I recently learned about a brand-new material being imported from Europe by The Mosaica Group (the exclusive source in the U.S. and Canada) that will allow heat-transfer sublimation onto natural fabrics such as cotton, wool, silk, linen, and bamboo. With SupremeJET^TM Natural Fabric Interleaf, you print the graphic onto the dye-sublimation paper as normal, then place the Interleaf material between the untreated fabric and the dye sublimation paper and transfer with heat as usual. The Interleaf becomes part of the fabric itself.

SupremeJET Natural Fabric Interleaf looks something like white window sheers. One side is textured and the other is smooth. Randy Peters, President of The Mosaica Group, indicates the textured side of the Interleaf is required to be in contact with the side of the natural fabric being transferred. “We also provide dye-sublimation paper,” he adds. “SupremeJET transfer media is groundbreaking as well in that the coating is very unique. It allows for transfer speeds to be 30% faster than industry standards and offers up to 25% in ink savings. While the SupremeJET Natural Fabric Interleaf can work with other transfer papers, we are happy to provide the Interleaf and SupremeJET dye-sublimation papers with matched component discounts.”

Peters explains, “Historically in sublimation, for the inks to adhere there has to be polyester in the fabric, and it isn’t possible to sublimate ink directly to any type of natural fiber such as cotton, denim, wool, silk, or bamboo. To be able to print on any of those products requires an expensive pigment-based printer and ink, and a majority of facilities do not want to put that type of technology in their plants. Now, with SupremeJET Natural Fabric Interleaf, you have the ability to use conventional heat-transfer sublimation materials with any natural fiber without pretreatment. For example, we have a client who does a great deal of sublimation to blankets. Before this product was available, they could only do that if the fabric had polyester in it. Now, they are using 100% cotton and other natural fiber products as they wish.”