Around the beginning of the year, I made an impulse decision to sell my Cricut Explore Air 2 and 9″ x 12″ heat press to a friend. My plan at the time was to upgrade to a Cricut Maker and a bigger heat press. I felt like the 9″ x 12″ press was a bit limiting, and I wanted a Maker so that I could cut fabric as well as vinyl. I bought a Cricut Maker back in April and started using it almost immediately for cutting fabric. But by the time I got ready to buy a new heat press, COVID-19 had taken over our world, and believe it or not, it was damned difficult to find a heat press in stock anywhere. All manner of crafting supplies were disappearing off the shelves around that time, so I decided I could wait.

And wait I did. In fact, I waited so long that by the time I could get a heat press, I no longer had the space to put it. As you may remember, I moved my studio from the formal living and dining area downstairs to the “extra” bedroom upstairs a few months ago. I have just enough space in here to have my desk, my sewing machines and my ironing station. It’s not the smallest room I’ve ever seen, but it most definitely isn’t the largest. Until our son decides to move out of the house, though, it’s all I have.

Even without a lot of space, I still wanted a heat press. I became accustomed to making my own t-shirts whenever I wanted something, and I missed that a lot after I sold my heat press. So I started researching alternatives, specifically the Cricut Easypress 12″ x 10″. Granted, it’s really not any bigger than my heat press was, but it does take up considerably less room. It sits on the end of my ironing station, but if I need to, I can move it out of the way.

 

Of course, as soon as I got it home, I had to give it a try. Fortunately, there’s a project included right in the box. Cricut is really good about that – they always seem to include a project in the box so you can try out your new toy immediately. In this case, it was just a cover for the Easypress.

 

I was impressed with how quickly the Easypress heats up. It seems much faster than my old heat press ever was, but to be fair, that heat press came from Amazon and had mixed reviews. Still, the heat was even and quick. I also like that when the press is ready to use, it makes a beeping sound to let you know. Since I bought it, I’ve used it a couple more times. My first real project was to try out the Infusible Ink transfer sheets that Cricut makes.

It isn’t perfect, but the problems weren’t with the transfer sheet, it was my own issue. Again, I was pleased with the performance of the product, overall. Like sublimation, infusible ink requires you to use blanks that are mostly polyester. This was a Cricut t-shirt, which I have to say is surprisingly nice. At $10 for the shirt at Michael’s, and another $12-18 for the infusible ink transfer sheets (depending on where you buy them, if they are on sale, and if the pack includes two or four sheets), I feel like it’s a reasonable price for a custom t-shirt. It’s not as inexpensive as vinyl, but not nearly as pricey as some tees I’ve seen on store racks.

My second real project was this vinyl t-shirt.

Now, this was my first time using BFlex vinyl, in this instance, the Gimme 5 variety, but I have to say I LOVE this vinyl. I picked it up at Direct Vinyl Supply in Cypress, and then went back and bought more of it. I sort of messed up this one, so I’ll be making another one, but again, it was through no fault of the product. I just didn’t put the pressure on the Easypress that I should have. There are some wrinkles in the design that aren’t super noticeable unless you touch it, but I am concerned that it will be problematic when I wash the garment. The t-shirt is just something I picked up from Walmart a couple of months ago that I originally intended to embroider but never got around to doing. I have another like this, so I will end up with two shirts with this design. But I’m ok with that.

As for size limitations, that is a real concern with the Infusible Ink, but not really with the vinyl. Vinyl can be layered, so if I have a bigger design than my Easypress, I can just cut it in sections and work with it like that. I can press one section, then move on to the next. I am pretty happy with that, even though it’s not as easy as just having a bigger press.

The one thing about the Easypress I’m less than thrilled about is that it’s a bit more difficult to keep pressure on it when I’m pressing something. Also, when working with vinyl, you have to flip the garment over and press from the back as well for 15 seconds. It’s a bit of an annoyance, but it doesn’t significantly impact what I’m doing. I just need to work out my pressure on the press, and I will be thrilled.

Even with all of that, I do intend to get a real heat press when I have the space. Like I said, at some point (hopefully soon), our son plans to move out and in to his own place. When that happens, I will be re-balancing things between rooms for my studio, and there should be room for a heat press. But for now, at least, I do really like the Easypress, and I will be using it a lot. I may be almost 52 years old, but I still really love graphic t-shirts, and now I can get back to making my own. I’m one happy lady!