Nailheads are another heat printing “bling” alternative that you can use instead of rhinestones.
As the 2012 Olympic games wind down, the action is heating up. The US Women’s Soccer team had an astonishing finish against Team Canada on August 6th. With a 4th goal in overtime play, Alex Morgan from the US secured her team’s place in the final match up against Japan. If you follow women’s soccer, you may already know that the gold-medal match will be a chance for redemption for the Americans, just one year after Japan beat them 3-1 in the 2011 World Cup final. The final, which will air Thursday, August 9th at 2:30 EST on the NBC Sports Network, is one of the most anticipated events of the entire Summer Games. Since most of you will be working, put that on your DVR! Even if you know who wins (it’s hard not finding out who wins beforehand, isn’t it?), it will still be a great game to watch. I’m not sure if soccer is still one of the fastest growing sports in America or not, but suffice it to say that the interest in the sport has increased substantially over the past decade. We have always been a strong hockey family but some of my grandkids have also shown an interest in soccer and I know many people who work at GroupeSTAHL companies have soccer players in the family. We have many team members involved in coaching youth sports, and I have also coached many a hockey team in my day. In fact, Richard Genrich of Stahls’ Manufacturing and Engineering, recently shared the following with me:
Richard Genrich: I coach baseball, basketball, and football so I am in those trenches all year long and encounter many of our customers at the end of our business chain. This past year I have noticed more and more glitter, hologram, neon colors, and rhinestone materials used overall. Primary uses for these products have traditionally been (in my experience) spirit wear. This year I have noticed more girl’s teams in particular using glitter, hologram, and neons as team identification or name/numbers within the uniforms.
I wholeheartedly agree Rich. It’s all about color and bling these days. Matt DeLaere of Stahls’ ID Direct, also shared some how-to on how to get that color and bling. This is from the Stahls’ ID Blog, another great source for heat printing ideas and how-to. Here is an excerpt from his recent posting. Make sure you subscribe.
For full color custom logos and designs, CAD-COLOR® Solutions™ Opaque printable heat transfer material is a great choice because of its stretchability and rebound. For more flashy designs, HotFix rhinestones, rhinestuds, and nailheads are terrific accents for leotards. You can order them in bulk or in ready-to-apply transfer designs. Many decorators, in fact, prefer heat application to avoid sewing or putting holes in the stretchy material of the leotard.
So remember, whether you are printing neon player names and numbers in Olympic style or if you are catering more to the fans in the stands with bling and neon, heat printing has options for you to consider.