Primer for sublimation on wood. Thermal transfer transfer to textiles, wood, metal, leather with flex, flock, glitter, metallic films (prices). Briefly about sublimation printing

22.02.2018

In any modern interior there are a lot of wooden panels: doors and facades of cabinet furniture, parquet floors, countertops, partitions. All this can become an area for design solutions that will create a unique atmosphere in your room. This will help modern printing technology on wood.

Sublimation printing is the basis for the direct application of color images to a wood surface. It is suitable for both residential and office interiors. Sublimation printing prices are now at a level that allows mass application of this technology to create unique room design solutions.

For drawing the image on a wood surface the professional equipment is used. Printers for such work are available in three types: laser, inkjet and thermal sublimation. All of them provide high quality of the resulting picture, and the difference lies in the cost of maintenance and the cost of consumables.

Materials for printing on wood

Since different types of wood and wood products are used in industrial production, printing technologies are suitable for printing on various grades.

Solid wood boards are the most expensive and most valuable option, creating a luxurious yet cozy environment.
Plywood and various types of wood-based panels: chipboard, fiberboard, MDF, laminated chipboard and others - a more democratic version, which also lends itself perfectly to professional printing.
Decorative tiles and panels, including for parquet and laminate, as well as veneer are finished wood products that can be used to create a complex pattern or pattern.
Countertops, doors, screens, wall panels, wood panels and other wood items that can become the centerpiece of your interior.

The quality of the finished image may vary depending on what kind of material was used. However, modern technologies make it possible to reduce these differences to a minimum, which will not be critical and will not worsen the aesthetic merits of the product. Whether it's a solid wood countertop or a chipboard cabinet door, the image will come out colorful and printed in detail.

wood printing process

Before feeding the wooden base into the printer, its surface is treated, cleaned of grease and other contaminants, if necessary, covered with a primer layer to level and form the necessary background for applying the image.

Then the wooden base is fixed on the frame-stand of the printer, the file with the required image is launched for printing, and the printing device, mounted on a movable mechanism (carriage), moves along the base, row after row, applying the desired print.
During the operation of the printer, the paint penetrates into the upper layers of wood and is fixed in them under the influence of temperature or ultraviolet radiation. Powder (in laser printers) or liquid (in inkjet) color composition is sintered with the base.

After the image is applied, and the wooden base comes out of the printer, the product is varnished. This additionally fixes the paint in the wood structure and protects it from fading and other damage for several years.

UV printing technology

The most modern approach to professional wood surface printing is the method based on the use of ultraviolet radiation. Its essence lies in the fact that UV rays functionally replace a slight heating, which contributes to the penetration of the coloring matter into the wood structure and sintering with it. At the same time, the cost of the method using ultraviolet radiation is comparable to the prices of sublimation printing. UV technology also ensures high quality of the finished image, environmental friendliness and durability.

We create for ourselves

With a minimum of tools, you can also figure out how to translate an image onto a tree no worse than using high-tech equipment. Perhaps the most important thing is to decide on the topic, because erasing "nonsense" will be, oh, how difficult.

There are several rules that will teach you how to transfer a drawing to a tree so that it looks right:

The work surface should be bright and clean;
The direction of the wood fibers should not spoil the drawing, for example, oblique lines can add photos of extra wrinkles;
A theme with words/numbers is printed in a mirror image (a photo editor will help rotate the image);

It is desirable to have a photograph for scanning digital, with high image quality;
In a wooden picture, the photo is always located with the front part to the tree, so we will not constantly remind you of this.

The first stage of work is to think about two questions - for what purpose and what will you "sketch". So, what happens can be presented, used for decoration, hung on the wall in the form of a funny maxim, used for practical purposes.

With an elegant vignette, composition or photograph, you can decorate not only a key chain, a small sheet of plywood / board, signs, but also doors, bed headboards, window sills, chairs - everything that makes sense to decorate. We present to your attention some simple but effective ways to transfer an image to a tree.

The first method is free

Free, because you can find it on a computer and make printouts on a laser printer at work or with friends. There you can also prepare the board by grinding with fine-grained paper (P 220) or a wood grinder (there are always support staff in the staff - locksmiths and carpenters).

Let's start working:

find a pattern and enlarge it to the required size, print;
put the sheet on the board;
iron with a hot iron.

You can moisten the sheet with acetone before transferring the picture to the tree so that the pigment comes off better, however, to the detriment of the homely atmosphere. It would be useful to cover the nose and mouth with a gauze bandage or scarf. Typically, this technology is suitable for the subsequent burning of the pattern with a special tool.

