DTF Artwork & Pressing Guide

1. Who this guide is for

You’ll find this useful if you:

• Run a clothing brand and want consistent, good-looking prints
• Own a small print shop and outsource your DTF transfers
• Have a heat press and want to handle production in-house
• Are organising a one-off event and want to avoid a box of ruined T-shirts

I’m writing this in plain English, not “software manual” language. The goal is simple: fewer surprises, fewer reprints, and more DTF jobs you’re proud to hand over to your customers.

2. Setting up your DTF artwork properly

DTF will print almost anything you send it. That’s both the strength and the danger. If the file is clean, you’ll get sharp, vivid prints. If the file is a blurry screenshot with random white boxes around it, the film will faithfully reproduce all of that as well.

2.1 Canvas size & resolution

The rule we work to at Brandum is simple: 300 DPI at the final print size.

That means:

• Set your document size in millimetres or centimetres at the size you actually want printed
• Set the resolution to 300 DPI before you start designing

As a rough guide for adult garments:

• Left-chest logo: around 8–10 cm wide
• Standard front or back print: 26–32 cm tall, depending on the style
• Sleeve print: 5–7 cm wide

2.2 File formats we like

We keep it simple with file types. What works well for DTF transfers:

• PNG – transparent background, 300 DPI
• PDF – exported from vector artwork (Illustrator, Corel, etc.)
• AI / EPS / SVG – fine for trade customers, as long as fonts are outlined

What we try to avoid:

• Low-resolution JPEGs pulled from WhatsApp or social media
• Word / PowerPoint files with embedded screenshots

If you’re not sure whether your artwork is good enough, send it through anyway. We’d rather tell you “this will look rough, here’s why” up front than print something you’re unhappy with.

2.3 Colour mode: RGB or CMYK?

DTF workflows are changing quickly. A lot of RIP software prefers RGB artwork and then converts internally. Some printers still insist on CMYK. We handle both, but here’s what tends to work best in real life:

• If you’re creating artwork yourself in Photoshop/Procreate: work in RGB and export a high-quality PNG.
• If you have a brand colour that must be accurate: send a vector file (PDF/AI/EPS) and include your colour references.

What you want to avoid is bouncing artwork back and forth between RGB and CMYK several times. Pick one, keep the file clean, and let the print house do the last bit of colour management.

2.4 Backgrounds, transparency & white ink

DTF will happily print any background you leave in your file. Sometimes that’s what you want (for example a solid badge on a hoodie). A lot of the time, it isn’t.

Best practice:

• Remove unwanted backgrounds completely – don’t just “hide” them
• Use a transparent background unless you deliberately want a block of colour
• Be careful with soft glows and big fuzzy drop shadows – they can look muddy on fabric

On dark garments, any pure white in your file will print as white ink, which is exactly what you want for logos and lettering. Just make sure you’ve not accidentally left white boxes around the design that you simply can’t see on a white artboard.

2.5 Text, fine details & line thickness

DTF can hold fine detail, but there are sensible limits if you want legible, durable prints:

• Aim for a minimum of 6 pt for bold fonts, and a bit larger for thin scripts
• Keep line thickness above roughly 0.5 mm as an absolute minimum
• Convert all text to outlines/curves before sending so we don’t get font issues

If you have to zoom in to 6400% on your screen to read something, it’s probably too small for a chest print. Better to simplify than ask the print to do something it just can’t do consistently.

2.6 Advanced: blends to transparency & halftone fades

This is where a lot of otherwise nice designs go wrong. Because DTF uses white ink and adhesive powder, it can’t do true soft transparency in the same way your screen can.

When you send us a smooth glow that fades to nothing on screen, the RIP still has to decide where to print white ink and where not to. That often turns into a solid “cloud” shape on the garment instead of a clean fade.

If you want a design to blend into the garment colour, it’s usually better to use halftone dots or a deliberate pattern rather than a soft-airbrush fade.

• Build your fade as dots, lines or a texture that gradually spaces out
• Keep dot size sensible – if it’s too tiny, it may not hold consistently
• Test on a small run first before committing to a massive print run

As a bonus, halftones can give you a softer hand feel on big prints, because you’re not laying down a giant solid block of ink and adhesive.

If you’re not comfortable setting up halftones, keep edges clean, avoid big soft glows, and focus on strong shapes and contrast. You’ll get a cleaner, more predictable DTF result.

