I love making keychains with adhesive vinyl and my Silhouette or Cricut! What I don’t love is that the vinyl tends to get knicked and dinged up by my keys. When I set out the other day to make some keychains, I remembered that I had some blank sublimation keychains. I thought to myself that they would be a great alternative to vinyl on keychains because the sublimation printing can take getting beat up and thrown into my purse better than adhesive vinyl. Today, I’m sharing the process I used to create keychains (and a luggage tag).

Tutorial: How to Create Sublimation Keychains and Luggage Tags

1. Order some supplies. Pick up some blank Unisub keychains or luggage tags. Unisub is the manufacturer and doesn’t sell direct to the public, however, you can pick up sublimation keychains at this link. If you are looking for luggage tags, head to this link. 
2. Grab the templates. Unisub offers templates for all the products they manufacture. I have a tutorial showing how to use the templates with Silhouette Studio in this blog post.
3. Create your designs. Use your favorite software (Silhouette Studio, Cricut Design Space, Adobe Illustrator, Inkscape, or whatever you like best!) to create some designs. I stuck to simple with my designs and used colorful themed backgrounds with some text. I picked up commercial use backgrounds from stock photo sites. Be sure to mirror your design before printing. 
4. Print your design on heat transfer paper. Here is a link to the paper I’ve been using. (My phone number is blacked out in the photo below so thousands of people don’t call me!)
5. Line up your design with your blank keychain and tape it into place. I use this heat resistant tape. You will see that I made the design slightly larger than the keychain. This is referred to as a ‘bleed’. This ensures that your entire keychain is covered with your design. Be sure that no important details are in the bleed area.
6. Press the design. I pressed for 180 seconds at 375 degrees Fahrenheit and got great color. I used my handy little pink heat press that I talked about in this post. As a quick reminder, the keychains are metal and they really heat up in the press! Be cautious taking them out and allow them to cool before touching them.
7. Add the hardware. The keychains I have (martini glass, 4666 and anchor, 4731 came with a keychain ring and plastic connector) the luggage tag (flip flop, 4729) did not include hardware.

That’s it! I think sublimation makes for great keychains and luggage tags! Wondering what else you can do with sublimation? I’ve got a tutorial for jewelry at this link, mugs at this link, and a whole beginners series on what exactly sublimation is that starts at this link.

Love this project? Save the image below to Pinterest.

I’ll be honest, before Clay from Coastal Business Supplies reached out and offered to send me some sublimation markers – I had never heard of them. But, once the package arrived I couldn’t wait to try them out! Today I’m sharing some information and a tutorial on how to use sublimation markers.

What are Sublimation Markers?

Sublimation markers are markers that have sublimation ink inside of them. They look and work like a regular marker. The markers I received are made by Artesprix and had 10 markers in the package.

Stop! If you aren’t familiar with the process of sublimation, head to this post first. Good news for those wanting to use the sublimation markers? You don’t need any sublimation supplies, just a heat press or iron, plain paper, and the sublimation markers.

Tutorial: How to Use Sublimation Markers

1. Draw a design on a blank piece of plain paper using the sublimation markers. I used white printer paper. When drawing, remember that your design will be pressed onto your blank item and it will be a mirror image of whatever you draw. (This means that if you are writing text, your text will need to be written backwards!) I’m no artist, so I purchased this design and traced it mirrored with the markers. If you do handlettering or calligraphy though – these are a must buy for you! 
2. Place the design onto your blank product. You must use a polyester blank or a specially prepared sublimation blank. I taped my design in place with heat transfer tape so that it wouldn’t slide around when I closed my Happy Crafters Pink Press. 
3. Press the design. Now, the marker box instructions say to press for 45 to 300 seconds with a heat press or iron at 350 to 400 degrees. I settled with 100 seconds – but there was no logic to this. I actually think I should have pressed longer to get brighter colors. 
4. Remove the paper and tape and admire your work! 
   
   

Originally, when I knew these markers were being sent to me I had planned on letting my kids draw on paper and press the design onto something for them. The back of the box states to ‘Keep out of reach of children’, so I gave that a pass – but might supervise them while drawing and see how that goes.

Using the sublimation markers was quick, easy, and fun. I plan to experiment with them more in the future.

If you love this idea or tutorial, save the image below to Pinterest.

I’m pretty sure that many Silhouette users don’t realize how powerful Silhouette Studio is – and it is free! If you sew or embroider, you’ll know that not only are the machines are expensive – but you often have to pay separately for the software to use the machine. As you’ve seen me do in other posts, you can use Silhouette Studio and sublimation to create products. Today, I’m going to show you how to create custom made photo jewelry.