Note! Put the carbon paper on the board with the coloring side down, on top of the necessary drawing and circle it with a pencil. The main thing is not to move the paper and not carry it with your hand, otherwise the board will get dirty. It makes sense if the drawing is small.

Method two - glue

In addition to high-precision technology, source code and wooden canvas, you will need:

ordinary PVA glue;
solvent;
fine-grained emery;
varnish, for example, Dulux;
roller;
sponge/long knife;
a lot of patience.

Note! Experienced craftsmen advise slightly lightening the image before transferring the photo to the tree, because the finished color will be more saturated.

degrease and sand the cut piece of wood / plywood;
cover the surface of the photo with a continuous layer of glue;
put the dirty side on the tree;

roll out the sheet with a roller in the manner of smoothing the wallpaper, or by swiping with the flat side of the knife;
leave to dry for a day;
moisten the sheet with a damp sponge;
start slowly and carefully erasing the paper with your own hands, or rather, with your fingers;
let the work dry;
varnish.

Method three - gel

From it you will learn how to transfer a drawing to a tree using an acrylic gel medium. This modeling paste, used to create a relief surface, costs more than 500 rubles, but it’s not worth saving, just like using an expired one. According to the reviews of the masters, a good product is produced by the Rafael company.

Of the tools and supplies you will need:

photograph and tree of the same size;
gel medium and brush to it;
roller / knife / ruler;
paraffin / matte glue used for decoupage;
another brush for paraffin.

The work instruction is in many ways similar to the previous one:

Apply the gel to the board with a brush. The layer should not be thick, but without bald spots;
a photograph is placed on the treated area and smoothed out, expelling air bubbles;
leave overnight in a secluded place;
roll up paper, let dry;
cover with paraffin.

We indulge in translations

I wonder how to transfer a photo to a tree without gel and glue? An alternative would be a clean decoupage film on which the photo will be printed.

After getting wet, the substrate is pulled out from under the top film, leaving a juicy pattern in place.

To work, you will need a skin, white acrylic paint, a plate of water, cotton pads, paper napkins, brushes, a marker, patinating varnish.

Sand the surface;
Lightly dilute the paint with water and apply the first layer, brushing along;
The second layer, respectively, transverse strokes. Let dry;
Before transferring the picture to the tree, you need to lower it for half a minute in water at room temperature;
Take out, attach to the surface and pull out the base;
Remove excess moisture from the film with blotting movements;
Let it dry and mask the flaws with a marker.
Open with varnish.

Note! You can buy special napkins for decoupage. With them, the question of how to transfer a drawing to a tree will not cause any particular difficulties.

In conclusion

The new possibilities of the wood surface used as the basis for a painting or photograph are unusual and evoke a lot of emotions. Familiar images look a little different than on paper - softer, more mysterious. Branded consumables will help to immortalize your work, which may outlive the paper version.

The video in this article shows an example of transferring an image to a tree.

All photos from the article

A distinctive feature of the age of high technology is the ease with which beauty is replicated and originality is put on stream. But if not everyone can become an artist and paint great canvases, then many can create unique images using simple technologies.

Wood is one of the suitable materials on which a photograph or favorite drawing will look great. In addition to the fact that the quality of the product will remain unchanged for many years, it will be a kind of masterpiece or piece goods, depending on how you dispose of it.

The essence of technology

Graverton technology allows you to transfer a pattern to wood, metal, glass, fabric, and the process itself takes place in a certain order:

An image is printed on sublimation paper;
The front side is applied to the object being processed;
It is placed in a heat press for a certain time.

A huge number of things can be subjected to artistic processing - from shoes, dishes, fabrics to corporate symbols, puzzles and all sorts of other unexpected things.

The main disadvantage of the graverton technology is the need for special equipment and its high price:

sublimation printer(starting from 500 thousand rubles with kopecks);
thermal transfer press(from 9 to 30 thousand rubles).

And since you want to transfer a drawing to a tree at home from time to time, it makes sense to purchase expensive equipment only if you put things on a grand scale.

We create for ourselves

There are several rules that will teach you how to transfer a drawing to a tree so that it looks right:

The work surface should be bright and clean;
The direction of the wood fibers should not spoil the drawing, for example, oblique lines can add photos of extra wrinkles;
A theme with words/numbers is printed in a mirror image (a photo editor will help rotate the image);

The sublimation printing method refers to digital methods of transferring an image to a material. In modern printing, it is in the forefront in terms of productivity, as it allows you to get prints on almost any surface in a short time and at the same time guarantees excellent quality.

