG67xx series, iP87xx series/iX68xx series


Written by Angela Nicholson

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