Everything You Need to Know about Cricut Infusible Ink

Have you tried Cricut infusible ink yet? It’s some pretty amazing stuff and surprisingly easy to use! The finished design actually infuses into the fabric so there is no texture on top like you have with heat transfer vinyl (HTV). It’s also more durable than HTV. Infusible ink is permanent so there’s no chance of cracking or peeling. Today I will teach you all about Cricut Infusible Ink transfer sheets: what they are, how to cut, weed and apply them, what you can make with them, what supplies you need, and tips & tricks for creating the perfect infusible ink project with your Cricut!

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What are Cricut Infusible Ink transfer sheets?

Cricut infusible Ink allows you to make professional quality heat transfer projects at home. Infusible ink is available in 12×12 sheets in both solid colors and print designs. You cut them out on your Cricut just like you would do with HTV but the difference is in the application. When you press the transfer sheets with a heat press, the ink permanently infuses into your project! The colors always remain vibrant and it won’t crack or peel. The design is totally smooth and will stretch and move with the fabric.

The color on the transfer sheets is more muted than it will appear in your final design. After heat is applied to the sheet, the color that infuses into your blank will be bright and vivid! The outside of the box shows pictures of what the final color will look like.

What can I make with Cricut Infusible Ink?

Cricut has a special line of blanks made specifically for infusible ink projects that includes t-shirts in men’s, women’s and kid’s sizes, baby bodysuits, tote bags and coasters. Infusible Ink only works on white or light colored polyester fabric. It is not compatible with cotton and won’t show up on dark colored t-shirts.

What supplies do I need to work with Cricut Infusible Ink?

Cricut Infusible Ink Transfer sheets – they come in a wide variety of colors and designs!
A Cricut machine — You can cut infusible ink sheets on any of the Cricut models — Cricut Maker 3, Cricut Maker, Cricut Explore Air 3, Cricut Explore Air 2, and Cricut Joy
Cricut Infusible Ink Blanks – The Cricut blanks have been specifically designed and tested to work with infusible ink. Theoretically, any polyester fabric should work but for best results, I recommend using an official Cricut blank.
Cricut EasyPress 2 – If you haven’t already bought a Cricut EasyPress 2, this is the perfect excuse to get one! Regular irons won’t work with infusible ink as they don’t get hot enough or have consistent enough heat. You also have to have a heat press large enough to cover the entire design. The Cricut EasyPress 2 is perfect for this project. (As well as all other Cricut projects….I seriously don’t know how I lived without it!) I recommend getting at least the 9×9 size which is sufficient to do most adult sized t-shirts. Note that the original Cricut EasyPress doesn’t get hot enough to ensure a perfect infusible ink transfer, so you may get less vibrant colors if you use it.
EasyPress Mat – Towels work fine when applying HTV but they absorb too much heat to work well with infusible ink. An EasyPress mat is recommended.
A standard grip mat
Lint roller – If you’re making t-shirts, you need to lint roll the fabric prior to pressing to ensure there is no fuzz (or dog hair!) that could mess up the design.
White card stock – you’ll need a piece of white card stock inside the shirt to protect the back of the shirt from possible bleed through of the ink. I’ve never had that happen, but better safe than sorry.
Butcher paper – this goes in between the transfer sheet and the EasyPress. It helps prevent any ink getting on the EasyPress and also protects the blank from overheating. Packages of infusible ink come with butcher paper so there is no need to purchase separately.
Heat Resistant Tape – optional, but helpful for holding down small pieces of your design securely. For example, I used it for the “Leader of the Pack” shirt pictured in this post to hold down the middle of the “P” which became detached during weeding.

Tips for working with Cricut Infusible Ink

Be very careful that your hands are completely dry and free of lotion. If your hands are wet or have any oils on them it can mess up the ink. Also, don’t let your dog lick infusible ink sheets. Yes, this happened to me. To the best of my knowledge they don’t taste good (although you’ll have to ask my dog Stella to confirm) and I don’t think I can use this sheet that has a perfect imprint of a dog tongue. Sigh.

Open your design in Cricut Design Space as you normally would for HTV. Put the infusible ink sheet on to a standard grip mat with the ink side facing up. If making a t-shirt, always mirror your design before cutting it out. Select Infusible Ink Transfer Sheet as your material and cut the design out.

It’s not unusual for the Cricut to cut through the liner of the infusible ink sheet in some places and that’s totally fine! As long as the majority of the liner stays intact it’ll be enough to hold the design in place while you apply heat.

Make sure your EasyPress is big enough to cover the entire design. Your finished project will have a line if the edge of your EasyPress plate overlaps your design. Two separate pressings are not recommended for infusible ink because too much heat can make the colors fade, and if anything shifts between presses the design could come out blurry or misaligned.

How do I weed Cricut Infusible Ink?

You weed infusible ink sheets differently than HTV. Remove the transfer sheet from the mat by peeling the mat back. Trim off any uncut portion of the transfer sheet so you can save it for another project. Then gently bend and roll the sheet in your hands to “crack” the design along the cut lines. Carefully remove any pieces you don’t want leaving the design you want to infuse on the transfer sheet.

Be careful that you don’t accidentally remove a piece of the sheet that is part of the design. During the cracking / weeding process on the “Leader of the Pack” design, the middle of the “P” became detached and I almost heated the design without it.

How do I apply Cricut Infusible Ink?

Pre-heat your EasyPress to the correct settings according to the Cricut Heat Guide. It’s very important to follow their recommendations exactly.

Place the t-shirt on top of the EasyPress mat and put a sheet of white cardstock inside the t-shirt to protect the back from any bleeding ink. Use the lint roller to remove any fuzz from the surface of the t-shirt. Then pre-heat your blank for 15 seconds.

I always use this simple trick to ensure my designs are perfectly centered: Fold the t-shirt in half and press a line right down the center. Then you can use this line as a guide for centering the design.

Let the shirt cool down completely after pre-heating, and then place the design ink side down on the shirt and cover the design with a piece of butcher paper. Then carefully place the EasyPress on top of the shirt and hold for the duration of time recommended in the Cricut Heat Guide.

Make sure you DO NOT move the EasyPress. Any movement can cause the design to “ghost,” which means the ink bleeds out of the intended area creating a shadow effect. Quickly and carefully remove the EasyPress after the allotted heat time, and let the shirt cool completely before removing the butcher paper and transfer sheet. I know it’s tempting to peek but don’t do it! The design could “ghost” if you lift the transfer sheet while it’s still hot. After cooling, lift the sheet to reveal your design and be amazed!

So which is better? HTV or Infusible Ink?

It depends on your project because they both have advantages and disadvantages. I’m pretty obsessed with infusible ink right now because I love making professional quality t-shirts that have smooth surfaces and vibrant colors. But infusible ink only works on white or light colored polyester shirts or compatible Cricut blanks so you’re limited with what you can create. The advantages of HTV is that it can be easily layered, can be applied to any surface that can withstand heat, and comes in fun finishes like glitter, foil, metallic, shimmer and holographic.

Here are Sophie and Audrey modeling some infusible ink shirts I made recently.

I hope you found this tutorial on using Cricut infusible ink helpful! Just let me know if you have any questions in the comments! You might also like these other Cricut posts:

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