Heat transfer printing is done with a heat transfer press and heat transfer paper. A design is printed onto the heat transfer paper, then pressed onto a product with the heat transfer press. The press can be a basic tabletop press set up in your garage to make T-shirts, small signs, mouse pads and tote bags. A more-elaborate commercial machine allows for heat transfer printing of banners, sports equipment and ceramic tiles.
Silk-screen printing is one of the earliest printing processes. This process involves a fine mesh screen stretched over a frame. An image is transferred onto the frame, which creates a negative on the frame itself. This negative allows ink to pass through onto the object to be printed. Ink is spread out onto the mesh screen and a squeegee is used to distribute the ink evenly. This process used to be done by hand, but today, commercial silk-screen machines do the grunt work.
The main difference between heat transfer and silk-screen printings is that through heat transfer printing, your entire design is finished at the same time. With silk-screen printing, you can only complete one color of the design at a time, with cleanup involved in between colors. Silk screening, however, allows for more-dense and even colors as well as the ability to achieve different finishes, whereas heat transfer printing offers just one finish, but in a much-shorter time frame.
Another form of printing is vinyl printing. Vinyl printing allows you to apply graphics and designs to any flat surface using a computer, a vinyl cutter and a heat press. The design is sent to a vinyl cutter via the computer. The vinyl cutter is stocked with rolls of vinyl that are automatically cut out to match your design. The excess vinyl is peeled away, and you are left with a transfer that you can apply to an object using a heat press.