A textile printing is more appropriately performed on fabrics made from various materials. A textile printing method of performing textile printing on a textile printing object which is a fabric includes a dye adhesion process of adhering particles of a polyester resin which is a particulate polyester resin, and a dye to the fabric, and a heating process of heating the textile printing object having the particles of the polyester resin and the dye adhered thereto, thereby developing the color of the dye while fixing the particles of the polyester resin to the textile printing object.

A process of printing an image or images on the sails of a watercraft or other wind powered vessel without altering or compromising the efficacy of the sails is described. The process employs a method of printing large-scale, single or multiple panel, continuous, high-resolution photographic and graphic images on sails. The dynamics and curvatures of a sail are integrated into manufacturing process when employed for sails, though the process may be applied to any large-scaled fabric print. The process of the present invention produces printed sails providing for the highest resolution photographic, art, and graphic printing with virtually no weight gain, nor effect on the sail's original performance. Modern equipment is employed to achieve printing of realistic, high quality images directly on to the fabric of sails without compromising flexibility or durability, as well as without infringing on the speed and agility of the sailing craft.

Aspects are directed to printing a garment and include a method having steps of providing a fabric panel containing polyester, applying an ink layer to a first area of the fabric panel, curing the ink layer, and applying a sublimation dye to the first area and a different second area of the fabric panel. Application of the sublimation dye causes the first area and the second area to have different color saturations. Other aspects include a garment with a fabric panel containing polyester that has a first surface with a first area and a different second area. The garment also includes an ink layer on the first surface and located at the first area and a sublimation dye absorbed by a portion of the fabric panel at the second area and on a surface of the ink layer at the first area.

Foamed, opacifying element comprising a thermal colorant image is prepared using a porous substrate having an opposing external surface and an internal surface, and a dry foamed composition disposed on the internal surface of the porous substrate as a dry opacifying layer that has a light blocking value of at least 4 as well as a luminous reflectance that is greater than 40% as measured by the Y tristimulus value. A thermal colorant image is provided on either the opposing external surface, the dry opacifying layer, or both the opposing external surface and the dry opacifying layer, by thermal colorant transfer from a thermal donor element comprising a colorant donor layer having one or more thermal colorants.

A foamed, opacifying element has a thermal colorant image on either an opposing external surface and an internal surface of a porous substrate. The internal surface has a dry foamed composition disposed thereon as a dry opacifying layer that comprises: (a) 0.1-40 weight % of porous particles; (b) at least 10 weight % of an at least partially cured binder material; (c) at least 0.2 weight % of one or more additives comprising a surfactant; (d) less than 5 weight % of water; and (e) at least 0.002 weight % of an opacifying colorant different from all of the one or more (c) additives, which opacifying colorant absorbs predetermined electromagnetic radiation. The thermal colorant image is derived from thermal colorant transfer of sublimable colorants from a thermal donor element.

A foamed, opacifying element has a thermal colorant image on either an opposing external surface and an internal surface of a porous substrate. The internal surface has a dry foamed composition disposed thereon as a dry opacifying layer that comprises: (a) 0.1-40 weight % of porous particles; (b) at least 10 weight % of an at least partially cured binder material; (c) at least 0.2 weight % of one or more additives comprising a surfactant; (d) less than 5 weight % of water; and (e) at least 0.002 weight % of an opacifying colorant different from all of the one or more (c) additives, which opacifying colorant absorbs predetermined electromagnetic radiation. The thermal colorant image is derived from thermal colorant transfer of sublimable colorants from a thermal donor element.

Foamed, opacifying element comprising a thermal colorant image is prepared using a porous substrate having an opposing external surface and an internal surface, and a dry foamed composition disposed on the internal surface of the porous substrate as a dry opacifying layer that has a light blocking value of at least 4 as well as a luminous reflectance that is greater than 40% as measured by the Y tristimulus value. A thermal colorant image is provided on either the opposing external surface, the dry opacifying layer, or both the opposing external surface and the dry opacifying layer, by thermal colorant transfer from a thermal donor element comprising a colorant donor layer having one or more thermal colorants.

A textile printing is more appropriately performed on fabrics made from various materials. A textile printing method of performing textile printing on a textile printing object which is a fabric includes a dye adhesion process of adhering particles of a polyester resin which is a particulate polyester resin, and a dye to the fabric, and a heating process of heating the textile printing object having the particles of the polyester resin and the dye adhered thereto, thereby developing the color of the dye while fixing the particles of the polyester resin to the textile printing object.

Compositions and methods for treating textile materials so as to facilitate transfer of an image thereto using a dye sublimation transfer system are provided. The compositions are applied to the textile in the form of an aqueous pretreatment composition, which comprises a polymer resin and a crosslinking agent. The resin and crosslinking agent are cured upon the textile material to form an image-receiving area. The sublimation transfer system is then applied to the image-receiving area to form a finished, image-bearing textile product.

The present application is directed to a transferable film for dye sublimation, the film comprising, in an example implementation, a carrier film; and a dye sublimation-receptive layer comprising a base resin that undergoes crosslinking at elevated temperatures. In an example implementation, the dye sublimation-receptive layer comprises an acrylic copolymer with acrylate reactive groups. Methods of using the transferrable film to create a dye sublimation-receptive surface are also provided, as are substrates having a substantially non-receptive to dye sublimation inks onto which is formed a thermally crosslinked layer to the substrate surface.