Spring Sports Gear: Your Essential Heat Transfer Guide

Spring sports season is just around the corner, which means teams, schools, and coaches are gearing up for fresh jerseys and spirit wear! Whether you're crafting standout uniforms for a softball team, designing sleek gear for track and field, or outfitting a baseball team for victory, the right heat transfer solution is the game-changer you need!  

At Howard Custom Transfers, we provide high-quality, durable heat transfers with lightning-fast lead times and effortless application, making your job as an apparel decorator seamless and stress-free.

colorVIBE DTF: The Perfect Choice for Custom Names, Numbers & Full-Color Designs 

Best For: Teams requiring variable data designs like player names and numbers, or team designs with a lot of colors and gradients. 

Why colorVIBE DTF? 

If you're printing jerseys that require both personalization and vibrant, detailed graphics, colorVIBE DTF is the ultimate solution. A DTF (Direct-to-Film) transfer is a heat transfer method that involves printing a design onto a special film using a digital printer with water-based pigment inks, then applying an adhesive powder to the printed design. Once cured, the transfer can be heat-pressed onto various fabrics, including cotton, polyester, blends, and even non-traditional materials like nylon and leather.

Whether you need player names and numbers or full-color artwork with gradients, this transfer method ensures the best quality with stunning results. 

➤ Variable Data Printing: Quickly and easily add individual names and numbers for team jerseys, with no minimums required. 
➤ Full-Color & Gradient Designs: Perfect for full-color logos, mascots, and artistic patterns. 
➤ Photorealistic Effects: Add faux embroidery, glitter, or custom textures for unique, eye-catching designs. The options are endless! 
➤ Extremely Versatile: Applies at a low temperature of 275-300°F, preventing scorching on polyester, technical fabrics, and nylon. 
➤ Limitless Gang (22” x any length): A smart choice for bulk orders, ensuring maximum savings! 

Howard Multi-Purpose: The Go-To for Bulk Spot Color Designs & Stock Numbers 

Best For: Teams requiring bulk prints of standard numbers, logos, or spot color designs. 

Why Howard Multi-Purpose? 

For teams that want sharp, bold, and reliable spot-color designs, a screen print transfer like Howard Multi-Purpose is the perfect choice. A screen print transfer is a type of heat transfer created using traditional screen printing methods but designed to be applied to garments later using a heat press. Instead of printing ink directly onto fabric, the design is screen printed onto a special release paper with plastisol ink. A powdered adhesive is applied to help the transfer bond to fabric when heat-pressed. This transfer ensures sharp, consistent results while being an affordable and efficient option for higher-volume orders. 

➤ Spot Color Precision: Screen print transfers provide reliable color output order-after-order. Choose from 100+ ink colors. 
➤ Pantone® Color Matching: Need to match a team color exactly? This one-time fee provides you with your Pantone® matched ink color saved on our shelves for your future orders at no additional cost down-the-line. 
➤ Stock Number Sheets: A quick and affordable option to easily number team uniforms, Stock Number Sheets are available in several font options and number sizes.
➤ Versatility: Works well on a wide variety of fabrics, making it a solid choice for different sports. 

colorVIBE Hybrid: Full-Color Bulk & Dye Block Solution 

Best For: For bulk orders of full-color designs or designs being applied to sublimated jerseys, where preventing dye migration is crucial. 

Why colorVIBE Hybrid? 

colorVIBE Hybrid is a digital hybrid transfer. This method combines digital printing and screen printing to create high-quality, durable, and vibrant apparel decorations. This process leverages the best of both worlds: the detailed, full-color capabilities of digital printing and the durability and opacity of screen-printed plastisol inks.

Sublimated jerseys are popular for their all-over patterns, but applying transfers can be tricky due to dye migration. Dye-migration is a common issue in garment decoration where the dyes from synthetic fabrics (especially sublimated polyester) migrate or bleed into the ink or transfer applied to the fabric. This results in unwanted color shifts - typically a dulling or discoloration of the original print. That’s where colorVIBE Hybrid with the Dye Block add-on comes in. colorVIBE Hybrid ensures crisp, long-lasting prints without sublimated ink bleeding through the design. 

➤ Prevents Dye Migration: Dye Block add-on keeps colors looking sharp and prevents potential bleed-through. 
➤ Handles Full-Color & Gradients: Perfect for designs with many colors and gradients. 
➤ Photorealistic Effects: Create unique looks with faux textures like embroidery, metallics, or custom fills. 
➤ Extremely Versatile: Applies at a low temperature of 275-300°F, avoiding scorching on polyester, technical fabrics, and nylon. 
➤ Produced on the colorVIBE Gang 12” x 18”: Cost-efficient option for bulk orders.

Let’s Get Your Team Ready for the Season! 

No matter what spring sport you’re printing for, we have the right heat transfer option to make your designs stand out while keeping production easy and efficient. If you need help deciding which transfer is best for your project, reach out to your customer service rep, give us a call, or shoot us an email!