Need a refresher on sublimation? Here’s a list of previous posts:

• Tutorial: How to Use Subliflock & Free Cut File
• Use Silhouette Studio to Create Home Decor and Jewelry with Sublimation
• Where to Buy Sublimation Printers, Supplies, and Blanks
• Tutorial: Sublimation on Mugs – 2 Ways
• Tutorial: How to do Sublimation on Tee Shirts or Apparel
• What is Sublimation?

Now, onto the tutorial.

Supplies Needed

• Sublimation printer
• Sublimation transfer paper
• Heat press
• Telfon sheet
• Heat resistant tape
• Heat resistant gloves (optional)
• Unisub jewelry blanks

1. Draw a shape in Silhouette Studio that is slightly larger than your pendant. In this case, I’m using a one inch circle blank and I made my shape 1.2 inches.
2. Open your photo in Silhouette Studio and copy it to your canvas with the circle template. 
3. Send the photo to the back layer (right click, then ‘Send to back’) and resize it to fill your circle template.
4. To save ink, I’m going to subtract the circle from my picture. Simply select the photo, then hold down the shift key and select the circle. Then, go to ‘Object’, ‘Modify’, and ‘Crop’. 
5. Mirror your image by going to ‘Object’, ‘Mirror’, ‘Flip Horizontally’. 
6. Next, you are ready to print on your heat transfer paper. After printing, line up your blank with the white side down and tape into place using heat resistant tape.
7. Press your jewelry blank at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 60 seconds with heavy pressure. After pressing, remove the blank carefully from the paper. The metal sublimation blank will be VERY HOT. Be extra cautious or use heat resistant gloves to protect your fingers. You’ll now be able to mount your photo charm into the bezel holder with the included tape square. 

Available Unisub Jewelry Blanks

Unisub is the manufacturer of the sublimation jewelry blanks and does not sell direct. Instead, you’ll have to purchase blanks from a distributor. My favorite sublimation distributor is Coastal Business Supplies. Here are links to the exact jewelry pieces shown in the photo below.

• Square one inch bezel pendant
• ID tag
• Round one inch pendant

Sharing is caring! Save the image below to Pinterest:

Yesterday, I led you through a tutorial to create custom photo jewelry with Silhouette Studio and sublimation. Today, we are going to tackle odd shaped sublimation blanks – like a shaped pet tag – using templates provided by Unisub. Why do we need a tutorial? Unfortunately for Silhouette Studio users, Unisub provides templates in formats that Silhouette Studio doesn’t open. No worries though, through tracing you can still use them.

How to Use Unisub Templates for Sublimation in Silhouette Studio

1. Visit unisub.com and enter the SKU of your sublimation blank into the search bar at the top of the website. In this case, I’m using 5771 – a bone shaped pet tag. (Want to buy pet tags for sublimation? Click here.)
2. After locating your shape, click the “View Templates & Product Shots” button.
3. Click the template to download it. 
4. Once unzipped, open the .JPG version in Silhouette Studio. 
5. From the ‘Trace’ panel, trace the template (‘Panels’, then ‘Trace). 
6. Now, you’ll resize the template according to the sizing listed on unisub.com. Go to the ‘Transform’ panel, then click on the ‘Scale’ tab. For the bone shaped pet tag, it’s 1.5″ by 1″. I made my template slightly larger in case I made an error lining it up.
7. Now, you can create your design, print, and press! A step by step tutorial was featured in yesterday’s post.

Did you know: Unisub offers templates for every product they manufacture and they are free on their website.

Here’s a peek at my dog’s new tag:

You can pick up pet tags for sublimation here.

Like this post? Save the image below to Pinterest:

One of the topics I am emailed about most is sublimation. Why? First, there isn’t a lot of information online about sublimation. Second, some of the information shared online is – well – inaccurate! Today, I’m compiling everything sublimation related on Cutting for Business in one post so you can easily find it – and SHARE IT!

Click any picture to read the post.

First, the basics: What is sublimation?

Sublimation on shirts or soft products:

Sublimation on mugs, tumblers, cups:

Where to buy sublimation products and equipment (plus a cheap way to get started):

Sublimation for home decor:

How to use specialty sublimation materials:

Photo jewelry using sublimation:

Using Unisub templates in Silhouette Studio for sublimation:

Don’t have a sublimation printer but still want to try it out? Learn about these sublimation markers:

Interested in making keychains or luggage tags? Find out how in this post:

Want to spread the word about sublimation? Just save the image below on Pinterest!

A few weeks ago, my inbox filled up with questions about how Etsy sellers were selling intricate iron on transfers. Here’s two of the links that were sent to me: fox and flowers.

Today, I’ll show you how to create these using subliflock heat transfer material, a sublimation printer (read my sublimation series here), a heat press, and print and cut with a Silhouette Cameo.