3. Laying out A-size sheets & gang sheets

Once your artwork is clean, the next job is making the most of the space you’re paying for. Whether you order A3/A4 DTF transfer sheets or 1-metre gang sheets, the idea is the same: pack designs in tightly without making them impossible to cut or weed.

3.1 A-size DTF transfer sheets (A3, A4, etc.)

For each sheet:

• Set your document size:
  • A3: 297 × 420 mm
  • A4: 210 × 297 mm
• Keep a small safety margin of 5–10 mm inside the edge
• Leave 2–3 mm between designs so you can cut them apart

A single A3 sheet, for example, might hold:

• One full-size front print
• Two left-chest logos
• A care label graphic to press into the neck

3.2 1-metre DTF gang sheets

On larger gang sheets (for example 57 × 100 cm), treat the canvas like a game of Tetris:

• Create a document at the full sheet size (e.g. 570 × 1000 mm at 300 DPI)
• Crop each design as tight as you reasonably can
• Keep 2–3 mm between designs for cutting room
• Group related items (all size labels together, all front prints together, etc.)

If you don’t have the time or software to do this, we can set the gang layout up for you. You simply send the individual designs and tell us how many of each you need. For trade customers ordering regularly, this can save a lot of time and gives very predictable results.

4. How to press DTF transfers (step by step)

Pressing DTF transfers is not complicated once you’ve done a few, but there are a few habits that make the difference between “pretty good” and “this still looks great after 30 washes”.

The exact temperature, time and peel method will depend on the film and powder you’re using. The settings below are the ballpark we work in for modern DTF films on cotton and polyester.

4.1 Pre-press: lint, moisture & seams

This is the bit a lot of people skip, then wonder why they’ve got bubbles or random spots where the transfer didn’t stick.

1. Set your press to around 150 °C while you get set up.
2. Place the garment on the platen and smooth it out.
3. Use a lint roller or masking tape to remove fluff, dust and stray fibres from the print area.
4. Pre-press the garment for around 5 seconds with light–medium pressure.

This quick pre-press does three things:

• Removes moisture (especially important in the UK where garments have sat in cold warehouses)
• Flattens the fibres so the print sits nicely on top
• Lets you feel if there are any seams, pockets or zips that might cause uneven pressure

4.2 Positioning the transfer

Once the garment is pre-pressed:

• Place the DTF transfer ink side down, film side up
• Use a ruler or your fingers as a guide (for example, three fingers down from the collar for a standard front print)
• Make sure no part of the design is sitting over a seam, pocket edge or thick collar
• On slippery polyester, use a bit of heat-resistant tape to keep the transfer from moving

4.3 Peeling: hot, warm or cold

Your film will be labelled as hot, warm or cold peel. Follow that first, then adjust based on what you see.

• Hot peel: Peel immediately in one smooth motion while the transfer is still hot.
• Warm peel: Wait a few seconds, then peel once the film is warm but not scorching.
• Cold peel: Let the print cool to room temperature before peeling.

If you see parts of the print lifting with the film:

• Lay the film back down carefully
• Press again for a few seconds with slightly more pressure
• Let it cool a bit longer and try peeling from a different corner

4.4 Second press (“finishing press”)

This is another step a lot of people skip, but it makes a big difference to durability and feel.

1. Once the film is off, place a sheet of parchment paper or a Teflon/silicone sheet over the print.
2. Press again for around 5–10 seconds at the same temperature, medium pressure.

This finishing press helps the adhesive fully bond into the fibres and slightly softens the surface of the print. If you prefer a more matte finish, parchment paper is usually nicer than a very glossy Teflon sheet.

5. Washing & aftercare

Done properly, a good DTF print on a decent garment should outlive most people’s attention span for a hoodie. 50–60 washes is normal; we’ve seen prints still looking good much longer than that when people treat them well.

5.1 First wash

Give the adhesive time to settle and cure properly:

• Wait at least 24 hours after pressing before the first wash.

5.2 Everyday washing

We recommend you tell your customers:

• Wash inside out
• 30–40 °C is ideal – avoid boiling-hot cycles
• Use normal detergent (no bleach or heavy stain removers directly on the print)
• Choose a gentle or mixed cycle rather than an aggressive spin

5.3 Drying & ironing

• Air drying on a rack or hanger is always best
• If using a tumble dryer, keep it on low heat and don’t over-dry
• Avoid ironing directly on the print; if needed, iron inside out on low with a cloth over the design

If you’re running a brand or print shop, it’s worth putting these care notes on your website or in a little card that goes out with orders. It cuts down on “the print has cracked” emails that are really 90 °C wash and tumble-dry stories.