To think there MUST be a smple, cheap way to print on fabric?

[MrsOverTheRoad]

Without buying special paper or using PVA glue?

The expensive paper things seem to give a nasty finish to things...like the image is all stiff looking and the PVA method seems to give a "cloudy" imperfect finish.

I want to print some images onto fabric to make cushions...Spoonflower is expensive!

AIBU to think I must be missing something??

I got some special home printer paper from Lidl. You print as normal then iron on the image which comes out as a mirror image. I suppose it depends on the quality of your ink, but the effect was more like poster paint than acrylic rubbery ink.
I made some kitchen towel borders by photocopying parts of a patchwork panel.
Pretty cheap.

Thanks but I did say.."Without buying special printer paper"

Sorry, best I could do...

In the U.K. there is woven monkey & contrado (can't rem spelling) I think they are a little cheaper.

Have you looked into print courses for yourself?

I bought some cotton that is a4 sheets that you can feed through a printer.

Have a look at Snapfish ... they do custom printed cushion covers using your own photos. They look quite nice but not used them myself.

Look at screen printing. You'd have to use a really simple stencil, but you can make them out of thin paper, vinyl, acetate sheets..you can start with just one colour, but with practice can move onto several colours. Would need photographic emulsion and a light to get photographic style images but it's easy once you know how. You can also buy mini screens that come with small stencils.

Thanks all...should have said but I'm in Oz. Children I want to copy actual images though...rather than make my own.

Bruffin that sounds hopeful...where did you get that?

this is it

There's simple, or there's cheap. Screen printing is the best way and it's it cheap, but kind of complicated

Even simpler/cheaper is printing directly onto the fabric - potato printing is the classic, but pencil erasers and wine corks make nice dots, and I've had interesting results from a potato masher...

Of course there is. I googled this a couple of weeks ago. Haven't tried it yet though.

pin.it/NFrYRqg

You can use the freezer paper method. Iron your fabric onto your freezer paper that is cut to A4 size (although I have used pritt stick and normal paper and this worked too), peel off the paper and soak the fabric in white vinegar in a baking dish (so it lays flat) for five minutes to fix the ink. Rinse under a cold tap and leave to dry. This works a treat!

Missed out an important step! Run the paper backed fabric through a inkjet printer!!!!

The image on this quilt block was printed using this method. Really vivid printing.

Pig that looks good! Is it "stiff" though?

Rhi I think that's just like Spoonflower...they're expensive.

Bruffin thanks! I wonder though...is it just cotton? Or is it treated or something? It SEEMS to be just ordinary fabric...what's to stop us just running fabric through the printer?

Its plain cotton stuck to a backing sheet. Which holds it stiff to print on. Not sure if its treated so the ink doesnt wash out. Once you print on it you have to wash it in cold water and then iron it

Does it go soft then? Or remain stiff?

Soft, you take off the backing sheet.

Right...thanks Briffin looks like that's what I'm gonna do!

The fabric I use is just ordinary white cotton, it stays soft as anything. This is a block for a Harry Potter quilt for my daughter so it has to be soft and pliable.