Step by Step Subliflock Tutorial

1. Create your design in Silhouette Studio. I’m using an Aztec Christmas owl (a request by my 5 year old)! Be sure to turn on registration marks.
2. Print your design onto sublimation transfer paper. You’ll need to mirror the design, but don’t mirror it in Silhouette Studio. Instead, mirror the entire page using your printer utility so that the registration marks are also mirrored. On my computer (Mac) the window that pops open is shown below. All I did was check the box that reads “Flip horizontally”.
   
3. After you print your design, you’ll transfer it to your subliflock. Put the subliflock (fuzzy side up) into your heat press. Put your printed design (ink side down) on top of the subliflock and cover it with a teflon sheet. Press at 375 degrees for 45 seconds. When you peel the sublimation transfer paper off, your design (and registration marks) will be on the subliflock.
   
   
   
4. Now, load the subliflock into your Silhouette Cameo and using the registration marks, cut around the outside edge. 
5. Now, you’ll need to weed the excess vinyl. Subliflock weeds easily! 
   
6. You can either sell the design as an iron on, or apply it to apparel. If you sell the design, be sure to include application instructions for your customer to apply it with a heat press or iron.
7. To apply the design to apparel, simply peel off the paper backing, put it in place and press at 325 degrees for 15 seconds. 
8. Here’s a closeup of the subliflock pressed onto a shirt. You’ll notice how it is slightly fuzzy! 

Want my aztec Christmas owl cut file for Silhouette? Download it here.

What do you think of subliflock? Let me know in the comments!

Save this post to Pinterest:

A few months back, I shared a beginner’s series on sublimation. In some cases, I think that sublimation is a better choice than vinyl. For example: When you use sublimation on coffee mugs, the design becomes permanent and won’t wash off – unlike vinyl. (Learn how to do sublimation on mugs here.) Today, I’m sharing a few quick sublimation products that Unisub sent over to me. If you aren’t familiar with Unisub, they are a manufacturer of hard goods for sublimation. Their product line is extensive and includes: wood and metal photo blanks, jewelry blanks, clipboards, tags, puzzles, serving trays, and much more. Unisub doesn’t sell to the public, but you can find distributors at this link.

Quick and Easy Bracelets with Sublimation

I used a Unisub Standard Cuff Bracelet (Unisub Product Number 4636) to create a cuff bracelet. I first designed the image in Silhouette Studio, printed it on my sublimation transfer paper, then used a heat press to transfer the design.

After transferring the image, I used an EZ Bender Tool (Unisub Product Number 4656) to bend the bracelet into a curve.

Wooden Sign Home Decor Without the Mess of Paint

I created a Christmas home decor sign using Unisub ChromaLuxe Natural Wood Print (Unisub Product Number 5882). After designing the image in Silhouette Studio, again, I just printed it onto sublimation transfer paper and applied it with my heat press. (If you missed this cut file on the blog last week, download it here.)

Tween Friendly Clock with Sublimation

We’ve recently been making over Emily’s room as she is headed towards tweendom! I used Unisub Silver Wall Clock (Unisub Product Number 5823) to create a clock. Again, I designed the image in Silhouette Studio. Pick up wall clocks at this link.

Metal Memo Board with Sublimation

Using Unisub ChromaLuxe Gloss White Metal Print (Unisub Product Number 5882), I was able to easily create a metal memo board to finish out the decor in Emily’s updated room. Looking for metal blanks? Grab them at this link.

This post highlights some of the products that you can quickly make using Silhouette Studio, a sublimation printer, Unisub blanks, and your heat press.

Ready to give it a try? Unisub has provided a goodie box (with a retail value of over $200!) full of sublimation products for me to give to a Cutting for Business reader. Enter for your chance to win:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

After you enter the giveaway, save this post to Pinterest:

Why is sublimation on a blog focused on using your Silhouette or Cricut in your business? Sublimation is a natural progression from using vinyl and is a great way to handle larger orders.

Yesterday we talked about what sublimation is and today I’m showing you how to sublimate onto tee t-shirts, apparel, or other soft goods.

Supplies Needed

• Sublimation printer and ink
• Sublimation blank shirt (or other apparel) – You’ll notice that sublimation blanks are lighter colors, since the inks would not show well on dark fabric
• Sublimation paper
• Heat press

Hey sublimation fans! We started with an introduction to sublimation, then a tutorial for sublimation on apparel, and today I’m showing you how to do sublimate mugs.

Supplies Needed

• Sublimation printer and ink
• Transfer paper
• Blank sublimation mugs
• Heat resistant tape
• Mug heat press or mug wraps
• Looking for my suggestions on where to buy sublimation supplies? Jump ahead to the last post in the series.