How to Use Cricut SportFlex Iron On Vinyl

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Are you ready to learn all about Cricut SportFlex Iron On? SportFlex is a Cricut Iron On that is perfect for stretchy materials. If you’ve ever had regular iron-on lift when you’ve used it on workout gear you are going to love Cricut Sportflex Iron-on.

How to Use Cricut SportFlex Iron On

Cricut SportFlex Iron On™ is a heat transfer vinyl that you cut with a Cricut machine. It is a perfect choice for stretchy fabrics and workout clothing like yoga pants, yoga tops, team jerseys, nylon activewear, and the Strongbond guarantee promises long-lasting iron-on results.

You can use a Cricut EasyPress™ or household iron to apply SportsFlex Iron On just make sure you’re using the correct temperature and follow all the recommendations in the Cricut Heat Guide.

My kids play a lot of sports and with a lot of sports comes a lot of laundry. I was tired of the kids wearing their game jerseys to practice so I made them a couple of practice jerseys each that they could wear and save their uniforms for game day.

This stretchable iron-on material bends and stretches without cracking which makes it perfect for tech fabrics and nylon or polyester materials. If your fabric has stretch to it you want to use SportFlex Iron-on.

To make these practice jerseys you’ll need the following supplies.

Supplies Used:

• Cricut Machine
• SportFlex Iron-On
• Cricut EasyPress
• Cricut EasyPress Mat
• Weeding Tool
• Shirt
• Wrestling Singlet

Fonts Used

• Varsity in Design Space

Cutting SportFlex Iron-On

Cutting SportFlex Iron-On is the same as cutting other Cricut HTV materials. Place your material shiny side down on the cutting mat and use the fine point blade to cut out your design.

You can cut SportFlex with any Cricut machine because it uses a fine point blade. The size of your design will be determined by the size of your base. Size is the only restriction that you may run into if you’re using the Cricut Joy machine.

Weeding HTV

SportFlex Iron-On weeds so nicely. I had no problem There is no difference between weeding SportFlex HTV and regular Cricut Iron-On. You’ll remove anything you don’t want to be pressed onto your finished product. Use a weeding tool to remove excess HTV.

SportFlex Iron-On Instructions

Always pre-heat your fabric to remove any moisture from your fabric. About 5-10 seconds is plenty of time to remove moisture.

Regardless of what heat source you’re using, place your image carrier sheet UP onto your fabric. You should be able to see your image read the correct way when it’s placed right on your fabric.

To apply SportFlex to your material with an EasyPress you need to use the Cricut Heat Guide to find out the appropriate temperature to use. The Cricut SportFlex Iron On temp is determined by the base material you’re using and if you’re using an EasyPress or iron.

Using a Household Iron

If you’re using an iron you will set it to a medium-high setting like the wool setting. You want to make sure you’re not using any steam at all, I like to remove any water from my iron. You’ll need to use medium pressure and I recommend pressing on a table or even the floor. You want a nice solid surface. Do not use an ironing board. When you push against an ironing board it flexes against you, you want something solid to press against.

With an iron, you need to treat it like a press. Place the iron in one location and press for the full 30 seconds before moving to a new location. Press each area for the full 30 seconds.

SportFlex Iron On Temperature with EasyPress

The Cricut Heat Guide makes it easy to find the right time and temperature to use for your EasyPress with SportFlex. For my fabric, the setting is 305 degrees for 30 seconds. When the front is finished, without removing the protective sheet, flip the shirt over and press the backside of the garment for 15 seconds.

SportFlex calls for a cool peel. This isn’t a cold peel or a warm peel. Allow your HTV to sit on the shirt until it is cool to the touch and then test removing the carrier sheet, if it’s lifting at all you can try pressing for a few more seconds and allowing it to cool a little longer.

Final Thoughts on Cricut SportFlex Iron-On

I can’t tell you how happy I am with this HTV material. Using it for the first time I wasn’t sure what to expect but it has enough stretch that it even fit over the top of football pads without cracking or lifting.

You could easily add a first name or last name to team jerseys or do what I did and create a fun shirt they can wear to practice.

Follow all the steps in the heat guide for a flawless iron-on application process. With the StrongBond Guarantee, as long as you follow the steps your design should last a really long time. SportFlex is also nice and thin, I feel like it’s thinner than other HTV materials which makes it feel really nice on fabric.

I even put SportFlex to the test with a vertical image down the leg of a wrestling singlet. This is a great way to make your child noticeable when everyone is wearing the same thing. You can add their name or do like I did and add the school/team name. SportFlex doesn’t feel bulky or scratchy along the edges of the design and I feel like it’s really stuck onto the material.

I really recommend you try it out and then let us know what you think. I know I’ll be reaching for it first if my fabric has any polyester at all.

FAQ

Can I use SportFlex on Cotton?

SportFlex is not recommended for use with cotton. There is actually not even a setting in the heat guide for using SportFlex with cotton fabrics.

Can I use SportFlex Iron-on on Maternity Clothes?

Yes, you can. If the fabric is a compatible fabric there is no reason you couldn’t use SportFlex on your maternity clothes.

What are the Care Instructions?

You should wait 24 hours before washing/wearing your finished product. Wash and dry inside out at whatever setting your fabric calls for. Don’t use bleach. Those are the recommendations from Cricut. I would also say stay away from washing on hot and drying on high.