Durable when applied correctly
With proper application, puff printing holds its shape and texture through regular wear and washing.
Professional custom puff printing on apparel, available in Sydney and across Australia. We offer personalised puff printing services on apparel for businesses, brands, and creatives across Sydney and Australia. Specialising in bold, raised-texture print finishes that uplift the look and feel of any garment.
From tees and hoodies to caps and workwear, our puff printing delivers a premium result that stands out and lasts. Sydney-based. Australia-wide service. Quality guaranteed. With minimums starting at just 20 units for puff vinyl, it’s an accessible way to lift your branding without committing to large production volumes.
Puff printing is a specialty decoration technique that creates a raised, three-dimensional effect on logos and graphics. Using heat-activated materials or specialty puff inks, the design expands during application to produce a bold, tactile finish that stands out both visually and physically.
This specialised screen-printing technique is especially popular for:
Streetwear brands
Fashion drops
Bold varsity-style text
Event merchandise
Statement back prints
Premium casualwear
If you want your design to literally stand off the garment, puff printing is the perfect solution.
Puff printing performs best on medium to heavy-weight fabrics, including:
Puff printing is a specialised screen-printing technique that adds a raised, three-dimensional effect to designs on fabric. The process uses heat-reactive inks combined with a puff additive, which causes the printed ink to expand when exposed to high temperatures during curing.
The result is a bold, tactile finish that sits above the surface of the garment, giving designs a distinct physical presence that flat printing methods cannot replicate. Here is how it is done:
Artwork should be supplied in vector format (.AI, .EPS, or high-resolution PDF). Puff works best with bold, simple graphics and strong typography.
Fine details, gradients, and photographic artwork are not suitable for puff printing.
Choose from a wide range of solid puff vinyl colours to match your brand palette. Puff printing delivers strong, high-impact solid colour finishes.
The puff vinyl is precision-cut using a commercial plotter to ensure clean edges and accurate shapes.
The garment is briefly pre-pressed to remove moisture and wrinkles, ensuring optimal adhesion.
The design is applied using a professional heat press, typically between 150–160°C with controlled pressure.
The material expands during pressing to create the raised 3D effect.
Warning: Puff vinyl is designed for a single press. Re-pressing can flatten the texture.
Garments should rest for 24 hours before washing to allow the adhesive to fully bond.
With proper application, puff printing holds its shape and texture through regular wear and washing.
Puff printing has a contemporary edge that sits comfortably alongside current streetwear and apparel trends.
Puff printing commands attention. The raised finish makes logos and designs instantly noticeable on any garment.
Unlike flat printing, puff printing adds physical dimension to your design, creating a tactile quality that looks and feels premium.
The bold, textured finish of puff printing aligns naturally with streetwear design, making it a popular choice for apparel brands and drops.
Puff printing technique suits logos and text that need to make a statement, giving your brand a strong, confident presence on apparel.
| Feature | Puff Vinyl (HTV) | Puff Screen Printing |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Order | 20 units | 50 units |
| Setup Fees | No screen setup | Screen setup required |
| Best For | Small runs, fashion drops | Bulk orders, larger production |
| Colour Options | Wide range of solid colours | Custom ink colours |
| Finish | Bold raised texture | Softer raised ink finish |
| Cost Efficiency | Best for low–mid volume | Best for higher volume |
Puff printing is ideal for:
It is not recommended for:
There aren't many things our incredible DTF process cannot achieve! However, when choosing the colors for your artwork, it’s important to note that they may look different on a real product than what you see on your computer monitor. Even if you have calibrated your monitor to a specific color profile, there are various factors that influence the final appearance of colors on a printed product. Because of this, we can’t guarantee color accuracy 100%.
Our printers will convert your submitted print file from RGB to CMYK color space. This color conversion process changes the color gamut, or range of colors that can be expressed. You must be very cautious when using bright neon and pastel RGB values in your print files. Some examples include hot pinks, lime greens, construction orange, highlighter yellow, Easter egg shades, etc. You should also consider other factors like fabric material, garment color, and whether your print will require a white under base layer when choosing colors.
If color accuracy is important to you, we suggest ordering our pre-made color swatches on a sample product. You can use those swatches to decide which RGB values best compare to the desired results when printed on a physical product.
Custom puff printing is a specialised screen-printing technique that uses heat-reactive inks to create a raised, three-dimensional effect on garments. When exposed to heat during the curing process, the ink expands above the surface of the fabric, producing a bold and tactile finish that flat printing methods cannot replicate.
Puff printing works well on a wide range of apparel including t-shirts, hoodies, sweatshirts, caps and workwear. It performs best on smooth, flat fabric surfaces where the raised ink can expand evenly and produce a clean, consistent result.
Puff printing is best suited to bold, simple designs with solid shapes and clean edges. Logos, text and geometric forms produce the strongest results. Fine lines, small text and intricate artwork are not recommended, as the expanding ink can distort delicate details during the curing process.
Puff printing supports multiple solid colours, however each colour is applied as a separate screen layer. Gradients, shading and photographic imagery are not achievable with this technique, as the process is limited to flat, solid colour fills within each design element.
When applied correctly, puff printing is durable and holds its raised texture through regular wear and washing. To preserve the effect, garments should be washed inside out on a gentle cycle and never ironed directly over the printed area, as heat can flatten the raised texture permanently.
Yes. We are based in Sydney and offer custom puff printing services to clients across Australia. Orders can be placed online and we deliver nationwide, ensuring businesses and brands throughout the country have access to our printing services regardless of location.
Exact colour matching is not guaranteed with puff printing. The nature of puff inks means results may vary slightly from digital mockups or specified brand colours. We recommend discussing colour requirements with our team prior to production so expectations are clearly aligned before printing begins.
Minimum order quantities apply to custom puff printing due to the screen setup process involved. Please contact our team directly to discuss your order size and we will provide a quote tailored to your specific requirements and production needs.
Printing T-Shirts and Clothing can be complicated. We make the whole process easy!
When it comes to selecting the right clothing and printing technique, we understand the intricacies involved. If you require further information about various printing methods or wish to obtain a quote, we encourage you to reach out to us through our Quick Quote Form or via Email. Rest assured, our dedicated team will make every effort to promptly respond to your inquiry, typically within 24 to 48 hours of receiving your request.