Briefly about sublimation printing

The essence of the method is to transfer ink to the printed material by heating it strongly. During the technological process, the temperature of the ink reaches 180-200 °C, as a result of which they begin to evaporate quickly and penetrate into the structure of the workpiece in a gaseous form. Sublimation printing is an indirect type of printing, since the transfer of the coloring matter occurs through an intermediate carrier. Basically, paper is used as such. Thermal transfer of sublimation ink to the printed surface occurs under the influence of press pressure.

Application area

As a rule, this method of obtaining prints is used for advertising and decorative design of souvenir products. As carriers of the printed image can be:

Home textiles.
Items of clothing.
Dishes.
Puzzles.
Posters, banners and stands.

Due to the fact that sublimation printing is of high quality, it has gained particular popularity in the field of advertising. This method of ink transfer allows you to quickly produce large runs of products, while maintaining the saturation and brightness of prints.

As for souvenirs, they are in no less demand. It should only be noted that sublimation printing on flat fabric materials is the most common. This is due to the fact that bulk products require the purchase of additional equipment. For example, sublimation printing on mugs is done in a round-shaped heat press.

Sublimation printing: pros and cons

Not to mention all the positive aspects of digital printing, the sublimation method can be called a well-deserved leader in the field of modern printing. First of all, it allows you to make the technological process as cost-effective as possible. Secondly, it enables the consumer to receive products that have such advantages as:

Resistant to abrasion and UV rays.
High quality images.
Thermal resistance.

Sublimation printing has another positive feature: it allows you to freely adjust the volume of circulation. With its help, you can produce as one unit of production, and several thousand.

There are only two disadvantages of the sublimation method. Firstly, printing should only occur on white materials. This is necessary for color accuracy. The second disadvantage is that the paint is well fixed only on synthetic fibers.

Sublimation equipment: printers and heat presses

A sublimation printer is used to transfer the ink onto an intermediate carrier. It is selected in accordance with the requirements for the final product. The characteristics of a sublimation printer must meet three parameters:

The type of images to be printed (raster or line).
Estimated circulation of products.
Desired size of printed sheets of paper.

The transfer of the image to the intermediate material can be done by absolutely any method: inkjet, offset, pad, etc. However, it should be borne in mind that the paint cannot be heated before it interacts with the final product. Therefore, a thermal inkjet printer for sublimation printing is not used. As a rule, preference is given to piezoelectric models.

The print obtained on paper is transferred to the product using a heat press. There are designs with stationary and calender clamps. The choice of one or another technology should be justified by the features of the circulations produced. For the production of large-format advertising on banners and posters, calender thermal presses are used. If printing is limited to small-circulation production of souvenirs, then preference is given to stationary models.

Materials for sublimation printing

Sublimation printing technology allows you to transfer paint to almost any surface. Fabric, wood, plastic, glass, ceramics and even metal can be used as the base material. However, the main feature of the process is that sublimation ink adheres only to polymer compounds. Therefore, before applying the image, the material must be covered with a special acrylic-based varnish. If the print is made on fabric, then it must consist of at least 60% synthetic fibers. The highest quality prints are obtained on pure polymer textiles made entirely of polyester or polyester.

Compared to classical methods of ink transfer, sublimation printing is simply the pinnacle of modernity. It does not limit the user either in the amount of circulation, or in materials, or even in the form of manufactured products.

Can an aluminum profile look not like metal, but like natural wood or stone? Quite! The company "Horizons" uses a special technology for this, which allows you to get the desired result - sublimation aluminum profile.

What is sublimation?

Sublimation of an aluminum profile is the transfer of the desired image from a decorative film into a powder coating under the influence of high temperatures and pressure. It is used on parts that already have a layer of powder coating. In the process, the element is wrapped in a film and air is forced out of the area between it and the surface. This approach ensures the most reliable coupling between them.

The process involves a heating chamber, where, under the influence of high temperatures, the powder paint absorbs coloring pigments from the film. In the process of cooling, the surface becomes incredibly hard and durable, immune to all kinds of influences.

What is it for?

Sublimation of an aluminum profile from Horizons is a great opportunity to implement unusual design solutions in interior design. This technology provides ample opportunities for choosing the shades of powder coating, which acts as a primer, and the pattern of the film itself. And it does not have to be natural wood or stone. In "Horizons" you can order absolutely any design and texture!

Benefits of sublimation

This technology is unique. It allows you to get products that will have a minimum weight, but at the same time will look like they are made of natural stone. They will not be exposed to moisture, but will appear as if they are made of wood. In addition, products that have undergone the sublimation procedure are not susceptible to exposure.